They were driving. A speed limit sign flashed by. Did it say 75? I guess if it goes by so fast you can't read it then it means I'm going too fast, he thought. He looks at the dash. 95. Shit. He lets off the gas and the Diesel engine gives way to a smooth rumble from its typical high pitched grind. They were in the middle of nowhere Wyoming, or was it Utah at this point. Who could tell in the dead of night, what did it matter anyways. They could be sure of one thing, they weren't there yet. Where was there anyways she thought. 50 yards ahead two glowing eyes seemingly rose above the concrete on the shoulder of the highway. The lights of the truck reflected back brighter than any mile marker. Cruising at seventy five miles per hour they quickly passed it. She looked over at him "What.... What was that?" . He stared dead ahead, his mouth slightly opened, his jaw relaxed and unhinged. It felt like forever but seconds later he responded, in total confusion, "... I .... I don't know what I just saw. It...couldn't be...it... What did you see?" He swallowed uneasily, still staring dead ahead. She was still staring at him, her eyes teared up and she was terrified. She stuttered softly, "I...I think that was a little girl...I mean...I saw a little girl.... in a white dress...I looked directly into her eyes" the engine idled on as they coasted down the long dark windy road. "Stop the car" she said soft but firmly. He was transfixed. "God damnit stop the fucking car". He applied the brake and they slowly came to a stop as he pulled off onto the shoulder. They sat there for a moment. "We have to go back" she said again in the same soft but authoritative tone. "What if she needs help"....he didn't respond..."God damn it Jake what's wrong with you". He slowly turned his head and looked at her then quickly looked away again. "That...that wasn't a little girl...I mean, it was but...that's not all you saw and you know it" "tell me what else you saw, I need to know you saw it too" "I don't know what I saw" she responded." I just know we need to go back". as her voice faded out she turned her head and looked down at the floor. His voice grew angry "Tell me what you fucking saw" "We aren't going back if you saw the same thing I did". She continued looking at the floor but eventually spoke. "It was just a girl in a white dress, she looked like she needed help.." "Bullshit!" he yelled. "What was all that red shit all over her, did it not look like blood to you? Smeared all over that white dress, dripping from her face?" "Yes I fucking saw that, Jake, what the fuck, there was a bleeding girl on the side of the fucking road, we need to go back and help her". "Quit pretending you didn't fucking see it" he screamed. "Tell me you saw exactly what I did". "What the fuck did you see in her eyes Karen" "What was on her arms and legs?". He looked out the front window. More silence came over the car. She was now sobbing. She tried her best to get out a sentence "We were going so fast, I hardly got a good look, she looked hurt, she needs us". His voice started high and angry "Did you see how she was fucking standing, tell me what you saw in her eyes" his voice lowered to a whimper " I know you saw it too"

"Jesus Christ Karen! Are you ready yet?" Jake shouted from the bottom of the stairs. He had a playful smile on his face. If anyone else heard him they would assume he was actually angry. Karens head appears at the top of the stairs. "Hey! You're the one who, out of nowhere, decided we need to take a last minute weekend trip, so calm your shit I'm almost done" she replied with the same tone but with no visual indication of playfulness. Their back and forth was odd to some, but it was theirs and it worked. Jake walked into the kitchen and grabbed a diet soda from the fridge. This is going to be awesome he thought. He'd never really surprised her before. Sure he had always done a good job with gifts at Christmas time and for her birthday, but he wanted to do something random, something out of the blue that really showed her how much she meant to him. "Almost done asshole!" He heard her shout. He smiled. It had only been a year since they got together but he was madly in love. He'd been in love a few times before but not like this. Or maybe he hadn't, it didn't seem fair to use the word love in any other context that didn't regard how he felt for her. These feelings for her defined the word. It embodied the existence of something he had never known could exist between two people. It wasn't one of those storybook romances that started with love at first sight either. They had known each other for years. Always had mutual friends and on most occasions would end up at the same party or summer barbecue. He always found her attractive but she was nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn't until a year ago that things took a surprising turn.

The stairs erupted with deep bass thuds. "Alright dick face I'm ready!" She yelled as she stampeded down the stairs. He set the soda can in the sink and smiled. She turned the corner and stopped. She was wearing short jean shorts, a tight fitting black halter top and her favorite boots. His favorite outfit of hers. The jean shorts were frayed at the bottom, like someone fashioned them from an old pair of pants. The boots were black and worn. The leather creased and matte from years of wear and tear. They zipped up the back but had a mock buckle in the front that served no real purpose. The neck of her shirt came down low and showed the middle of her chest. It would be a good shirt for cleavage if she had any. She routinely wore stuff like that, she loved showing off her small chest. It was her way of owning it. She wasn't insecure, she was just confident that she didn't need a large chest to be sexy. It was rare for her to be wearing makeup but she was done up something extraordinary. Makeup was usually a waste of time for her. She had a natural look that didn't need any cosmetic touch ups. But when she did put it on, it just accentuated every perfect imperfection. Her eyes were large and almond shaped. The eyeliner and mascara highlighted them and made them an endless void that you never wanted to gaze away from. He didn't even really like brown eyes but hers were hypnotic. She leaned up against the wall with one hand, smiling from ear to ear. "You ready babe?" She asked through her teeth. "Well fuck, I think we have a few things we need to do around here before we leave" he said as he started walking toward her. "Ohhhhh no! You've been on my ass for the last hour about hurrying up. We need to get going!" She said as she walked backward away from him hiding her smile. He got close and she tries to turn and run. He grabbed her around the waist and she buckled at the knees into the fetal position. "Reeeaallllyyy" she said all the while giggling uncontrollably. He crouched down and kissed the top of her head, then the side of her face. " I love you" he whispered. "I love you too" she replied.

They sat there in silence for almost half an hour. Neither one could rationalize what they had seen, let alone speak. Karen finally shook off her gaze. "Jake, what are we going to do" she said in a low tone. Jake remained staring off into space. She could faintly see the expression on his face. It was dark but the lights from the dashboard lit up the right side of his face. He turned his head and looked over into her eyes. "Lets go back, maybe we can help. Besides, we don't have to get out of the car if we don't want to, right?" She feigned a smile and agreed. He put the truck into drive and spun the steering wheel to the left. Her hand made its way to his thigh and gripped it tightly. Half reassuring him in his decision and half out of anticipatory horror. The truck pulled around in a half circle and they headed down the road. He drove slowly as they crept back toward where they saw the girl. They both scanned the left side of the road. "How far back do you think it was" Karen asked. "Couldn't be too much further" Jake responded. Jake was keeping the truck steady at about fifteen miles per hour. After about a mile Jake started to think they must have passed it. He saw the back of the speed limit sign he had seen before when he realized he was speeding. "I think we've gone too far, I think that's the 75mph speed limit sign I saw earlier" he said. The truck rolled by and he decided to turn back around. He pulled the truck onto the right shoulder and spun it back around. "It was right after this sign that we saw it right" Jake asked. "Ya I think so" Karen responded barely paying attention to his words. She was staring out the front window intently, her eyes stretched wide. "Go slower" she said. This time Jake crept along at five miles per hour. There were no distinguishable landmarks to go off of. It was pitch black and the side of the road just looked the same no matter where they looked. After another mile he giggled to himself."What?" Karen asked. A smile started on Jake's face and he slowed the truck to a stop and put it in park. He looked over at her. "We've been driving for what, twelve hours now? Well....I'VE been driving for 12 hours."So?" She responded. "Not only that, but we've been up for what" He counted to himself "Dude, we've been awake for over 24 hours. Haven't you heard of people hallucinating from sleep deprivation? Not to mention the stories about people seeing things on the road at night after driving for a long time. I think we were just seeing things." Jake responded. She thought to herself for a second then shot back "Jake I know what I fucking saw, if that were the case why would we both see the exact same thing" "I do'nt know Karen but there is nothing out here, what do you want to do? Do you want to keep driving back and forth until we see it again?" he said with a sarcastic tone. "No, do whatever you want, you're being an asshole." He sped up and they were back driving toward their destination. "How much further anyways" she asked, trying to sound as unpleased as possible. "I don't know, check my phone" she turned on the cabin light and searched around. "Where is it" she said. "I think its in my pocket actually" he responded. He smiled at her. She stared back at him with not a hint of humor in her eyes. She was tired, no, she was exhausted. He was right, they had been awake for far too long and on the road for what seemed like forever. She leaned over to retrieve the phone from his pocket. It didn't help that his pants were unnecessarily tight on his thighs. He put his hips in the air to make things easier on her. She pried it out and opened the phone. "Give me that!" he exclaimed as he tore the phone from her hands. "You didn't really think I was going to give up the surprise after all this did you" he said still smiling inappropriately. "Just fucking tell me how much further till we get back to civilization and can get some fucking sleep" she said rather softly, her choice of words and level of anger not quite matching her tone of voice. She turned onto her right side, away from him and curled up onto the seat, leaning her head against the window and closing her eyes. He didn't respond. He peered down at his phone and opened up his map. The GPS had them 25 minutes east of Evanston. Still Wyoming. He started to feel bad. This was supposed to be a fun trip, something he did to show her how much he loved her. He looked over at her and realized he was probably being a bit of an asshole...She was always good at calling him out at his worst. He reached over and rubbed her back."Look babe, I'm sorry, its been a long day, and with all that shit that just happened I'm just overwhelmed and I'm sorry" She remained silent, perhaps she was asleep already. She reached over with her right hand and grabbed his and held it tight. Sometimes after they got angry with one another it was hard to talk it out, sometimes it was just easier to remain silent but show some sort of closeness. It was enough for him. They drove on. Lights appeared in the distance. Nothing spectacular, but enough to let him know this town in the middle of nowhere might have a place to sleep for the night. Jake wasn't much of an event planner. Most people would have plotted all the stops along the way, keeping close tabs on gas stops and places to eat and sleep. He got the idea of the destination in his head and that was it, no planning, no making sure everything went smoothly. He figured if something came up they would deal with it then, that was the whole point of an adventure right? "FUCK!" Jake screamed.

With his hands clasped around her waist he put her on her feet and turned her around. They were both smiling. They stared at one another. He wanted to go in for a kiss and taste her but was transfixed staring into her eyes, into her soul. He kept eye contact and kissed her chin. With both hands he grated them through her hair till his wrists settled behind her ears. He tilted her head back and softly kissed her neck. First the center then off to the side. Making his way up toward her ear. He gently put her ear lobe in between his teeth and bit down playfully whilst letting out a sigh of ecstacy through his breath. Following in close pursuit she let out a sigh of her own. He knew how to drive her absolutely crazy. She loved to be teased. The build up was sometimes enough in and of itself to send her over the edge. He liked teasing her because eventually she lost control. Once he got her to a certain point she took over. She pushed her lips into his aggressively. Their mouths closed at first. Then he felt her tongue. It made its way into his mouth. He always thought that to the outside observer they were kissing sloppily like a bunch of teenagers at their first drive in movie. But to him it was all passion. Their mouths couldn't open wide enough, they couldn't get deeper into one another. Once she got to this point, it was no longer a game of teasing. She would go straight for what she wanted. Sometimes playfully he would fight her back and make her feel his dominance, but other times he liked to be the one being dominated. It was just another reason they were perfect for one another. They both got to play both roles, there wasn't a stigma for him to always dominate her. She went straight for his belt buckle. She had become a pro at maintaining passionate kissing and removing his clothes at the same time. Her hands were magic, he couldn't get his belt unbuckled and pants unbuttoned faster if he did it himself. He was backed up against the sofa, she was pushing into him so much he almost fell over backward. His jeans dropped to the floor with the sound of a solid thud as the belt buckle struck the hardwood floor. She grabbed his shirt from the bottom and tore it over his head. He was standing there naked, as he never wore underwear. It was just one more item that needed to be washed daily and he couldn't be bothered by such things. She took a step back, and glared at him, like a cat ready to pounce on its prey. She was still fully clothed and he thought there was something wrong with that. But before he could remedy the situation she took a step forward and grabbed his waist. With one fluid motion she ended up on her knees. Staring up at him. It wasn't the same stare as you see in your typical porn movie. with the girl on her knees faking an orgasm as she puts him into her mouth. She looked up at him and it was love. She wasn't some trashy pornstar on her knees ready to receive him for a glamorous action shot for a movie. She was on her knees ready to receive him to show him how much he meant to her. She wanted to give him a feeling he never felt before. She wanted him to know how much she thought of him. How everyday that she woke up he was the first thing on her mind. Not because he was lying next to her but because he was the one constant. He was what got her through each and every day. And so she did. It was a good start to the action he thought, But it was far from his favorite. He still loved the look in her eyes as she looked up at him, taking him as far as she could. He never let her stay down for more than a few minutes, as soon as she started he immediately felt like he needed to be closer to her. She was all the way down there. Way Too far he thought. He leaned down and grabbed her under her arms and lifted her to her feet. She was incredible. There wasn't a single atom in her body that he wouldn't give the world for. He pulled her close and began kissing her with the same passion as before. This time it was his turn to undress her. He felt bad since she spent all that time getting ready and looking perfect, but he couldn't help himself. He pulled her top off and realized she hadn't been wearing a bra, the perks of small breasts he thought. It was hard to leave them uncovered and not pay the utmost attention to them. He grabbed one with his left hand. Massaging and kneeding it. He leaned over and put his lips around her left nipple and began alternating sucking and playfully nibbling. He would put it in between his teeth and gently tug before letting go and using his tongue making circles before sucking lightly. Karen let him know she enjoyed what he was doing through rhythmic motions and gentle moans. This was just the start he thought. He loved the way she wore those short jean shorts but hated the lack of easy access. They were too tight to pull to the side. He unbuttoned them as he made his lips back up to hers. They slid off without incident and like normal she wasn't wearing anything underneath either. She was trimmed but not completely shaved. Growing up he always preferred shaved to the skin but as he got older he found much more character in the subtleties of a little grown out hair. Now it was his turn to return the favor. He slowly crouched down then got onto his knees. Pulling her shorts down to her ankles. With the shorts still on it was a little difficult to get her legs apart but it was also half the fun with her being restrained in a way. She always told him he was great at going down on her. He pressed his mouth up against her and stuck out his tongue. It slid easily in its intended crease. He loved when she was already soaking by the time he got to this point. He loved the way she tasted. It was as if he couldn't get enough. He used his hands to spread her open so as to navigate deeper. That was more for him than her. He knew he could push her over the edge with external stimulation but even though it was technically for her, he had his own agenda. Almost forcefully he spun her around and pushed her up against the wall half bent over. This was his favorite view. With everything on display. It made her feel vulnerable, but it only added to the intensity. When they first got together she thought it was a little much to have him want to use his tongue on every inch of her body, but eventually it got to the point where she not only wanted it, she needed it. To know that he was that comfortable with her, that he loved every bit of her, sometimes the thought alone was enough to help finish herself off when she was alone. It didn't take long before she found him standing again, pressed up against her, breathing into her ear, kissing the back of her neck. She could feel him. She bent over a little more and reached around her back. She found him waiting, almost impatiently by the way he was breathing and grinding against her, she couldn't wait any longer. She used her hand to guide him inside until they both let out a similar sigh of passion. He pushed into her as hard as he could, making sure he was as close and as deep as possible. They literally couldn't be any closer to one another but it wasn't enough. Sex to them was finding new ways to close that gap, or atleast do their best trying. She turned her head to the side and grabbed the back of his head with her palm. He continued kissing her as he slowly went in and out. Even though this was the pinnacle of their experience, it was somewhat rare that she could get off from sex. It felt beyond amazing she always said, but anatomically she was built for external stimulation. Every once in a while though, it would happen out of nowhere and be at an intensity she previously didn't know existed. Jake backed away slightly and pulled her away from the wall, turning her at the hips until she faced him. He stood with one foot on her shorts until she was able to pull her foot free from its bondage. He pushed her up against the wall and supported her as he raised her up in his arms. She sat in his hands as he entered her again. He used his muscles to raise her up and down at his will. Holding her close, staring into her eyes as she raised and lowered. On every down stroke he ground into her hard, making sure he got as deep as possible, as close to her as possible. The kissing rose in intensity. It was chaotic. There was saliva dripping from both their lips. That's when she said it. "Im cumming" she let out, sounding as surprised as anyone else. Hearing this was enough for him as well. She began panting heavily as she used her hands on his shoulders to grind deeper onto him with exact precision. He didn't consider himself a noisy participant, usually. But times like this were the exception. His knees went weak and he let out a surprising string of groans. Nearing the end he leaned back and stared into her eyes, this only magnified the already climactic experience."I love you" he said between groans and missed breath."I love you more" She responded as her whole body trembled and shook.

The truck slid sideways to a stop. It was a miracle that it didn't flip over. Jake looked over and Karen was shaking and looking around. "Are you ok?" he said quickly, full of immediate concern. She didnt answer. Her eyes were wide and filled up with tears. "Babe! Answer me!" He grabbed her wrist and shook hard, trying to get her attention. She looked over at him. Her jaw hanging, her face full of confusion. "wha...what happened?" she said confused. "Jake....Jake are you ok? What happened?" "Im ok, are you ok?" he responded. "Ya....I think so" she replied as she looked around, still obviously shookin up. Jake immediately put the truck in reverse and gassed it. The truck jolted them both forward. He turned the wheel, put it in drive and gassed it again, this time sending them both the opposite direction back into their seats. The turbo squealed as the engine roared to life. "Jake what the fuck" she screamed. He wasnt paying any attention. The truck was speeding down the road into black nothingness. She grabbed Jakes thigh and pleaded with him "What is going on Jake, what happened.....Talk to me!". He stared straight ahead his foot still heavy on the accelerator. She gave up, she was afraid but she trusted him. They drove on, neither one of them saying a word. She took off her seat belt and lied her head against his thigh. Using her right hand to gently massage his leg. She could feel the reverberation from the accelerator through him. She could only hope everything was ok, but with everything that already happened that night, she didnt want to ask anymore questions. All she wanted was to trust in him and his judgement, relying on him and the protection he had always granted her. The truck finally came to a stop. She was afraid to raise her head up off his thigh. She felt his hand as it ran through her hair. "We are in Evanston....Still Wyoming but near the border of Utah." He finally said. They sat in front of a Prairie Inn. The sign showed vacancy. Typical for a Wednesday night in the middle of the week....in the middle of fucking nowhere he thought."What do you say we get a room?" he asked. "Ok" Karen answered politely, making sure to be the backbone she knew he probably needed at this point. She was curious to what had happened back there, but she didnt want to push him. She could tell he was upset and a little disturbed. He opened the door and the overhead light went on. "Lets see if we cant get a room" he said. She opened her door and stepped out into the brightly lit parking lot. The air wasnt cold like she had anticipated. It was stale and ambient, near what would be considered perfect. The motel wasnt anything special, but all they needed at this point was a bed she thought. They began to walk toward the front of the building. Two automatic doors greeted them. They walked inside and she grabbed his hand and gripped it tightly. She knew he needed her. They walked up to the front desk and rang the bell. It was 2am at this point and the bellhop on duty was surely wandering around getting random other job duties done. It didnt take long before a man appeared from a room next to the counter. He was a kid around 20 or so. Long shaggy hair and facial piercings. He was wearing a strange band tee and looked disheveled at best. Small town...weekday...night shift...makes sense she thought. "You guys lookin for a room?" the kid said as if he was doing his best stoner impression. "Ya, how much?" Jake responded, getting straight to the point. "$89 for the night" the kid responded. Jake took a wad of cash out of his pocket and began counting. The bills were neatly folded in half, and arranged by denomination. He wasnt the most organized guy but certain things he was very compulsive about. His money was one of them. Karen always noticed this about him. She watched him count out 4 20's and a 10. She thought it was stupid but she always loved watching him count out money. The way he was so meticulous. He set the cash on the counter. "With tax, that comes to $96.12" the kid mumbled. Jake grabbed the cash back and neatly arranged it back into his wad, pulling a $100 from the back and placing it on the counter. The kid grabbed it and put it into the register, replacing it on the counter with a few one dollar bills and an assortment of change. Along with the change he also placed 2 keycards onto the counter. "Room 217, take the elevator behind you to the second floor. It'll be down the hall on your left. "Thanks" Jake responded, grabbing one keycard for himself and handed the other to Karen. "Should we get the bags from the car?" Karen asked. "You go up and get settled, Ill grab them" Jake responded. He handed the card to Karen and headed toward the door. He walked out into the parking lot, the automatic doors shutting behind him. He stood there and just stared. Am I going fucking crazy he thought. I almost killed both of us, but I saw it again. Jake thought back to what he had seen. It was the little girl again, appearing out of nowhere right in the middle of the street. He swerved to avoid hitting her. More reflex than anything else. But he still hit something. He walked across the parking lot to the truck. As he got closer he paid more and more attention to the front grill. Once he got close enough he noticed it looked like it had blood on it. There was no dent or discernible marks but it was covered in red. He ran his finger through it, sure enough. He instantly felt sick and squatted down. He put his hands onto his head. What the fuck is going on here, he thought. He couldnt have possibly been hallucinating. There was evidence. That meant that the whole thing was real. Right? His mind raced, trying to find a logical explanation for everything that had happened. He came up with nothing besides maybe he hit an animal and his mind made him picture the girl again. He was unconvinced. He stood up and walked around the the side of the truck, unlocking it with the key fob. He grabbed the two his and hers bags from the back seat and shut the door again. I dont want Karen to know about this he thought. He didnt want to freak her out, he didnt want to ruin the trip for her. This was her trip, this was when he planned on proposing. He'd thought about how he would propose ever since they first started dating seriously. She was everything he had ever wanted. She treated him great, she was thoughtful, she didnt expect anything out of him. Anytime he had a bad day, even if he unintentionally took it out on her, she was understanding. She didnt take it personal. She understood that she was the only thing he ever wanted. She understood that sometimes he would lose his focus and say things he didnt mean, act like an asshole. But it didnt matter. She knew she would never find anyone like him again. For all his faults, he made up for them ten fold. He had his ups and downs, but it didnt matter to her, she knew who he was, she knew that his mood swings didnt take away from the fact that there wasnt anything he wouldnt do for her. He was passionate, he was definitely emotional, more than any other guy that she had ever met. But she understood that his emotion, his passion, although sometimes erratic and crazy, meant that he truly cared. More than most people, he was passionate on a whole different level. His passion transcended ordinary life, it was almost hard to put into words. No other man would ever be able to give her what he could, would be able to show her that same intensity. She had thought she was truly loved from previous boyfriends, but no one else made her feel like he did. She had other boyfriends that were always perfect, they never had a truly bad day, never really fought. And she hated it. Sometimes, the fights, the bad days, the misunderstandings, the clash of personality, these things were necessary, these thing were vital. They needed to happen. It was in times like these that reminded you that you werent in a relationship with yourself, that there was a completely different entity, a different individual, that wasnt necessarily like you at all, but at the same time, would fight like hell for middle ground to make it all work. Would do whatever it took to make sure that their idea of perfect and yours would intersect. Because both ideas were just as important. No one else was able to make her feel the way that he did. Like she was the only woman in the world. He walked back through the automatic doors into the hotel and made his way toward the elevator. The doors were closed and he pushed the up facing arrow button and waited. The button glowed yellow and he could hear the elevator returning to the ground floor. There was no one else in the lobby and the kid behind the desk seemed to disappear again. The elevators doors opened and he walked in. The elevator smelled of cigarettes. He pressed the Number 2 button for the second floor. The doors opened and he followed the kids directions. Halfway down the hallway he was there. Room 217. He retrieved the keycard from his pocket and put it in the slot, the light turned green and the bolt in the door unlatched. He walked into the room which was dimly lit by a single bed side light . He walked past the bathroom and around the corner. Karen was sitting on the bed with her knees pulled up to her chest and her head dropped between her legs. She felt him step into the room and raised her head up and looked over. She feigned a smile and crawled over to the side of the bed. "Are you ok?" She asked. Her voice low and concerned with the compassion of a concerned mother. Jake set the bags on the floor and walked over the where she was sitting . He got on his knees and dropped his head onto her chest. She cradled his head in her arms and kissed the top of his head. He wrapped his arms around her and squeezed. She could always tell how much he was hurting by how hard he squeezed, how close he held her. "Talk to me baby, tell me what happened" she whispered into his ear. When he was really upset, he felt like he couldnt speak. Even if he knew exactly what he wanted to say, he didnt know how to get it out. She understood this about him and had gotten accustomed to his silence. She didnt necessarily like it but she knew she just had to wait it out. She would be there for him when he came around. They sat this way for a few minutes. "Why dont we go take a shower and then get some sleep." She whispered to him again. She felt his grip around her loosen and he moved back and stood up. It was hard to read the expression on his face as he hadnt looked at her directly since he got into the room. He walked to the bathroom and turned on the light. She heard him turn on the shower. She remained perched on the end of the bed for a moment before walking over to the bags and getting a pair of clean underwear out of each bag. She walked into the bathroom and he was undressing with his back toward her. She stood in the doorway and watched. He took off his shirt and revealed her favorite part of his body. He had extremely wide shoulders which in addition to his back muscles made him look massive. He wasnt a tall man by any means, somewhere around or slightly above average height. 5'10'' She thought.He removed his underwear revealing his "cute butt" as she called it. Larger than most mens but just right in her mind. He turned around and thats when she saw his face. He didnt make any eye contact with her. Just looked toward the floor. He looked mentally beatin. He just stood there. She recognized the face, it was the one she would see after a particularly long and intense argument that was on the verge of going too far. After he had already lost all hope. Seeing him like this always hit her the hardest. Sometimes he would break down and cry, but atleast when he did that he was getting his emotions out, she felt that it was completely healthy. But when he looked like this, he would go completely numb. He shutdown completely and turned into a zombie. This wasnt healthy and it always scared her. Once he reached this point he was unreachable, she could be of no help. He was fighting the demons in his head and it was a battle that she could lend no aid. She stared directly at him and began undressing. The halter top came off first. Followed by the boots and the denim shorts. She stood there naked for a moment and stared at him. The shower had been running for a while at this point, obviously on hot as the steam had made the room humid and the mirrors were full of fog. She started toward him and grabbed his hands, interlocking their fingers. She nudged his chin toward the ceiling with the top of her head so that he was no longer staring at the floor. His eyes darted somewhere else. It was hard for him to look in someone elses eyes sometimes. He felt that they were a window into his soul. When he made eye contact he felt like the other person could stare directly into his mind and see his every thought and feeling. Times like these he avoided it, he avoided letting anyone see that far into him, for fear that they might see his demons, might see the battle raging inside of him. These battles were something he kept to himself, they were his problem and he did his best to not involve anyone else. Even if all they wanted to do was help. He knew they couldnt. She grabbed him, his jaw between the fingers and thumb of his right hand. She slowly directed his chin to match up with hers so that they were face to face. His eyes still wandered, avoiding her piercing gaze. "Look at me" she said softly....He swallowed hard and clenched his fists. She had given him an ultimatum. He always tried to do what she asked of him, it was only respectful. But times like this he was between a rock and a hard place. Just like when he felt it was impossible to speak, looking into her eyes right now shared the same impossibility. The ultimatum was that he had to choose between disappointing her, blocking her out, and facing what he feared most. Letting her stand face to face with the demons in his heart and in his head. He closed his eyes and stared at her from behind his lids. He was standing on a cliff in his mind and he knew he had to jump. He opened them. He was staring into the amaranthine vortex that was her eyes. Their eye contact bridged a connection between their souls and she downloaded his demons. She pulled the pain straight from inside him. "You saw her again didnt you?" Karen said.

He let her down softly and she could barely stand. He started giggling. After particularly intense orgasms he couldnt help put wear a permanent grin and giggle to himself. He figured it was all his brain chemicals going crazy and in those moments he was infinitely happy. Karen on the other hand always wore a serious face. It always took her a few minutes to get herself together with that feeling corsing through her veins. He walked her by the hand toward the couch where he lay her down and cuddled up beside her. He had always heard people talk about how people smell, and it being a great indicator if that person was right for you. These people tended to be pretty far out there already, into the whole spiritual and hippy culture. He didnt have anything against the idea but he had never really put any thought in it. After he met Karen he started paying attention little by little and it started making sense. When you lie next to someone in bed, there are scents that you randomly pick up on. These scents are hard to describe as they arent traditional and cant easily be labeled. He started to notice that if they were lying face to face for a while he would pick up on certain scents from her exhaled breath. He wouldnt say anything but he would wait till she exhaled and he would breath in deep. Thats when he really started believing. Everything that emenated from her was intoxicating to him. She was on her side and finally broke a smile. He was looking up at her with his face resting on her chest. "Youre the most amazing thing Ive ever seen..You are my sun and my moon, everything I know begins and ends with you" He said as he smiled. He always felt goofy talking to her like this but he didnt care. Sometimes lines like this just came to him. He had run out of ways to tell her how much he loved her, to explain to her exactly how he felt. Ever since then he would get strangely poetic with his words. After he watched movies or read books relating to love, he always absorbed the litle thigns that he had always missed before. The small cheezey sentences that women loved but most men failed to catch on to. "No one has ever looked at me like you do, you know that?" she whispered as a tear rolled down her face. Sometimes after she came she would get extremely emotional. Jake smiled even wider and wiped the tear from her face with his thumb. He reached up and kissed her lips. "What do you say we get going?" He said "What? No round two?" She replied sarcastically with a smile."Dont tempt me woman!" he said as he stood up and grabbed her hand. He pulled her to her feet. "So you really arent going to tell me where were going?" she asked. "Nope! I know you cant stand surprises but you also know that I dont give a fuck" He said humorously as he walked to the pile of clothes that littered the floor. He grabbed her clothes and threw them at her one by one. "Hey!" she exclaimed. "Get dressed lady, if you dont we will never make it out the door" he said as he pulled his pants on. While they were getting dressed the doorbell rang."Who the fuck?" jake shouted. He finished buttoning his shirt and walked to the door. He opened it and there was no one there. "Fuckin kids" he said to himself. He shut the door. "Who was it?" Karen asked from the other room. "No one was there, I think it was the neighbor kids nigger knocking" Jake responded as he stuffed his feet into his shoes. "What the fuck is nigger knocking?" Karen said as she came into the room. "Nigger knocking, ding dong ditch. I dont know what those little bastards are calling it these days. You know, when you ring a doorbell and run away? We used to do that shit all the time as kids." Jake explained. "Ya I get that but did you call it nigger knocking?" she asked changing her tone to slightly bothered. "No, but apparently some people did" He said laughing. He knew she hated that word and was just pushing her buttons. "Asshole" she whispered as she opened the front door and headed toward the truck. "Are you sure you have everything? Toothbruth? Tampons? Little bottle of spermicidal lube?" He yelled out the door still laughing at himself. She ignored him and climbed into the passenger seat. He ran around the house double checking all the locks and making sure everything was shut and locked. He grabbed his wallet and keys, locked the front door and headed for the truck. He opened the drivers door and jumped in. He drove a lifted 2005 chevy silverado 2500. He wasnt the type of guy to buy that type of truck but his friend was leaving the country and needed to sell it quick. Jake had just moved into the house and could really use a truck for the landscaping and so he bought it. Jake put the keys into the ignition and turned it over. He looked over at Karen and she was playing a game on her phone. "Youre not mad are you?" he asked her. "No, why would I be mad?" she responded in her typical of course im mad tone. He reached out and put his finger in her armpit and tickled her. "Stop!" she said but he had already hit the spot and she started squirming and giggling. "Im serious!" she yelled in between giggles trying to sound pissed off. He reached over with his other hand and grabbed her hips. He pulled her across the seat so she was directly next to him. "Im sorry ok, I was just having a little fun." he said being serious. "You know how much I hate that word" she responded, dropping the majority of the anger in her voice. "Well just so you know the truck is powered on love and it wont move until you kiss me...so...." he said smiling. She looked over at him and blew him a quick kiss. "Not really what I was going for but I'll take it!" He said as he put the truck into drive and pulled out of the drive way. He turned on the radio and zoned out. They made their way through town and jumped onto the interstate heading north.

He didnt speak. "What did you see?" Karen asked. He let go of her hands and opened the glass sliding door to the shower. Steam billowed out as he got in. He turned around, grabbed her hand and pulled her in with him. He stood back and placed her under the falling water. She ran her fingers through her hair getting it saturated. He grabbed the small bottle of shampoo and put a quarter sized amount into his palm. He pulled her into him so that her back was pressed up against her chest. He started massaging the shampoo into her hair massaging her scalp in the process. He kissed her left shoulder, and then the right. He rinsed his hands and placed her under the water again. She moved her hands from the front of her scalp to the back, rinsing the shampoo away. He grabbed the package of soap and tore the outer plastic packaging away. He threw the plastic over the shower door. Karen had finished rinsing her hair and was standing there staring at him. "Get under the water will you, its freezing." she insisted. He rubbed the bar of soap between his hands until the suds overflowed out of his palms. He placed the bar of soap on the shelf and starting massaging her neck, moving down to her shoulders and then outer arms. She held her eyes closed and enjoyed the feeling of his hands on her skin. He grabbed the bar of soap and replenished its suds. He got on his knees and faced her. He reached up and began massaging her chest moving slowly downward as he paved the way with gentle kisses. He stood up and looked at her. His eyes watered and he began to cry. "Baby, everything will be fine I promise. We will figure this out. Trust me ok?" she pleased with every ounce of passion in her body. "Im sorry" he responded. His head hung low and she pulled him in close. "Will you trust me?" she said as she held his head in her hands. He lifted his head and stared at her. Tears were streaming down his face. "Im sorry" he said between sobs. He opened the shower door and walked out of the bathroom. Karen started to cry. She hated to see him like this. He was sweetest man in the world, he deserved to be happy. She turned off the water and exited the shower. She grabbed a towl and threw in around her. All of a sudden she heard a deafening bang. Her ears started ringing and her heart stopped. She walked out into the bedroom and there he was. Jake was on the floor. He was on his knees slumped over and his head was face down into the carpet. Blood was quickly rushing from his head and spreading outward. She dropped to her knees. The air was ripped from her lungs and she could hardly breathe. "JAKE!" she screamed!. "JAKE PLEASE!" But he was dead. His demons had grabbed ahold and not let go. They had finally gotten the best of him. If only he could have hung on for a little while longer. She had just finally began to see them, he had just finally began to let someone in. To let someone help him. Maybe together they could have been strong enough.