She tried to hold it in, but she was barely keeping the tears at bay. She just had to get through the next couple minutes, that's all she had to do. She glanced at the clock and it seemed to be mocking her pain and making time slow down even more. She didn't know how she was going to hold it together until she got out of the building but she was going to have to. She looked around at the class, everyone's faces solemn but none looked about ready to burst into tears. She wondered if it was just her being emotional, but then she remembered the reason for it, and knew she wasn't and that everyone else was probably just to much in shock to comprehend. Oh the minutes couldn't possibly be moving any slower!
He was in shock and his first thoughts were of her. What was going through her mind? He was prepared to do whatever it took to get her through this. The whole campus seemed somber; even the bright sunshine and first real warm day of the year couldn't improve anyone's mood. He looked at the clock, class was almost finished and as soon as he could, he would be at her side.
One more minute. Really?! The teacher couldn't end one minute early? Even he didn't want to be here at this point, of that she was sure. He was saying his closing remarks, but like the rest of what he'd said in class, not a word registered. She could feel it coming, the tears, the pain, the remorse but she just had to push them aside. She wasn't going to make it out of the building though, that much she knew. She'd go to her practice room, the one she always used; that way no one would enter and bother her. The clock ticked and she grabbed her belongings and fast walked out of the room. Up the stairs, so many stairs, two rooms down the hall on the right. She didn't even bother to turn on the light, she just shut the door and slid against its glass pane and cried.
He had to get to her. His only thought was of getting to her before something happened; before she walked across the road without thinking, or worse, decided to take a drive to clear her head. These thoughts only made him take off at a dead run to get to her. The music building was where she'd had her class, maybe she would be there. He didn't see her around the building outside; he went inside and didn't see her on the classroom floor. A thought struck him and he ran up the stairs, two rooms down and on the right. The room was dark, but her backpack was against the door. He didn't hesitate as he opened the door and found her in a corner, knees pulled to her chest, sobbing uncontrollably. He went to her and placed a soft hand on her shoulder. She looked up, pain, sadness and confusion in her beautiful eyes. He half expected her to push him away; she hated to cry in front of him. However, these were different circumstances; she threw her arms around his neck and held on tight as he held her tightly in return.
Though she felt safe crying in the corner she had crawled to, she felt even safer in his arms. The moment he held her tight, she felt that this pain would in time subside. It would never completely go away, but in time it would be numb. Though she would never be able to understand why her friend took her own life, she would still miss her and love her. Memories kept flooding her mind and she cried even harder than before. Sob after sob, her body shaking and all she could do was hold onto her love, her comfort.
He had never seen her like this before, but then again, nothing like this had happened before. Her arms were gone from around his neck and she now gripped the front of his shirt tightly. His shirt grew damp from the tears she cried, but he couldn't care less right now. His angel, his love, was in complete and utter pain right now, that was all that mattered. A few tears escaped his eyes and fell into her hair; what had happened was starting to hit him now and he knew that soon they would both be a mess.
She felt herself being pulled into his lap as he sat cross-legged on the floor. She meant to just glance up quickly and then look away for she did not want him to see her upset like this; but when she looked into his face she could not look away. He was crying now too, something she had never seen before. It pained her to see him like this, his eyes apologized as she touched his face lovingly. She rested her head against his and they cried together, holding onto each other tighter and tighter by the minute afraid the other might disappear.
After a long while, neither one knew how long, their tears stopped, the shaking ceased and both felt they could get through this. It would be hard and more tears were bound to come in the next few weeks, but all they had to do was look at the other and know it wasn't impossible. She pulled back and looked in his eyes, unsure of what to say. He looked into hers, touched her tear stained face, then leaned forward and gently pressed his lips to her forehead, sealing a promise to always be by her side. She returned the promise by kissing his forehead. Weak smiles were traded and he stood, taking her hand to help her up, for she was weak from the crying. She looked in his eyes once again and hugged him tight one more time for extra strength. They pulled away and he took her hand firmly but devotedly and gave a small nod, encouraging her to start to move on. She gave a nod in return, knowing with him by her side she could. They walked out of the practice room, red-eyed and tear stained cheeks, but knowing they could find strength in the others love.
