At first he didn't really take her seriously when she asked. She wasn't one for cars, more so for driving. She loved being a passenger.
She liked bikes; he knew this too. He followed her around the block with his car when he tried asking her out for the first time. She ignored him and took a sharp turn to the park, knowing he wouldn't be able to enter. It was a good thing the park only had one exit, and so he patiently waited for her to appear. Again, he was ignored, but being the stubborn guy, he followed her around for a whole week before she even acknowledged his presence. Maybe it was because he stopped pleading in a very loud voice; maybe he had suddenly become simply irresistible, or maybe it was both.
They started dating and he took her to places. One weekend they went to the beach and got their clothes wet after a splashing contest. They lay on the hood of his car, staring at the clouds. She thanked him, because she had never been to a beach before. Not quite believing, he turned sideways and watched her eyes dance while she recalled how nice the water felt on her skin.
He drove to the outskirts of the city and parked on a hill overlooking the night skyline. She thanked him again because she had never been there before, and he couldn't stop the laughter that made him suddenly feel sick because for some reason he knew deep down that she was telling the truth. He stuttered in his apology but she merely smiled; taking his hand in hers she explained that it was understandable if he found her weird. He did not, and he made sure she knew it when he placed a kiss on her cheek before she got out the car.
Soon enough he became convinced that she hadn't traveled much and he made sure they went to different places every time. She didn't talk much but she smiled a lot. When she opened her mouth to speak he would listen intently; sometimes he wondered if he looked like a fool ogling at her. He would talk sometimes, and he tried to be profound but failed miserably because big words are just too hard to say and big words are just not him. She rewarded him with the sound of her laughter, and the assurance that it was alright and that he didn't have to pretend for her. That was when he took her in his arms and kissed her for the first time.
They went to the beach again because they ran out of places to go. She said she didn't mind, and her eyes watered as the sun set in the horizon. She straddled him on the back seat and asked him to teach her how to drive. She kissed him without waiting for an answer, pressing her body as close as possible. She kissed his eyes, his nose, his cheeks, his ears; she kissed his neck and remained there till he felt a tear trickle down his skin and he saw beneath her jacket fresh bruises the size of fists and he tried to take off her clothes but she refused and pulled him closer and begged him not to see. Teach me how to drive, she said.
She fell asleep in his arms and they remained where they were till morning. He woke up early and began taking off their clothes. He carried her in his arms and he cried for the scars that began to present themselves to him, in every part of her body that wasn't covered in clothing. Suddenly he understood why she seemed so frail and at times she didn't seem to have the strength to hold his hand. He slowly dipped her body in the salty water and she woke up with a gasp and a wail that made her lose her voice for a moment before she heaved a breath and the tears flowed again. I'm here, he whispered, kissing her forehead as he cried with her, holding her tight as he sank their bodies in the water. He found a spot deep enough where he could sit her in between, and he could still tell the difference between the cold water that splashed and the tears in his arms at the painful pricking on her fresh wounds.
He refused to bring her back home, and she did not object when he brought her to his bathroom and took her to the shower. He waited outside till she finished and wrapped her in a warm towel and even warmer kisses. She fell asleep in his bed and he left to buy her clothes.
She was gone when he came back.