Chapter 12: You're Beautiful

Zephyr had closed her eyes, preparing for her face to slam into the stairs. She was planning for a broken nose, ready for gushing blood and walking to the nearest hospital. Then the strangest thing happened. A guy caught her. She knew it was a guy because his arms felt like a guy's would, and he said,

"Woah, hotshot," In a smooth tenor voice. There was something else. The way she was pressed against him felt like something from long ago. But that had involved tearstains while this event only called for severe blushing.

And an apology.

That was also a profound moment of her childhood. An apology. She looked up, trying to free herself of his firm grasp. She looked up and came face to face with a pair of amber eyes.

Zephyr recognized the messy blond and purple hair, and took a note that the t-shirt she was pressed against was also purple. His skin was a little tan, and his face was broad and kind. He was grinning like a fool. The boy was about a head taller than her and tilted his head as he studied her in amazement.

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He felt a jolt run through him when he noticed that they way he was holding her felt exactly like that night in September. He saw her eyes boring into him, those pale, pale, strong eyes. Her face was sprinkled lightly with freckles and her hair, a red so deep it was almost black, was long and straight. She was pale and a head shorter than him.

I saw an angel

Of this I'm sure

The two froze like that, in an embrace that seemed never to begin and never to end. They were both breathless, especially Zephyr, but words would've ruined the moment anyway. Fifteen, twenty minutes must've passed before either stopped breathing heavily, and still they remained silent until a girl passed them, maybe at the age of thirty or so.

"Get a room!" Her laugh was strangled by cigarette smoke.

"Odd…?"

You're beautiful.
You're beautiful

Yes, there was something very odd about this situation. Yet there was also something magical, something beautiful, and something sacred.

"Zeph…yr." He stated simply, adding the last part of her name in case it wasn't really her, then holding her at arm's length, looking her up and down. She did the same. Things had changed, but remained primarily the same.

You're beautiful, it's true.

"You're handsome," She said, smiling at him, not letting go of his arms. She didn't want this to be a dream.

"You're beautiful," He said sheepishly, blushing and turning away.

…we shared a moment that will last till the end…

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A couple lines from James Blunt's "You're Beautiful" in there. Happy New Year's!