Love is in the eyes of the beholder

As I laid beneath the yellow and blue umbrella I heard the noises of the beach. They were the sounds of realistic relaxation. It was beautiful, just listening to it you could tell. I watched the sky as the clouds passed by in shapes of clowns, animals, lives to be led, and faces of angels. This sky was a brilliant blue, so beautiful not like all the others I’d seen. I saw the seagulls pass by gracefully. They were like the lions of the beach, so courageous. Many of them would get close enough for you to pet them…it was so amazing. One stared me strait in the eyes. Then for a moment we were one. I could see the adventures he had been on, the risks he had taken, and the wonderful, yet terrible life he had led. I hear the waves crash against the shore, and I am jerked back into reality. You can hear the children’s laughter for miles. I can smell the salt and sand it mixes with the many surrounding restaurants. Smells so sweet, with a bitter sweet taste. Behind me was a guy playing football…
His laughter shook me to the core. I wonder to myself what it would be like to know him. Maybe he was the class clown, varsity jock, or both. All I knew was the he could get some distance with a ball, make people laugh, and his eyes were the ocean tide. Once I saw his entrapping eyes he’d taken my heart. I can’t help but think I was at the beach that day to meet him. What if it was just a “mistake”. Freud says that there aren’t really “mistakes”, only lessons to be learned or so I think. I just knew that in the end we both thought it was just a mistake… He was beach bum, I thought he was normal. That was until I met his parents. We arrived at their mansion and my jaw dropped like a rock in water. It was an astonishing building, I can guarantee that. Once I got out of the car I felt underdressed like I was in jeans at a ball. You can imagine how scared I was.
I shouldn’t have been. They were the nicest people I had ever come into contact with. Damien’s parents wanted to see the girl that had cast a spell on their son. “Mom, Dad…this is Hope, my fiancée,” he introduced me so politely. Damien was never monogamous to any of his girlfriends. They say you have to try everything once. So far it was working out. Our love had gone so fast, within three months of dating he proposed. I thought to myself why would this heir to his family’s fortune want me? His mom was happy that he finally found love. The father on the other hand did not approve. I found that out when I overheard them speaking. “She isn’t one of us Damien! She only loves you because you’re worth 6 billion dollars,” he shouted, “Did you ever stop to think about that?” “She never knew about the money until tonight. She isn’t like other girls, Hope loves me for who I and, not what I can buy her. I love her and there is nothing you or anyone else can say or do to stop this marriage,” he replied with anger. By that time I’d ran as far as my legs could take me. The last thing I remember was that I’d fallen down, crying in the woods.
When I awoke I was in Damien’s bed wrapped in his arms. I felt safe in his arms…it was the only place I ever truly felt safe. Then again it was the only place I was truly scared. His smiling face was above me. Even though he was smiling I could still see the tears of sadness in his eyes. He leaned over and kissed me good morning. Then he asked (not that he needed to), “Did you hear me and dad fight last night?” “Yes, I did. Why doesn’t he like me? I can’t help the fact that I wasn’t born into money. I figured loving you was enough for them. I know it is for my parents and everyone else I know,” I sobbed. He could only hold me and tell me eventually things would look up. I ended up crying myself to sleep in his arms. He cared for me so much, I don’t understand why. Damien was the only man I’d ever been with that loved me back.
People assumed we were getting married to young. We probably should have listened to them. After all an extreme amount of people said we were. Maybe if we hadn’t been so head strong then we wouldn’t have gone through all the pain we did. The day I started planning the spring wedding, was the most exciting day of my life. That doesn’t mean that it was fun (nothing went according to plan). I started to hate being engaged. My mother and Dee’s mother fought over every little detail. God knows I love him, but I couldn’t take much more of their constant bickering. My girlfriends saw the distress signals I was sending off. The three of them ran to my rescue.
We ended up in this club called “The Black Heart”. I couldn’t hear the words to the music but I still hear the beat. Faith, my oldest and dearest friend, decided we needed to have “a few” drinks. I figured a few would be two or three. After three we went to have another three shots. I was feeling good and relaxed at this point. Being my happy, cheerful self, I went to dance. I bumped into a bunch of people until I almost tripped. I was saved by this Latino guy. He was tall, handsome, had brilliant blue eyes, and spoke cute broken English. My first mistake was accepting to dance with him. I may not have been completely sober, but I knew I led him on. Sheade, Faith, and Alisia came to join. We were all having a fantastic time…
The girls forgot about me and caught a cab. I didn’t have away home. Of course, I couldn’t drive my car because of my alcohol level. So I hitched a ride with Havier, the Latino guy I danced with. There was my second mistake. The ultimate screw up I made was going back with him to his apartment. I walked in and it was like a historical palace. He had original paintings of Picasso’s art hanging everywhere. He told me that painting was his life. That’s when I learned that he had done them all himself. We had some coffee and I told Havier about the wedding. I explained to him about the stress I was going through. He had just gotten over his fiancée. They split last year after she ran away with the best man. He said it was hard to understand. They were in love and had been together since they were five. He explained to me that maybe they waited to long.
Is their a time limit that you have to wait to get married? Havier waited to long and I didn’t even wait. Love is a mysterious little devil. It can drive the best of us crazy. He poured his heart and soul out to me. I fell for him and hit rock bottom. He said I was the fist person he could open up to since the incident with his ex. I told him that he was the only one I could confide in since I started planning the wedding. I told him that I knew it was damned before I started it. Then tears flooded my eyes and I couldn’t hold it back. “How could so much go wrong in such a little time? I love him; I do, but I’m going out of my mind with this crap. My mom wants classic his wants original, new, and hip. This is just like a domino effect! I can’t take it any more!” “Calm down Hope. You’re not around them any more. Hope you are here with me, out away from all that emotional hell. Take a deep breath, and open you eyes.” Then he brushed the hair out of my face and kissed me. It was so passionate…

(to be continued...)