Oh, Your Love Will Do

Isabelle’s point of view

I stood at the front of the small coffee shop, nervous and afraid. Ella and I had agreed to meet at 6:30, but I was early. My fear was deep-rooted. I liked Ella…a lot. She was gorgeous and talented, and since we met I was incapable of ceasing the constant flow of thoughts that surrounded her and only her. She was also the first girl I had ever asked out…or had ever been out with. Before her, only boys that had been appointed to me by my parents were involved in my dating life.

Now my parents were completely out of the picture, and so were those boys.

Time dragged on for ten long minutes before I decided to take a seat at one of the outside tables.

Fear incapacitated my ability to remain calm, and I as I sat, waiting, my heart palpitated in my chest. Five more minutes passed, and worry became constant. What if she didn’t show at all?

Just as I was preparing to stand and leave with defeat, my breath caught in my throat and my heart just about stopped.

There she was, walking down the sidewalk towards me, and she was beautiful…

I smiled and stood, dizzy and nervous. I still could not breathe…but I could smile, and I did.

Whenever she became close I seemed to regain the bit of consciousness that I lost upon first sight, and pulled her into a hug.

“You look beautiful”

She smiled and I detected a bit of pink in her cheeks. She was adorable.

“Thank you,” she murmured, studying her feet.

“Let’s go on inside,” I said, opening the door to the coffee shop that we approached and holding it open for her. She nodded and stepped inside, and I did so afterwards.

We got our coffee and sat at one of the tables in the room at the very back of the shop.

We spoke of our lives, and of our passions, and I learned that our situation was very much the same.

She, too, feared letting go, and allowing people to see her work for fear of failure and rejection. Following grade school she abandoned music altogether, much like myself with dancing. The day that I saw her playing had been her first encounter with her piano in months. Just as the day she caught me dancing was one of the first times I danced in months.

But the music did something to her, I noticed. Her eyes lit up when she spoke of it, and the day that I saw her playing, aside from the fear that she had been caught, there was a certain look of pure content in her eye. She seemed happy to reconnect with her passion.

Throughout the date I focused little on myself. I was more concerned with her. I wanted to know everything about her, and I found that my fondness for her grew as the time passed…and time passed far too quickly.

At 9:30 the man who owned the coffee shop warned us that they would be closing soon, and dread filled my chest. I enjoyed her company…I didn’t want to leave.

“Uhm, alright then.” I said, disappointed.

Ella and I stood, and left the coffee shop. The streets and sidewalk were wet, and the air was cool against our skin. It had rained while we were in the shop.

“So, can I walk you home?” I asked, longing to have her company for a little while longer.

She smiled and looked at me with bright eyes, nodding.

My smile matched hers, and as we began walking, her hand touched mine…

My heart raced in my chest, and I looked over at her. She seemed nervous, and her hand pulled away. She was unsure of whether she should hold my hand or not. But I wanted to hold hers…

I reassured her with a soft smile, and I took her hand in my own.