Take A Breath, Let the Rest Come Easy

Alex stepped outside his apartment and looked down the street into the busy bustling city. It was bright at night in downtown Baltimore. The town was usually bursting with activity, like New York- with less angry people and more street bums. He placed the giant box full of girly things out onto the street. The rain poured rapidly on his head and over him. He looked up at the dark sky and watched a strike of lightening light up the ground and then a rumble of thunder shake the ground.

He sighed and looked down the box that was getting soaked with not only rain- but also the drainage from up the street. He picked up the box, his conscience getting the best of him- and placed it on the steps that were covered from the rain. We went to step back into his house when the sound of heels clicked louder towards him. He turned around and squinted his eyes in the rain.

“No, Lauren! I told you, I’m not going on a double date with you.”

Alex watched the girl careen towards him. She was wearing a black pencil skirt, and blue blouse with no jacket. She carried a black umbrella over her head. Her hair was pulled back into a slick ponytail, and she was jumping slightly to dodge the holes and cracks in the sidewalk.

Alex looked down to the direction she was so quickly headed. It was dark, and there wasn’t as much lighting down there. He bit his lip, wondering if he should follow the girl- just to be safe. He knew these streets much better than it looked like she did, and he knew that the direction she was headed wasn’t exactly the safest part of Baltimore. The girl slipped past him, glancing in his direction with a brief smile before turning back to watching her step.

“No, I am in no form racist against Jewish people!” She wailed into the phone. Alex watched her behind. She was skinny, and Alex couldn’t stop himself from staring at her backside.

Not a moment later did he hear a snap, and a yelp from the girl.

He instantly darted out of the house and went to catch up with her. He struggled to see through the harsh rain pellets, and hoped he wouldn’t scare her by coming up from behind. “Ow!” She muttered repeatedly, and slipped off her black heel. The long heel had snapped in half, and was dangling by a thread. She hopped around, wincing at the pain in her foot.

“Are you alright?” Alex shouted above the rain pellets. Grace jumped and turned around abruptly.

“Yeah- I um… I just broke my heel.” She said, putting up the shoe for him to see. “Lauren, I’ll call you back.” She stated into her phone and then put it into her purse.

She held the umbrella out for Alex to stand under. Alex stood unmoving for a minute. Those eyes. He had seen those eyes before. The bright green showed a great contrast against the dark night. They were big and beautiful. Alex stopped himself from staring and cleared his throat. “I’ll be okay.” Grace reassured Alex.

She hobbled around and managed to gimp around to get her other heel off. “I guess I won’t be needing these.” She chuckled lightly and threw the shoes into the street. Her eyes squinted in the darkness, there was something familiar about those eyebrows. She had seen him before.

Grace winced at the increased pain in her twisted ankle. Alex quickly grasped her arm, and took the umbrella from her, holding it over her head. “Can I walk you home?” He asked.

Grace looked up at him, half scared/ half intrigued. “I don’t know…” She blinked multiple times. “Are you an ax murderer?”

Alex chuckled. “No. No I’m not.” He bit his lip once more, nervously, and then decided to tell her. “I’m Alex Gaskarth. I think we’ve met.” He said.

Grace’s eyes popped open in epiphany. “Oh yes! I had dinner at your mother’s house!” She mused, and winced once more as they both hobbled down the street. Grace relaxed against his firm grip.
She was exhausted from work, and completely drained. The last thing she needed was a twisted ankle. When Alex had showed up next to her, she was completely shocked. Shocked that a tall man had snuck up on her in the middle of the night, and also shocked that it was the same guy she had met a week ago. The same one who she hated to admit was on her mind all the time.

“This is my apartment.” She said, pointing to the black apartment door. Alex helped her up the steps and slid his hand around her waist to hoist her up the apartment flight. He couldn’t help but notice how small she actually was. His hands formed perfectly around her hips. She fiddled with the key in the door and the door slid open. She turned on the light, and Pooka began to bark from his cage. Alex set the wet umbrella to the side and watched as Grace hopped on one foot to the couch gracefully. “Can you let my dog out, please?” She asked.

Alex nodded and went over to the cage.

The little dog crouched down and growled at Alex. “Hi, little guy.” He said. Pooka barked loudly and continued to growl. Alex let the cage open and the dog shuffled out and grabbed onto his pant leg. “Um…?” Alex shrugged nervously trying to get the dog off him.

“Pooka! Down!” Grace shouted from the couch. The dog stopped and looked over at Grace. “Down.” She repeated. The little dog let go of Alex and pranced off to his mass of blankets in the corner of the room. “That’s strange… he normally likes everyone.” Grace laughed.

“I have a dog too.” Alex said, smiling at the blonde girl. “His name is Baz.” Alex looked over at the dog and then back at Grace who was pulling the ponytail out of her hair and scratching her head. “Well actually it’s Sebastian.” He scratched the back of his head, nervously.

Alex wasn’t usually nervous around girls. This was a strange feeling for him. He couldn’t quite comprehend how strikingly beautiful this girl was. Sure he had noticed it when he came home to his Mom’s house. But he hadn’t really, really been looking.

Grace pulled her leg close to her and moaned at the pain in her ankle. “Let me get you some ice.” Alex said, and hurriedly scurried into the kitchen.