Plight of Amour.

I sat in my office floor all night, staring out the window. I wrote three chapters for Plight of Amour when I arrived home from the concert, then when I couldn’t go to sleep, I came back into the only place where I could think in peace.

I wrapped my arms around my knees and leaned my head against my desk.

The moon was bright outside. It hung very low in the sky, like it was just outside my window. The bright silver rays come through the window spread across me.

I closed my eyes peacefully.

My head was still reeling from the exciting day I had been through. I couldn’t exactly get them completely straight. The back of my neck felt like I had been shot with a .12 gauge shotgun and the pain was traveling its way up into my head.

I put my hands on the wood floor and pushed myself into a standing position.

I stumbled out into the hallway. My left leg was pricking with pins and needles as the blood ran back to it.

I tripped on the last step and almost went sprawling onto the kitchen floor. I managed to grab the railing before I could do so and spun myself against the oversized table.

I groaned.

Where had Rillia put the aspirin?

It was in one of the kitchen cabinets, but where would that be?

I went across to the counter and began opening the small cabinets positioned to the left of the sink.

I grabbed a glass from one of the cabinets and continued my search.

“Oh, Rillia. Why must you hide all the medicine?” I murmured, throwing open the last cabinet.

It’s because she’s afraid you’ll kill yourself one of these days. My bad voice apparently never sleeps.

“Of course. That’s why.” I left the kitchen and hurried through the living room to get to the bathroom. I threw open the medicine cabinet.

Finally I saw the white bottle sitting in front of me. I grabbed it and stole two pills from it before heading back into the kitchen.

I filled my glass with juice from the fridge and downed my pills thankfully. Maybe now the incessant pain would finally go away.

I put my glass on the table and leaned on the backdoor. My fingers gingerly touched my lips.

He had seriously kissed them.

I sighed deeply, dreamily.

And the kiss had been so much better than I ever remembered.

Suddenly, I felt the door shaking behind me. There was also a distinct banging.

I whipped around, terror striking in my heart.

It could have been some crazy psycho bent on killing innocent teenaged girls and their crazy sisters.

I couldn’t die!

I had to see Bill!

But…when I turned around and squinted into the darkness, Bill was standing on our back deck, his hair looking messier than normal. He was panting.

I swung open the door, grabbed his arm, and pulled him inside.

“What the hell are you doing?” I cried, looking him up and down.

Bill grinned. “I had to come see you,” he whispered. “We didn’t get to finish talking.”

“How did you find out where I live?” As soon as I said it, I shook my head. “Georg.”

“Yeah. He’ll answer anything if it involves you.” Bill chuckled.

I held out my hand. “Give me your jacket, dear.”

Bill slid out of it, but instead of handing it to me, he threw it on the kitchen table.

I laughed. “You’re so weird.”

I self consciously pulled at the hem of my shirt …and realized I was still in my pajamas. And not cute pajamas either.

“Oh, God,” I groaned.

Bill raised an eyebrow. “You okay, Calla?”

“Yes, I’m fine. I just realized that you’re here in the middle of the night and I’m standing here with my hair messy and in disgusting flannel pajamas,” I confessed without a second thought.

He looked me up and down, much like I had when he walked in, but when he looked back at my face, he was smirking.

“I think you look beautiful,” he whispered.

I giggled like a school girl and threw my arms around him. He hugged me back, rocking us form side to side like he always did when we were younger.

My eyelids felt heavy.

“You should have waited to come over until tomorrow,” I muttered against his chest. “I’m really tired.”

Bill laughed. “Then I’ll just have to sing you to sleep, Calla Lily.”

“That sounds nice,” I whispered, my eyes involuntarily closing.

He lifted me up into his arms. He’s apparently much stronger than he looks…Or maybe my ninety eight pounds is lighter than I thought.

I felt him walk up the stairs and soon, I heard my bedroom door open and then click close.

I opened my eyes. Bill pulled the covers down and stuck me in them. He then laid down beside me.

“What do you want me to sing?” Bill asked, stroking his finger down the bridge of my nose.

I closed my eyes again and sighed contently. “Anything you want.”

Bill fell silent, deliberating, his finger never stopping the rhythmic stroking of my nose.

“English or German?”

“English,” I murmured.

He cleared his throat and slowly began singing the beautiful words of 1000 Oceans. How he knew that song gave me the chills I would never know.

I smiled.

Just like when we were younger. I thought. He’s singing me to sleep…

And neither my good voice nor my bad voice argued with me.

They were asleep as well.

Just before I was completely out of it, Bill kissed my forehead and whispered, “Sweet dreams, my Calla Lily.”

/-/-/-/

“Seemed to stop my breath. My head on your chest, waiting to cave in. From the bottom of my…Hear your voice again. Could we dim the sun and wonder where we’ve been. Maybe you and me, so kiss me like you did. My heart stopped beating, such a softer sin.”

I flipped the pancake expertly in the pan. The perfect golden brown color made me smile even wider than I already was.

I flopped the fourth pancake onto the plate on the counter and flipped that particular eye on the stove off.

“I’m melting, I’m melting. In your eyes. I lost my place, could stay a while,” I sang, dancing rhythmically. “And I’m melting in your eyes. Like my first time, that I caught fire. Just stay with me, lay with now!”

I pushed the sizzling bacon around, somehow avoiding getting popped.

“Never caught my breath. Every second I’m without you I’m a mess. Ever know each other. Trust these words are stones. Why cuts aren’t healing. Learning how to love. I’m melting!”

I threw the bacon into its own plate and turned the stove off completely. I scooped the two plates up and a bottle of syrup and put them on the empty kitchen table.

I grabbed a plate, put two pancakes on it, a piece of bacon, and doused it in syrup.

I cut off a triangle of pancake and stuck it in my mouth, chewing very slowly.

Thank God, she’s done singing! my bad voice cried.

Ooh, pancakes! I giggled at my good voice.

“Yes, my singing rampage is over, bad voice,” I said between bites.

My sudden singing rampage started the moment I woke up and saw the note Bill had left on my bedside table.

Calla Lily,

I am terribly sorry that I have to leave while you are still sleeping—oh, you look like such an angel right now. I wish you could see yourself.

But do not fret. I will call you when I get the chance and we will work a date or something out.

You are the best.

Bill.

I wriggled around in my seat.

Things couldn’t get much better. We were already so close to having our relationship together again, even after one short day and a random nighttime visit.

Rillia’s footfalls echoed from upstairs, bringing me back to reality. I glanced at the staircase.

Rillia came hopping down, dressed very fancy.

“You look nice,” I complimented.

“Hey, thanks. Today’s my first day at that therapist’s office,” Rillia said, sitting down beside me at the table. “I want to make a good first impression.”

“Mmm.” I popped a piece bacon in my mouth. “You’ll do fine.”

“Really? Because Teniell wasn’t so sure. She didn’t know if all my piercings would kind of…off put them. So I took them out.”

I inspected her face. How had I not noticed?

“Oh, wow. You have a lot of holes in your face, honey,” I breathed.

“I know! Do I look like a complete idiot or what? Should I put them back in?” Rillia grabbed the plate of pancakes and smothered them in syrup. She began eating ravenously.

“I think you should,” I answered. “You look cooler with them in.”

Rillia nodded. “I’ll put them back in before I leave. Calla, these are great! Since when did you start cooking again?”

“Since Bill paid me a visit at four in the morning.”

Rillia froze, her fork suspended in the air. A string of syrup was visible, stretching up from the plate.

“What?” I whispered.

Oh, no. Since when did Rillia become a protective older sister?

“Bill…w-was in your…room at four in the morning?” she stammered.

“Yes,” I said slowly. “But we didn’t do anything. I swear.”

Rillia grinned. “That’s why you’re so happy! I knew something was different!”

I laughed, eating more of my pancake.

Rillia finished before me and ran upstairs to put her piercings back in. I remained at the kitchen table, on of my hands twirling my Blackberry around absently. I wanted him to call. I already missed the sound of his beautiful voice.

I finished my food and washed up the dishes, silently, listening to Bill sing me to sleep. I smiled and, despite my voices telling me otherwise, started singing along.

“You really are happy!” Rillia exclaimed, hopping back into the kitchen.

“I really am,” I called, rinsing off the last pan. I flipped off the faucet.

Rillia leaned against the counter beside me.

I glanced at her. “Hey, see! You do look better with your piercings in.”

“Yeah, I hope you’re not the only one that thinks so.”

I waved my hand to and fro. “Darling, everybody loves you. You will make a great impression, okay?”

“Okay…But remember that you can call me if anything bad happens, okay? I’ll only be downtown. And if you get scared call one of your friends.” She grinned widely. “Teniell told me you had a lot of them.”

I laughed dismissively and dried my hands with a dish towel.

“What all did Teniell tell you yesterday?” I questioned.

“Well,” Rillia shifted on her feet as she thought. “She said that you, Georg, and Tom are extremely close. There were many hugs. You cried during most of the songs, which some of them were written about you.”

I grinned, but she wasn’t finished.

“Then Bill asked you to come out on the stage and you two sang together.” She tapped her index finger against her chin. “Oh, and then you had an on stage kiss. Your first kiss in five years!”

Rillia threw her arms around me. “I’m so proud of you! I knew that your plight would go through!”

“I know,” I whispered, hugging her back. “Thank you for believing in us.”

“It’s my pleasure.” Rillia pulled away and grabbed her purse from the hook on the wall. “I should get going, sweetie. I love you.”

“I love you, too, Rillia.”

She kissed my cheek and hurried out of the kitchen.

/-/-/-/

The movie was mildly interesting.

I had no idea what was going on, but it was interesting nonetheless.

I think the girl might be dying…And that guy is in love with her.

I’m not sure. It was obviously very old, and they had cut some things out, because it made no sense in the least, but it was something to occupy my time.

My Blackberry sat beside me on the couch, still silent. Not even a text message from him.

I was beginning to think I imagined all of it. Maybe I was dreaming this all.

“How could I be dreaming this all when Teniell was there, too?” I whispered, looking down at the knee of my pajamas.

Maybe I was dreaming the whole move to Hamburg.

Yes, that would explain a lot.

No, more than a lot.

I put my phone on the coffee table and laid down on the couch, pulling my legs to my chest.

I just needed to sleep.

I hadn’t slept that much last night, and what little I did was because of Bill.

My eyes closed.

The couch felt very comfortable…

Oh, God!

What the hell was screaming?

I sat up quickly and looked around. My Blackberry was shaking around and ringing loudly.

I grabbed my phone from the table and pressed talk.

“Hello?” I asked groggily.

“Calla?”

HA! I knew he would call.

“Hi, Bill,” I whispered, running my hand through my hair. “What time is it?”

“It’s three, why?”

So I had slept for four hours. Wow.

“Nothing,” I answered with a yawn. “I’m so happy you called.”

“I’m happy I finally got to call. I was busy the rest of the day, but I finally got enough time to,” Bill said. “I missed hearing your voice.”

I smiled. “I missed hearing your voice, too. And thank you for last night.”

Bill laughed beautifully, making my heart melt.

“It was no problem,” he stated. “I wanted to see you, and I really missed singing you to sleep.”

“I missed you singing me to sleep,” I whispered. I laid my head on my knee. “I just missed you. I missed everything that we did together.”

“Aw. That was cute,” Bill cooed. “Did you get my note?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want to go out, then?”

I couldn’t hide my smile. “Yes. I would love that.”

“Tomorrow. I’ll pick you up.”

“Okay.”

Tell him that you love him! my good voice yelled.

No, no! Don’t! This time, I agreed with my bad voice. What if he wasn’t ready to love me completely again? I didn’t want to push it.

He would tell me he loved me when the time was right.

I just had to patient.

“I’ll see you tomorrow, Calla Lily,” Bill said quietly.

I sighed. “Mhm. See you tomorrow, Bill. I l—I miss you already.”

“Bye.”

“Good bye.”

I turned the phone off and smacked myself in the forehead.

Patience was not my best virtue.