The music fades and a slow song begins to play. She looks at me and flashes that mischievous grin that easily lights up my world. I can't help but smile back as she stands up and takes me by the hand. I feign reluctance as she pulls me with her onto the dance floor, but a smile still lingers upon my face, betraying my excitement at the thought of dancing with her.
Taking her hand in mine, I kiss her knuckles softly before interlacing our fingers and pulling her close. She puts her arms around my neck, and I hold her around the waist, savoring the feeling of her body against mine as we dance slowly to the beat of the music. I caught the sweet scent of her beautiful red hair as she lay her head on my shoulder. Closing my eyes, I let her intoxicating scent mixed with the sound of her soft breathing and the warmth of her body lull me into a state of utter euphoria. It seems the slow song was ending just as quickly as it had begun, but we continued to cradle each other with total disregard for the rest of the world. Much to my delight, another ballad commences, and we may continue to dance slowly without interruption. Half way through the song, she pulls away from me, and I worry something is wrong. She isn't smiling, but her eyes shine brightly with a look I am not quite familiar with. "What is forever?" she asks me softly.
"Forever is how long I'll love and be with you," I say with a smile.
She, however, is not smiling back. "No," she says quietly, so quietly I almost don't hear her, "people always tell each other that, only to leave a few months later and never look back or have a second thought about it."
My grin fades. I know she is not joking and that what she says is true. "But I'm not like everyone else, baby."
"No, you aren't, but..." she trails off and looks away for a moment, her eyebrows drawn together and those beautiful brown eyes distant.
"But?" I ask hesitantly.
"But what if forever isn't real? What if forever is just the nice way of saying you'll be with me until you decide otherwise?" She is looking me in the eyes now. The sparkle they held moments ago was replaced by a mix of fear and sorrow, and it tore my heart to pieces.
I pondered this for a moment but did not respond. I wanted to just kiss her, tell her that I love her, and promise her that I'm always going to be there, but I did not. Not because it wasn't true, but because that seemed like something everyone else would do. I don't want to be like all the others that have hurt her. And I know that because of them, there was nothing I could really say or do to reassure her, only give her more things to question and worry over. Gently caressing her face with my hand, I study the beauty of her face and her emotion-filled eyes briefly before finally speaking. "Maybe forever isn't real," I say slowly, "but if you believe in something with all your heart, it can become real." From the look on her face, I can tell she's doubtful. "You don't have to believe in forever, but I ask that you believe in me. I'll believe, and if you give me your faith, I can do it. I can make forever real, for the both of us." She stares silently down at the floor. Gently, I tilt her chin up and make her look me in the eyes. "Can you do that, for me? For us?"
I watch in horror as a single tear falls and begins to slide down her cheek. As I wipe it away with my thumb, she smiles. It was a sweet smile, a happy one, and suddenly, a wave of relief washes over me. Still smiling, she nods ever so slowly, and that foolish grin of mine spreads across my face. Leaning in, I press my lips softly against hers and feel my head spin as she returns the kiss. After a forever that ended much too soon, she pulls away and lays her head back down on my shoulder, nuzzling her face against my neck. Pulling her closer, I hold her tightly and again let myself drift away from everything to a world of our very own, where it will always be just us and our forever.