A Beautiful Stranger

He saw her from a distance, her purple umbrella shielding her face from the rain. She stood with impeccable posture, a trench coat covering most of her body, long brown wavy hair blowing lightly in the wind. He imagined her to be beautiful and mysterious, a face that's worth waiting for. He couldn't help but wonder what she might have been waiting for as she stood out there alone. She seemed to be standing too far from the bus stop on the corner and there was no smoke swirling above her umbrella like she was enjoying a cigarette. He felt a since of relief, imagining her as a smoker ruined her for him. Maybe she was running away from something, a tortured past possibly. Maybe she was planning her next escape route. He wasn't sure why picturing her as a runaway was so exciting for him, but it was.

Nothing adventurous had ever taken place in his hum drum life. It had been months since he even had a real conversation with anyone. Sara had ruined that for him. He trusted her. Gave some of his best years to her and what was his reward? She took everything when she left, even that fun piece of his heart that used to be there.

Unfortunately his boring routine was the only thing that comforted him anymore. He knew drinking wasn't doing him any good, but it numbed the pain. His friends tried to tell him to move on...at least they had when he had friends. But he abandoned them all. Solitude became his only friend. It wasn't all bad though. There was something nice about having nobody to worry about. Not to mention, in that particular moment, he was almost thankful for that shit hole of a bar he went to every night. Had he not been standing outside of it to enjoy the peacefulness of the rain he would have never seen her.

She shifted her position slightly, placing most of her weight on the left leg instead of the right. He couldn't tell if she was looking around for anyone or simply trying to achieve the same calming feeling he was. He imagined what it would be like to approach her, what might he say?

"Good evening ma'am." He says approaching the blind spot on her right side. She doesn't turn to connect with his eyes or respond to his greeting.

"Are you waiting for the bus?" He asks, making another attempt at conversation. Still nothing.

"Sorry for bothering you." He walks away.

He sighed in disappointment at his imagined scenario. He didn't want that to be the reality of their conversation but what could he possibly have to talk to her about? She would probably just find him to be creepy for spying on her and uncomfortable with his obvious awkwardness. No. He thought to himself. She doesn't know what kind of man I am.

"I don't mean to bother you, but a woman should never have to wait in the rain alone." She turns towards him slightly.

"Don't worry..." he continues. "...I won't force you to have a conversation with me. However, I do feel an uncontrollable need to tell you that I noticed you immediately over here. I've been coming to this bar for quite some time and never have I been so entranced by a stranger. So if you tell me nothing else about yourself, please tell me what brought you here. What are you waiting for?"

Slowly she begins to turn towards him, her face was painfully gorgeous. She smiles gently and replies.

"Someone like you."

He smiles to himself. He liked that fantasy so much more. For a moment he almost felt like an old version of himself he could barely remember anymore. As he was trying to soak in the feeling of that moment his socks decided to soak in the water that now began to move through the small holes in his boots. He grunted a bit and looked down at the boots he had been so exclusive with for the past two years. He wished he had taken better care of himself. Sara told him to buy new ones because she hated those boots. He suddenly realized that he had been wearing them for so long to spite her.

His philosophy professor once told him that life is made up of a series of chain reactions and we don't always know how they're going to relate until we're already suffering from the consequences. Maybe had he taken anyone's advice and moved on from this he wouldn't be literally standing in a puddle of regret, ruining one of the nicest moments he'd had in months. As he looked away from his ruined boots and back towards the mysterious stranger he got very still. She was now watching him. The heavy rainfall distorted her face so he couldn't make out any features. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination but it almost looked like she was smiling at him. Was he smiling back? No! He smiled quickly and tried to tapper back some of his excitement which equated to a weird half smile, plastered on his face for too long. He thought that maybe he should wave, but that seemed too desperate in his mind. So he simply extended his hand out to the rain instead and caught the drops on his palm.

Why am I just standing here catching rain? She's giving you a chance, take it! But he couldn't do it, fear left him completely immobile. It took him a second just to realize he had been awkwardly catching the rain for what seemed like forever. He dropped his hand quickly. She just watched him. It seemed as though her smile was gone. She must have realized I'm not as intriguing as she thought. Well obviously she did, you're just standing here playing with the rain. Why have you lost the ability to be a man? Fuck you Sara. You took everything from me.

He knew it wasn't Sara's fault anymore. But it was easier to blame her then to blame the real culprit...himself. After all, he was the victim in all of this, wasn't he? He did what he was supposed to while they were together. He loved her unconditionally, supported whatever she wanted to do, apologized when he was wrong. She used him and threw him away like garbage. Well maybe not garbage. I probably could have been more romantic. But she just moved on with her life like I never existed. Out of sight, out of mind.

As the beautiful stranger seemed to smile again and turned away from him he wondered if she was anything like Sara. He wondered if she was also too good to be true.

One Hour Earlier

Her day had been long. The night shift again. However, the night shift isn't nearly as bad when it no longer reminds you that you're there instead of at home with your family. She used to be so excited to go home after a long day. No matter how exhausted she may have been, Sam would always be there waiting for her. His warm smile melted her every time and revived her better than even the best night's sleep could. But he's not there anymore. He needed something more than her. She wasn't his forever the way she once thought he'd be. She was simply another number for him. Now he can say he dated a nurse.

She had been throwing herself into her work for months now trying to forget about him. It wasn't working. The bar she went to that night wasn't the most popular one or the cleanest but she didn't want to be bothered by anyone she knew. As she sat at the small table in the corner of the room she noticed a man sitting alone at the bar. He seemed sad and lost somewhere in his head. The light at the bar was causing the blue in his eyes to stand out. They were a deep shade of blue, mysterious looking. She wondered why he was so sad and what might have brought him to the bar.

Most of her experiences with guys at bars included lots of irritating lines to entice her into sleeping with them. This guy was different. He wasn't dressed as if he was there to impress anyone. He had dark grey sweatpants with a black T-shirt, dirty brown boots and an old brown baseball cap on his head. It looked like he hadn't shaved in a couple of days, which was the perfect amount of scruff to her. He was beautiful. For a while she had to talk herself out of staring at him. She thought about approaching him.

This isn't what I need. She scoped out the rest of the bar. It was primarily overrun with burly biker men playing pool. There was another small group of men in one corner watching a recording of an old baseball game with the bartender. As she began to appreciate the quiet of this particular spot she suddenly heard the sound of the rain outside. Sam always hated the rain. She never understood why.

She had so many fantasies of letting a moment of passion overtake her and Sam during a thunderstorm. She imagined the rain dripping down his face as they moved in to kiss one another, stripping each other of the clothes acting as a wet barrier. But Sam was gone now. That fantasy could never happen. The one beer she had consumed was apparently enough to expose her vulnerabilities. She felt her eyes begin to well up. She slowly put her trench coat back on, left money for the drink on the table and stepped outside of the bar hoping not to be noticed.

She wasn't ready to go home to nothing and no one. So she stood there, staring into the distant fields, letting the tears flow gently with the rain. Despite the sadness overwhelming her there was always something so calming about the rain. She took a deep breath. I'm going to be okay. As the rain began to come down even harder she heard what sounded like a grunt behind her and turned to see what it was. And there he stood...the man from the bar.

She wasn't sure what he was doing. He seemed as though he was simply squishing the rain water around in his boots angrily. She smiled. For a moment he didn't look sad or mysterious, just normal. It was kind of refreshing to her. Then he looked up at her. She couldn't see his eyes very well but she pictured that perfect shade of blue. Her heart quickened slightly as he smiled back at her. It was a half smile, her favorite. Please come over here.

She watched as he reached out and caught the rain in his hand. There was something nice about watching him appreciate the rain. Maybe I'm making him uncomfortable by watching him. She smiled again and turned away. For a moment she just felt good, he had noticed her. She felt so invisible sometimes. She realized that maybe Sam was just her validation that she wasn't just going through the motions of life. She had some kind of purpose. She was somebody's girlfriend. But why did she need that validation?

She thought about the look her and the man had shared again. Because it feels really good to be noticed. She took a deep breath and as she turned around to head home she was stopped in her tracks. He was walking towards her. She was nervous at first but the kindness behind his eyes as he moved towards her calmed her quickly. Their eyes were locked. It had taken him a minute to work up the courage to approach her but he needed to know what it felt like to take a chance again. As he got close enough to see her face he wasn't even a little bit disappointed. She smiled and he smiled back. As he reached her she naturally moved her umbrella towards him to help shield him from the rain. But he was already dripping wet.

"Hi." He said as he stood under the umbrella with her. He tried to think of something smooth to say but instead all that came out of his lips was honesty.

"It's been a long time since I've taken a chance. I noticed you immediately when I came out here and couldn't help but to wonder what are you waiting for out here?"

She smiled at him and said. "Someone like you. Someone who will notice me." It took everything in him not to show her his cheesiest smile.

"You're impossible not to notice and I'm sick of never taking chances."

Nothing more was said. Without giving it another thought he leaned down and kissed her. Her umbrella fell to the ground as she lost herself in his touch. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled herself closer to him. The rain caused their lips to slide smoothly together. It felt so natural, like she was meant to kiss him. His hands moved slowly up her back and into her hair. He had never felt so connected to a moment before. Her lips were soft and somehow sweet.

As he pulled away from her lips slightly he looked into her green eyes, they were breathtaking to him. He couldn't tell if she was crying or if it was the rain but something about it didn't worry him. It just felt right. He connected again with her lips and slowly bent down and picked her up off the ground. She stopped thinking about anything and just wrapped her legs around his waist and enjoyed the feeling of his tongue sliding against hers.

His lips were firm and smooth. It felt so good that she hadn't even noticed that he had walked towards what she could only assume was his car. He sat her on trunk of the car and began moving his lips down to her neck. She gasped lightly and reached towards the front of his soaked sweatpants, no longer hiding any of his excitement. She pulled them down just enough to expose him and firmly ran her hand down his shaft.

He took a deep breath in as he quickly pulled her shirt over her head and dropped it on the ground he bit her neck gently and squeezed her breast. He moaned lightly in her ear as she continued moving her hand, slowly making him even harder than he already was. Desire began to overtake him as he quickly unbuttoned her jeans and pulled them down to her ankles, freeing one leg.

He pushed her knees apart and started to run his tongue down her chest and stomach. He gripped her wet panties in his teeth and looked up at her and smiled just a little. It turned her on even more. He gently grabbed the sides of the panties and slowly pulled them down her legs, keeping the same leg free. He looked in her eyes as he slowly ran his hand up the inside of her thigh and gently grazed her clit and kissed her again.

He moved his hand back to her hair and she could feel him pressing hard against her. All she could think about was him losing himself inside of her. He pulled her hips further down the car and slowly slid inside. They both gasped as they moved against one another together. Between kisses he would just look into her eyes and touch her face with his hand.

"You are so beautiful." He said, in complete awe of the moment they were having together. The sound of the rain against the car quickened as he quickened too. "Oh my god..." she said between breaths. His teeth were against her neck and hand was gripping her so hard in the best way. He just felt so good. The sound of him breathing and gasping in her ear made her want him so much more. He picked up the pace again and she could feel herself getting close.

He moaned loud for a moment and started to slow down. The feeling of him cumming inside of her was getting her so close. "Don't stop." She said desperately. And he didn't. He looked into her eyes and bit her lip slowly trying to catch his breath and moved deeper inside of her. She moaned and squirmed as she felt herself releasing every bad feeling she had been experiencing.

She squeezed his neck and then her body relaxed against him, her head against his shoulder. He pulled out slowly and let the rain wash her off of him for a moment as he pulled his sweatpants back up and helped her with her undergarments. I can't believe that just happened. They both thought. He helped her down from the trunk of the car and placed his hand on her cheek.

"I really missed you Sara and I'm so sorry...for everything." He said. She smiled and felt a couple of tears roll down her cheeks. "I miss you too Sam." She said as she smiled and fell in love with him all over again.