Petal [h.s.]

FIFTY-FIVE - CRAWL HOME TO HER

"Tell me more about your mum." I whispered to her, watching her turn her head back to look at me.

I was stroking my hand down her spine, feeling over the softness of her skin, over the faint, shiny scars that littered her back. I leaned my head down and pressed a soft kiss to her shoulder, watching her lips pull up at the corners.

"She was really beautiful." She said, her voice hoarse from how much talking we'd done tonight. So much more than either of us ever anticipated when we came here.

"Of course. Look at you." I murmured with a slow grin.

She swatted at my chest, laughing softly, "You hush."

"Keep going. I won't interrupt again." I brushed my mouth over her shoulder, scooting closer to her.

"She was an artist. A struggling one, of course. She grew up in California... she used to tell me stories about it when I was a little girl. Those stories are... the only good memories I have of her now. Every other one is tainted by needles or drug dealers or... or..." She broke off, clearing her throat as she looked away from me. She took a deep breath and then turned back to me, a soft smile on her face again, "She tried really hard to be a good mom but it wasn't enough. She just... couldn't. It was a lot of bad. It was mostly bad."

I reached over and brushed the hair away from her neck, slipping my hand over to her cheek so I could caress it gently.

"Tell me about the good, then." I requested softly.

She lifted her eyebrows to me, like she was surprised that I cared to hear about this, about her life. I didn't know why she continued to be shocked after everything we'd said to one another tonight. I wanted to know this girl... needed to know where she came from. I couldn't explain it and maybe I would never be able to. I just had to soak it all in. Everything new I learned about her felt like something I'd been waiting to know my whole life.

I pulled her body tight against mine and stroked my hand down over her hair, rubbing a soft strand of it between my thumb and pointer finger.

"Tell me about California."

She relaxed against me and started to speak, "She used to spend her mornings on the beach, watching the ocean. It was where she met my father. He was always up early to surf and he stumbled upon her on the beach... it wasn't love at first sight, but it was definitely lust. They were infatuated with one another. She stopped going to the beach to watch the ocean and started going just to watch my dad surf. She... she lost herself in him. She didn't even remember what it was like to just sit there and enjoy the ocean. If my dad wasn't in its waters, she wanted nothing to do with it."

I stroked her hair softly, nuzzled my face into her neck and breathed in her scent. I could feel the vibrations from her voice in her throat as she spoke each gentle word. I felt so safe there and hoped she felt the same way.