The Trials of November

Chapter Eight

Once they got to Victoria's street, she began to run again. Ben was struggling to keep up with her.
"Victoria. What... is it?" Ben asked, gasping for breath. "Are... you... okay?" He asked, and he started panicking also. He didn't know what could possibly have happened that caused Victoria to be so afraid.
"We are going to my house." Victoria said, and she started running again. Soon enough, they were there. They ran inside, and Victoria slammed the door behind them, locking it. She then walked inside her living room and fell on the floor. How did he know where she was? Was he stalking her? Was she even safe anymore? Victoria began to sob for the first time since she had lost Callie.
Ben knelt down next to Victoria and held her in his arms. After a while, she calmed down and caught her breath. She let Ben hold her, and she laid there for a while, maybe two minutes, maybe ten, just staring at a wall.
They felt comfortable together, and they both knew it. They felt as though everything was perfect together, even though everything outside of them was nowhere near perfect.
After Victoria was calm, she was able to finally talk to Ben. She told him everything, and he listened. His kindness and concern could be seen in the darkest of nights.
"No matter what, Victoria. I will keep you safe. I promise." Ben said, looking Victoria in the eyes. And she believed him. She truly did. So then she did another thing that she had not done since Callie had gone missing. She completely broke down and told Ben about Callie. She explained how they were best friends and how she went missing and how she would not run away without telling Victoria. And Ben listened. Victoria talked to him for hours and hours, though it seemed like only a few minutes.
"Victoria?" Ben asked at the end of all of Victoria's talking.
"Yes?" Victoria replied. Her hair was in her face, so she tucked it behind her ear with a smile.
"I know we have only known each other for a day, and I know that this is going to sound crazy, but will you do me the extraordinary honor of being my girlfriend?" He asked, blushing. "Talking to you tonight made me realize how much strength you have inside you. I admire that. I want to be a part of that. I want to be near someone like you. Someone with your strength." He went on. "You are just the most extraordinary person that I have met in my life, and I want to be around you. I need to be around you. I don't know how to say this right, so I am just gonna say that you are everything. Everything." Ben finished.
"Yes." Victoria whispered. "Of course, Ben." As soon as the words left her mouth, Victoria was confident that she had made the absolute right choice. She knew that everything would be okay then. She knew that she would then be happy for as long as she lived. Victoria could not stop smiling.
Victoria had never felt more complete. She felt as though her entire world that was messy and complicated suddenly made sense. Like it was absolutely meant to be. She could not believe it. She felt like the luckiest woman in the entire world.
They embraced each other again and stayed there on the floor until they could not keep their eyes open any longer. They turned on the television and sat there, watching it in each other's arms for the entire night, and everything was perfect.
That night the cold stayed out, and the love and happiness stayed in. Ben stayed the night on the couch, and he made sure for the entire night that Victoria was safe and happy.
Ben was worried about Victoria, so he checked in on her several times throughout the night, just to make sure that she was okay.
In the morning, he made her breakfast and brought it to her in bed. Victoria was so thankful for Ben, and she did not know how she could possibly express it. She was in love with him after only a day. She did not know that it was possible, but at that moment, she could not imagine a life without Ben beside her.
He gave Victoria a happiness that she had never known. He made her feel safe and secure inside and out. He made her feel beautiful. He made her feel as though nothing bad could happen as long as he was beside her. And she inhaled that feeling for as long as she could.