Stealing Kisses

Chapter 1

Faith POV: 

I've always had a fascination with fate. In my life, everything that has happened to me has happened for a reason, so I guess I have been blindly trusting the course set in front of me. I believe every single second is essential to the timeline of our lives. If you're one second too late, your entire story changes, from the most minute detail to the biggest parts of who you are.  

My drug-addict parents put my up for adoption as an infant so I could be raised by my loving step-parents. My ex-husband and I grew apart which led me to Nashville. My ex-fiance cheated on me so I could wind up in this honky tonk, sitting down the bar from a guy who's catching my interest. All of these things have been factors in the massive equation that makes up my life. 

 I watch him for a while, as he looks down at his glass, and then the bottles on the wall, like he's selecting his next drink in advance. He seems downtrodden, yet he has kind eyes. His hands look rough, but his features seem soft. Everything about him seems to contradict, peeking my interest even more. Some external force seems to be drawing me toward him, as I slide off my barstool slowly and stagger in his direction. He and I lock eyes as I walk his way, making me smile. A smile forms on him as well, before someone obstructs my view. 

"Faith..." Scott lets out, stepping in front of me. My heart twists in my chest, like it's being tied up once more. "Babe, can we talk?" He asks, while I sigh, shutting my eyes for a moment. He grabs my hand making me quickly retract it. I walk toward the door, feeling Scott rush out behind me. He grabs my arm the moment I start down the sidewalk, turning me back toward him. "Faith, come on..." He whines, as I take a deep breath in an attempt to keep my sanity. 

"Scott, you cheated on me." I remind him, as he looks down at the crumbled concrete under his shiny shoes. "I told you I was done. That doesn't mean that we can try it out two weeks later, alright?" I explain while he grabs my hand once more. I pull it back again, hearing him clear his throat in response. 

"Please, Faith... Please just... let's just talk." He begs, seeming so desperate, it's almost painful to decline. 

"It's over, alright? Just leave me alone." I state, before stepping toward the bar. My hand touches the door handle, before I do something I've never done before... I second guess myself. I hesitate, feeling my head start to pound as I do so. Some kind of gravitational force continues to pull me back into the bar, and every second I disobey it grows suffocating. I give in to the urge to go back inside, opening the door, before a loud screech sounds in the street. I turn back around in time to see a car try to avoid a pedestrian, before hitting them hard enough the smash the windshield before being thrown. The driver comes to an abrupt stop as I stand in shock, unsure if I really just witnessed what I think I did. I rush toward the pedestrian, surprised by the amount of blood. 

"Oh my god!" Someone screams, as I kneel down by the man, quickly wrapping my sweater around their neck to immobilize it. His breathing is shallow, but it's audible, granting me some relief. 

"Call 9-1-1." I say to a bystander, while the driver stares at me. God, he's bleeding a lot. I apply pressure to some of the larger cuts, while I start to hear sirens scream in the distance. The man groans, while I try to remain calm. "It's alright... you're okay..." I say, although I'm really only trying to keep myself from panicking. "Help's on the way." I reassure him, as he seems to grow a little more comfortable. An ambulance pulls up, releasing three EMT's who rush toward him. 

"Thank you ma'am. We've got it from here." A medic says to me. The cops arrive shortly after, questioning the driver. I stay at the scene until the man is loaded into the ambulance and driven to the hospital, granting me a little peace of mind. I stagger back across the street to the bar, walking inside in search of the guy who was here before. I sit down on the barstool beside where he had been sitting, feeling my chest ache a bit at the thought of him possibly having left. 

"Excuse me..." I call the bartender, as he walks my way. He stops in front of me while wiping down the bar. "Where did the man go that was sitting right her?" I question, as the bartender looks toward the door. 

"He paid his tab and left about fifteen minutes ago. Is he a friend of yours?" He says, while I shake my head, look back toward the door and hoping he'll come back. He must've forgotten his card or his keys... something... There's no way he could've vanished. "Well, he's a regular. He comes every Thursday to perform, so if you're trying to speak with him, I recommend doing so then." The bartender suggests as I smile. 

"Thank you." I say, excusing myself. I leave the bar, my mind cluttered for a moment. Something makes me think I should've just gone back into the bar... That said, the man in the street needed my help. Had I not been there, who knows what could've happened. I guess it's a selfish train of thought wishing I had gone inside in time.