I knew the cops would be back. Attempted murder is a serious crime and I knew that whether they caught the shooter or not, I would be in for a number of questions. Even before his parents blamed me for everything, the issue of my almost-expired visa would be an enormous problem. Surely, anyone could sniff out that something fishy was going on. If his parents found out that I was non-American they’d milk it for all it was worth. And I would finally be done for, if I wasn’t already. Only a miracle could save me. 

 His eyes bore into mine in a piercing gaze. He looked as handsome as ever, giving me a sense of nostalgia. He wore a black polo shirt. We stared at each other in silence before I spoke.  “It’s been long,” I stated.

 My mother had lost a great deal of weight, probably from worrying about me. Her short hair- four inches long was in tiny curls the way she liked it. Dad was seated next to her on the couch, wearing a blue suit. “I had to return early.” He told me. “What did you want to tell us? Is everything okay?

 Mrs Elliot lost it. She charged at me and I fell down. I would have hit my head if I hadn't supported myself with my elbows. I glanced at my beautiful gown which wasn't supposed to get dirty, instantly becoming furious. I wanted to stand up and crush her to the ground but instead, I took a deep breath and decided to turn the other cheek. Noah helped me up as the remaining guests watched in silence, wondering if a fight was in order.Standing up straight, I met Mrs Elliot's eyes. "Good evening, misses Elliot."I wanted to call her mother-in-law but it would be petty, and I wasn't in a mood to provoke her."You trapped my son," she hissed.I didn't not reply. I couldn't think of a dignified reply to that so I remained silent. She ended up standing there awkwardly when she saw I wasn't going to retaliate. It was the perfect medicine for people like her. Now, everyone saw her as the bad guy because that's what she was."I'm disappointed,

“I envisioned all sorts of scenarios but I never pictured this happening,” I told Noah. It was a beautiful mid-morning and it was scorching outside but we were doing well in the safety of our suite with air conditioning. Noah’s left arm was looped around my waist, his body pressing against mine from behind. “I never dreamed that I’d be lying in your arms, both of us happy. I never thought that one day everything would feel okay. That my problems would all seem like a nightmare that ends when one wakes up. That one day I wouldn’t have to worry about a lot of things.” Tears were now cascading down my cheeks.“My love, forget all the bad things because your pain will stay in the past,” his hand moved upward and I ached my back as my whole body tingled. We had made love a number of times already but not enough to satiate our bodies. At that time, we couldn’t keep our hands off each other and that’s why we had abandoned a bird watching sessi