"No peeking!" I rolled my eyes chuckling while her cool hands covered my eye sight.

"Is this really necessary Stacey? I swear, if I fall you'll go down with me." Stacey kept guiding me somewhere to who knows where. She giggled like a little girl and I kept walking, breaking branches and crunching leaves along the path almost stumbling on the way. We both laughed and finally after several minutes she brung me to a stop. "I'm taking it we're here?" Slowly she took her hands off of my eyes and once my vision readjusted, I saw a big enough clearing decorated with a red checkered picnic blanket on the cut grass with a big wooden basket at the middle. It was simple yet looked just perfect. Once I sat down into the middle of some forest in the autumn weather she joined me with a bright smile.

"This is the magic place I love going to. No one comes here and I'm just assuming that nobody either knows about this place for ever since I was a kid, my daddy used to bring me here. We used to camp in this place, right here actually. My daddy," She opened the lid of the basket and took out a bottle of red wine with two glasses and placed them down, pouring the bittersweet liquid on the glasses spilling a bit around the blanket. I stared at her so animated and excited that I couldn't help but to be feeling the same; it was contageous. My face was stretched and a real warm smile was placed, I couldn't believe just how I felt with her. It's been long actually since I felt like this, so undescribably happy. With her I felt like I could be myself. "My father has alzheimer and is at a home currently at Pennsylvania where I was born and raised." I was astonished. My expression must've been mirrored in my face for she stiffled a laugh and asked me why was I looking so surprised.

"Don't get me wrong, I love Pennsylvania and all but I just didn't picture you as a person from there." She crossed her arms playing a small smile in her lips.

"Oh really? Why not?" I threw her a smile and took another sip of my wine. But before I took it this time, I swirled the wine in a circular movement, inhaling a tad bit the smell and then I drank it.

"I don't know. At first you seemed as if a girl from a place that just wouldn't be from there. It's where I grew up; it was cozy and a place called home at Pennsylvania. People were warm, but you- no offense, you gave off the image of a cold hearted or emotionless woman. Seeing you now like this just throws me off. You, you now feel warm." At this she looked at me with big eyes and burst out laughing. She clutched her chest and took a deep breath after she finished.

"Warm? What do you mean I feel warm?" I shook my head.

"I know, I know. I sound weird but I understand myself." She clicked her tongue and looked at me a if scolding a child.

"Come on, we already discussed how closed off and a jerk you were and now you're changing. Don't go again to that jerk, please. Explain to me what you meant."

I sighed exasperately. I looked at my index finger and shrugged thinking 'oh what the hell' and with that finger I touched lightly the side of her chest. "Here. Your heart, that's where you feel warm. It's that feeling you give me that, I just know you're simply warm..." Her smile was now wobbly and she threw her arms around me, squeezing tightly.

"That was so cute and it really surprises me since it's coming from you... No offense of course." I shrugged it off as if it was nothing and looked at her smiling all goofie looking.

"Non taken. Also, sorry for your dad. And well, honestly, it's amazing to see you like this. It's awesome, really." She rolled her eyes at me then spoke while looking at me with those velvety eyes from her wine glass for a moment.

"No biggie, things happen and I'll just cherish every moment I had with my daddy forever. And as for your answer of the whole amazed of me being like this well, I could say the same for you. But I kind of like this you know?"

She took out a sandwhich from the basket and I took it from her hand to my mouth.

"Hey!" She squealed. With food in my mouth I grinned. She rushed her hand to my mouth covering it laughing. "You're crazy! And rude!"

"So I've been told." I winked at her and ate in one more gulp her sandwhich. She took another sandwhich giving me the stink eye. I was terribly amused by this. But then something yet again hit me. I stood up while she gave me an odd look placing her sandwhich down next to her as if waiting what would be my next move. I looked up at the moon and then at her. I could see her silhouette, and the glow of the full moon on her made this amazing halo around her with her eyes looking golden somehow. I had this strange urge to kiss her at this precise moment, right there just take that lovely face of hers in my hands and kiss those lips.

I've never felt like this ever since I was 17... To now somehow be able to feel, to have my heart open like this and feel bare as her orbs gave me these strange sensations inside is odd and somewhat scary. What is it with her and these feelings? I've known her for years and never has this striked me. I mean, I guess I was so focused on my past and on my own drowning misery that I was obvlivious to this world. Obvlivious to true beauties in life for example nature, and this young woman whom is my secretary. This is the woman whom triggered this wake-up call in me. She somehow made it unconsciously through my forts filled with guns and bombs and arrows thrown and shooted to all who tried tresspassing to the real me and to my heart. It's too soon to usher a single thing of what exactly I feel but right now in this very moment I wish I could freeze this picture in time. 

Has anyone felt like that? Freeze a moment where everything feels perfect, where you feel completely happy? You feel like you even want to hold forever the feeling, the exhilaration flowing and whooshing inside of us. Or you just want to hold and take a picture of how we looked right now, her face and mine, our smiles or our curious looks towards each other. At least in our minds we can take a snapshot of what we want and see. I did. I stared at every single aspect of her; how the corner of her lips curled up sublty, how her eyes shined and looked as if golden, how her hair was blowing everywhere in this wondreous wind, the full moon shining in on her and especially how I felt. I guess feeling isn't that bad... There wasn't a single second I thought of my past pain, the hate, or even Kimberly. But still, I have to be cautious with myself.

I knelt down in front of her, looked at her directly at her shining eyes with a low smile plastered in my face and leaned in a bit. She looked like she was panicking a bit yet at the same time like she wanted this just as much as I did. But I thought hard and without a second of a doubt I took her delicate hand and kissed the back of it. She looked entranced and believe me I was. And although not kissing her was immensely hard if you asked me, I knew that this is Stacey. She's different and a woman I see that men have to respect and I wish and wonder if we could in a soon-to-be future become serious; a relationship. The idea gives me a fright though...

I sit back down and scour for another sandwhich. Stacey just stared at me and smiled brightly. And just like that, we continued speaking about random things, joked, laughed and basically had a wonderful night.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I pulled the car in a halt in front of her house and she looked like she wanted to bolt. Why? I had no idea. "Is there something bothering you Stacey?" She shook her head looking awefully distracted. She unbuckled her seat belt and got out of the car as fast as a cheetah. Okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit, but you get me right? She stood in front of my door, I tried getting out but she pushed the door back in. I furrowed my brows bemused. "Thanks Stacey." Still looking alarmed she asked for what. "For showing me your secret place, being honest with me, giving me the best night out I've had in years and," I stuck out my head a bit from my window and smiled. She sucked in her breath. I really don't understand why though... "Also, thanks for being the one triggering in me this change. I would never forget this night or this." She nodded and without me realizing what happened she gave me a chaste kiss in my lips. To say I was shocked would be one of hell of an understatement. Stacey, not uttering a word walked back to her apartment entrance. Crap...

Rapidly I unbuckled my seatbelt and almost ran to her. Stacey looked back with big eyes and I grabbed her sweet waist, pulling her close to me. Again she sucked in a breath. I didn't waste time and gave her a tap kiss on her full, rich lips of hers molding with mine. I tucked in a loose strand of her dark hair in the back of her ear and looked down at her with a sided smile. "You can't just kiss me like that Stacey. You kind of beat me into it though... I forgot to tell you jut how beautiful you looked... Shall we do this again?" She gave me a coy smile and I just couldn't resist this time. I took her lovely face in my hands and molded her lips with mine, moving in sync. Her breath mingled with mine and our tongues battled for domination. This though was so different from every kiss I've shared. This kiss had me in fire everywhere, like literally if you know what I mean. Our kiss was so passionate yet savage that it was too much for me. In a good way but at the same time not; my friend bellow was getting way too excited... I ended the kiss afraid that if I continued I could not stop myself from taking her. She looked dissapointed and pouted. I gave her a tap kiss but she nibbled on my lower lip making me groan.

"Stacey... Stop..." She looked back confused. "You have no idea of the effect you have on me... I really want to respect you because you're someone different and well, you're not making it easy to be a gentleman." Stacey grinned at me mischeously placing her hands on the back of my neck pulling me down to her addicting lips. All I can say is that the kiss turned wild with my hands roaming her exploring her, and I forgot where we were. "Stacey... We're on the entrance of your apartment. I really do want to respect you... I like you... But I also don't want us to go too fast..." I told her panting. She was in the same condition but her eyes were dark with lust grinning wickedly.

"For that you assure me I was right of the amazing man you really were. Who says I haven't felt like this before?" I was thoroughly amazed by her answer.

"How could you? I was a huge ass."

"I just knew that you were warm inside. Like you said. And that you weren't what people saw and thought, even yourself." I couldn't believe what my ears heard. A woman like her... Was I that oblivious to the world? Driven by hatred and pain is the worst way to live life.

"Wow..." She put her hands on my lips.

"Just shut up and come with me upstairs. I need erm, some opinions on some of my ideas for your business." Understanding her hidden meaning I nodded and up we went in a flash.

Where will this take us? What will it make of me? What will happen when I wake up in the morning? I guess I'll have to find out.