Pervade and Faint

Chapter 8

We ambled down the hallway. I really wanted us to get out of at least a radius in which we would stay invisible to our parents.
"Can you walk a bit slower?" asked Sophia rhetorically.
"Yeah I'm sorry", I said. "Why are you upset? If you want to go back, its okay", I offered, noticing the fearful and woebegone expression molded on her face.
"No- I...my dad...he doesn't let me leave with anyone."
"Sophia, just forget him for right now. Don't let him aggravate the moment", I said and the signs of anxiety imperceptibly reduced from her face. Her mood was very variant, or probably because she also didn't want to ruin the moment.
"So where are we headed?" she asked as we walked down the street. I felt a stream of adrenaline run in my body when I sensed that the composition of her voice had some glee dissolved in it.

There was always a decline in my mood whenever I sensed grief in her voice, which I sensed quite often.

"To every question there is supposed to be an equal but opposite answer", she said and this time, a whole river of joy hit me.
"So now you're going to humiliate Newton?" I said and she laughed. Her teeth sparkled under the dim lights of the shops, which were still open.
"Are you actually going to buy hot chocolate or were just on an imponderable mile race?"

Her mood finally changed directions. I loved it. Her mood had never been invariant.
"What would you like?" I asked, slowing down.
""Well, the idea of hot chocolate sounds fine", she said.

We finally found a coffee stall. I ordered two hot chocolates. Sophia rigorously watched the coffee machines and the powerful steam which was being extruded from a small and sturdy pipe.
"So why don't your parents let you go out?" I asked, watching her carefully.
"They don't want me to go alone. Especially my dad", she said, avoiding eye contact.
"Yeah I witnessed that earlier. But you're not alone now aren't you?" I said. She looked at me for a while and quickly shifted her eyes above my shoulder. I whirled back in a bit of suspicion. A man was holding our hot chocolates. Sophia held both cups while I paid for them.

"Delicious", she said as she took a sip. I, unfortunately, didn't have the ability to walk and drink simultaneously. So I had to hold the cup.
"How often do you come here?" I asked
"Well, it's my first time", she replied
"Seriously! I literally thought that you guys come here
every winter". She laughed for a moment. There was something hidden in her laughter. But I knew that she didn't want to expose it. So I let the curtain to remain closed. But there's a universal rule of curtains. They hide as well as reveal a whole lot.
"My dad doesn't spend much time with us", she said
"And why is that?" I asked, trying to take a sip. I ended up burning my lip. She took a sip of her hot chocolate easily. She still didn't reply.

We reached our hotel much earlier than I had been anticipating. I wanted us to walk like this forever. I really wanted to hold her hand, but I thought that she would despise the idea. We stood in front of the hallway, for an avalanche of girls disgorged from a street. Sophia and I watched them chatting with each other and laughing. I knew that Sophia wasn't one of them. She mumbled something in her mouth. I felt a slight tap on my shoulder and it felt quite familiar.

"Hey", said the girl who I met on the roof earlier. To my surprise, she had changed her clothes. Her clothes shifted colors, from purple to light green.
"Who is she?" she asked and gave Sophia a look of hatred. The roof! It clicked in my mind all of a sudden. I had to show Sophia the spectacular view.
"My girlfriend!" I shouted, and Sophia and I entered the hotel. Sophia looked back at that girl, and then at me, addled.
"Sophia, I have something to show you", I panted, extremely eager to show her the magnificent view.
"Okay", she said, curiously. We waddled in the hallway and reached the second staircase.
"Close your eyes", I ordered and she put her left hand in front of her eyes. I held her hand and moved it from her face. Her right hand was occupied by the cup of coffee. I took her left one, leading her up the stairs.
"Just keep them closed", I said. She giggled
"Where are you taking me?" she asked, curiously.
"You'll see. Just keep your eyes closed", I said. She took a step up. Her hand was warm and soft. I wanted to hold it for long. She walked very slowly as she ascended the stairs (Really slow). When we got on the roof, I was comprehensively transfixed. The humongous moon was covering the dark black sky. Behind it were a bunch of glittering stars which were gorgeously embedded in the pitch black sky.

"Open them", I said and she opened her eyes. Although, I didn't leave her hand, even after she opened her eyes. When she looked at the moon, her mouth opened, revealing her sparkling teeth. Her eyes shined the under the moonlight. I must confess that I was taken aback every time a caught a glance of her. Her beauty, even at the millionth glance was more charming than the previous glance. As if she gained more and more beauty at each glance. She gently squeezed my hand, neither one of us willing to leave our hands.
"It's beautiful", she said in light voice. I knew that it was an utterly candid remark, because if she was exaggerating, she would have said it with great enthusiasm. I gripped her hand and took a few steps further.
"Do you hear it?" I asked, referring to the stream. She stood there for a moment, listening to the water.
"Is that water?" she asked, tilting her head a bit.
"Exactly", I confessed.
"It's amazing", she said and looked at the moon and then at the stream. The stream was just partially visible under the moonlight. The slight fog obfuscated the view to some extent. We listened to the water splashing and crashing against the rocks. I looked at Sophia. She was smiling and admiring the breath-taking beauty of nature. I wanted her to stay like that for her whole life, in the trap of a smile. I wanted her to live in the trap of mere happiness, always, with me.

"Who was that girl downstairs?" she asked, looking towards the stream.
"Which one?" I asked even though I knew who she was talking about. I wasn't anticipating her to bring it up.
"To whom you said I was your girlfriend", she said and laughed. It was a relatively peculiar laugh.

"Am I even your girlfriend?" she asked and looked down. She was looking irresistibly gorgeous. A strand of her hair covered her right eye. This is the perfect moment, I thought.
"Sophia", I said and took a step towards her, hesitantly. She gulped. I moved the strand from her face. She looked up. Her eyes gleamed when she looked at me, reflecting an equal desire. I intertwined our fingers and leaned in. When the distance between our faces decreased, she gently closed her eyes, blocking all brightness. In the next moment, my laps crashed against hers. It was the softest crash ever. I kissed her softly.

Her lips were warm and delicate, just as I had anticipated. My tongue moved in her mouth, waving from left to right. Her lips contracted and expanded as we kissed. She bit my lower lip gently. I squeezed her hand harder. I moved my hand towards her neck and then to her check. She placed her hand on my shoulder and gently rubbed it. She traced her hand down my arm and reached for my hand again. She connected our fingers again and squeezed them. I broke the kiss and looked at her.
"Sophia", I said but she put her hand on my neck, pulled me down, closer to her face, and kissed. She kissed me harder this time and bit my lip even harder. It began to hurt a bit, but I loved it. Even in the pain in love is pleasant.
"I love you", I said as I broke the kiss. We stared at each other for a while. Her lip was a bit swollen, already. We stood there for a while. There was a moment of cold, warm and silence between us. We listened to the water once again and it felt more rapid. A bodacious quintessence of a lustrous and jazzing night it had been. The night grew darker. But I knew that no night could ever be as bright and incandescent as this one. This night was a paragon for all of my nights. I knew that this night would be stamped indelibly on my memory. This night would dominate my every night and day. It was a fleeting moment which would last forever in my life. Sophia and I silently walked down the stairs.

We stood in front of our rooms.
"Good night", I said.
"Definitely, one good night", she whispered and I laughed.
"Wait", I said and she whirled around. Her hair flew across her face. Her face appeared more invigorated and fresh. She seemed to be in freedom.
I placed a hand behind her neck and pulled her face closer, tenderly kissing her tender lips. Sucking a few drops of saliva off of her wet lips, I entered my room.

Mom and dad were asleep when I entered the room. I went straight to bed. I closed my eyes and let the magnificent night repeat in my mind, over and over.