I will not be another flower picked for my beauty and left to die.
I will be wild , difficult to find and impossible to forget. Erin Van Vuren
(A/N I'm holding a little contest with this chapter. If you can figure out why I named it Humpty Dumpty I'll dedicate my last chapter to you and maybe somehow squeeze you into the chapter itself. If you know the rhyme then it will be easy peasy lemon squeezey . )
Ben had a crick in his neck and pins and needles in his left foot as he slowly extracted himself from his coffin sized tub.
The towel he used for a worthless blanket had slipped heedlessly to the floor.
Quietly he opened the bathroom door and peered out. He couldn't risk Bee Bee Ate catching him trying to escape.
Ben thought up a perfect distraction by turning on his electric razor so Bee Bee Ate would focus on the sound and not his tip toeing feet sneaking out of the bathroom.
Thank God that it was Sunday and he didn't need to rush off to work. His thoughts went automatically to Rey. Last night still wasn't fully resolved and he needed to come clean for her. She deserved his honesty.
He stepped gingerly over the broken glass and other debris to reach the door. Bee Bee Ate was happily playing the guessing game of what's that sound as Ben slipped out unseen.
Unfortunately Rey was not home. Where would she be on a Sunday morning? She didn't have any Yoga classes to teach that he was aware of and she would have stoped by if she wanted to go on a adventure with him.
Maybe she went to the concert hall.
Yes, she's got to be there. Ben jumped in his car and sped off. He pulled up to the curb in front and recognized a woman from her Cello section coming out of the building.
"Excuse me, have you seen Rey? I'm looking for her."
It took a moment for the women to remember . " Oh yeah , she forgot her music again and ran home to get it."
Oh no.
Ben's mind went into overdrive as he thought of all the things that could possibly happen if Rey were to go to his apartment. He couldn't risk her seeing what he had hidden there.
Why is it always when you're in a hurry to get somewhere that the whole universe conspires to slow you down and throws everything in your way to hinder your progress?
Red light after red light, road construction, slow moving traffic were making Ben go crazy. He needed to get home now!
He began panicking when more obstacles almost literally jumped in his way. A man on a bike had to swerve out of the way to avoid getting hit.
His hand hurt from all the times he'd hit the horn and he was still four blocks from home.
************
Rey could have died of humiliation when she discovered she had left her sheet music at home again. She usually wasn't so forgetful.
The group from her section called her early that morning and told her they were meeting for a last minute rehearsal before a big concert the following evening.
She ran home as quickly as she could. But the roads detoured and traffic was slow moving.
She made it home eventually and grabbed her music. Then a thought occurred to her that she should invite Ben to go on a hike later that day.
She stoped in front of his door and knocked. What was that strange smell coming from inside? She could smell it seeping through the door. My goodness did something die in there?
She knocked again and was surprised when she heard a series of beeps and the door opened on its own.
As she stepped inside her eyes went wide as she took in the disaster that was Ben's apartment.
The broken glass of light bulbs crunched under her feet. Garbage littered the floor.
The apartment looked like Ben had his own private indoor earth quake .
Slowly she made her way deeper into the room. All was quite and dark, almost to the point of being creepy.
Where was he and what had happened? Suddenly she felt afraid that something terrible had happened to him. Horrible images of him hurt and alone flitted through her mind.
When a light beamed on to a piece of wood she carefully walked up to what she recognized as the top part of a Cello. It had been partially carved and looked exquisitely crafted.
Did Ben make this? Was he secretly trying to mend her old Cello?
She turned it over in her hands and saw the initials B. C. S. etched on the smooth surface.
Her heart squeezed in her chest and she gasped as another light from the track lighting in the ceiling shown down on a strange object that looked broken and mangled, laying on the floor.
Illuminated by the light was a lap top computer. Rey had never seen one before. She had heard of them but didn't pay much attention since she line of work had nothing to do with technology.
Carefully she picked it up off the floor and carried it over to Ben's desk. Another beam of light illuminated the damaged object and without warning it began beeping and humming.
Rey jumped back expecting a shock of electricity to shoot out but instead found herself listening to beautiful Cello music.
Unexpectedly, she recognized the music. It was the duet that they played that first time. The song that captured her curiosity and her heart.
The screen glowed and sputtered on. Rey watched in amazement as bright colors of light flitted and swirled across its face. Then the scene changed.
Words were now ricocheting around and around on the screen.
I love you......
I love you.....
I love you....... Me
Rey stood gazing down at the screen, breathing shallow and eyes blinking from overwhelming emotions.
A wonderful sense of warmth wrapped around her like a blanket fresh from the dryer and her eyes filled to overflowing.
Tears fell freely down her cheeks and dripped on to the exposed components. She couldn't see it or hear it , but Bee Bee Ate smiled and sighed contentedly.
He had finally gotten what he had wanted. He couldn't touch her or kiss her , but he was able to reach out to her in the medium of music. A love song.
**********
Ben's sense of urgency got the best of him. He couldn't wait in this unmoving parking lot of traffic any longer.
Pulling over to the side of the road, he hit the curb hard as he parked. As the minutes agonizingly ticked by, his thoughts of Rey consumed him. He had to get to her , stop her before she saw something he wouldn't be able to explain.
She couldn't discover his secret.
It wasn't Rey that was making his life complicated, it was Bee Bee Ate . But at the same time it was that little lap top that was pulling them together.
Ben jumped out of his car and ran the last three blocks to his home.
'Please!' He prayed. 'Please , let me stop her before she sees something.'
His heart was pounding in his chest and sweat glued his hair to his face as he ran full out.
His calf muscles burned from running the last few blocks up hill but he paid it no attention. He'd crawl over hot molten lava to get to her.
It must have been Fate, Kismet and Destiny that caused Rey to walk out of the apartment building at the exact time as Ben arrived .
But he was to late. She had seen everything.
She looked confused and overwhelmed as her ran up to her and grabbed her by the shoulders.
"Rey, are you alright?"
It took a minute for her to realize Ben was standing in front of her, looking every inch like he'd been through a war.
Finally she found her voice.
"Ben, what was that in your apartment? What happened in there? What's going on?"
Oh god , she'd seen everything! Everything he had so carefully concealed from her.
He was busted big time.
It took him several attempts to catch his breath before he could finally give her a long over do answer.
"I'll tell you everything , anything you want to know. But first I need to know something. I should have asked you a long time ago....."
" Yeah , but Ben that object in there, I don't understand. It said things ......"
" Yes, you wouldn't understand. You see," He looked down at the ground, too ashamed to look her in the eye. " I've....... I haven't been completely honest with you."
She took a step back as a frown marred her features.
"Rey I can't do that anymore. Not to you . So please tell me ...why.... Why do you put up with me? All my darkness and bad temper? Even after I broke up with you , you still reached out to me . You were always there for me. I can't comprehend such goodness in anyone."
Her face changed instantly into a beautiful smile as she understood his confession.
It was time for her own revelation.
" I like the way you look,the way you smile, they way you make me smile. I like the way you look at the world. How you care. How excited you get about your brick. You let me braid your hair and balance your Chakras , even though I know you think it's silly.
You respect me and accept me how I am. I was drawn to you from the moment I laid my eyes on you. I knew there was someone remarkable and gentle underneath your awkward , grumpy exterior....
I couldn't fight it , and I know you couldn't fight it either. So I waited for you to come to your senses."
"Yeah, but what about the music? You want you to know where it came from. It didn't come from me . It was my lap top computer. I can't explain it but something happened to it and it came to life."
He watched her expression to see if she'd believe him or think he was crazy.
"I told Bee Bee Ate about you and asked it to help me write a love song. It wanted to meet you but I wouldn't allow it. It was what caused the dinner reservation mix ups and everything. It was jealous and tried to brake us up."
All that talking left him even more breathless. He was waiting for her to laugh in his face. A lap top come to life? One with feelings that can write love songs? Ridiculous!
He was shocked speechless when she continued to tell him what was in her heart. It was exactly what he needed to hear.
How did she know just what to say ?
"Ben, I know I have said and done things too. I'm sorry. But it's hard to put into words. It's not about words, it's about an feeling.
Ben for the first time in a long time I don't feel alone . That your not just someone living above me , but beside me.
Even when you weren't there it was like you were ........and I was alright."
Rey took a deep sustaining breath and looked deep into Ben's eyes.
"Ben, I guess...... I love you!"
A light shower began as the two lovers stood in the middle of the road. Ben felt an overwhelming sense of relief and happiness which manifested itself in a loud whoop of joy . He lifted Rey off her feet and spun her around .
Rey felt like her feet would never touch the ground again as they kissed in the warm autumn rain.