I walked into that desolate room not knowing what to expect. I was afraid, I must admit. Lauren, my girlfriend, had sounded frantic on the phone asking me to come home right away. We had just moved into our new apartment and I was hoping that whatever had happened to make her so worried was just that Exodus, our kitten, had gotten under the dresser and she couldn’t find him or something. I wouldn’t think the worst. It is difficult for me to think of something wrong happening already.

But as I entered the living room, everything seemed fine. Nothing was out of place and our kitten was laying on the couch asleep as usual.

“Honey?” I called out to her. With no reply I set down my backpack and portfolio from school, ruffled our kittens furry head, and walked to our new room.

When I entered slowly, I could hear her soft breathing before I could see her. She had kept the lights off with the blinds closed. I walked over to our bed and sat on the edge, close to her waist. As I reached my hand out to stroke her soft face lightly her hand flew out from under the covers, grabbed my wrist, then pulled me over her to lay on the other side of the bed. Out of shock I sat up quickly, but she leapt up wrapping her arms around my neck and pulled me right back down. She was laughing, that sweet harmonious laugh that I love so dearly. She kissed my lips sweetly and with a passion that I had missed in the months we had been away from each other. My hand reached out to her hip to pull our bodies closer together and I found that her skin was under my palm, no cloth, just soft, gentle skin. This light touch sent chills up my arm, making the hairs lift and bumps to rise on my skin.