Sitting on the splinter filled bench, she closed her eyes and lets the tears hit the brown wood. Wither every single tear that falls, it shows up darker, each spot. Just like the bruises on her arms, it brought her back to when he hit her

Justin’s knuckles cracked as they wailed the tender over-bruised skin over and over. With every hit and every blow, the pale skin tuned darker each time, embracing more and soaking up the pain. The dark room, soft couch suddenly seemed so coarse, carpet burns the inside of her thigh as he leaves a size 10 shoe imprint into her spine. Stephanie knew that she couldn’t let anybody know or it would get worse. Like a broken recorder, her mind kept racing over his cursing and her screams. Scrambling for the door each time he got mad, one foot, one inch, almost there. *white…* Being together for so long, she never knew anything different.

Thinking about the pain brought her back to reality. Trying to sustain her breathing, she hears a beat, her heart was beyond broken, and so she knew that wasn’t what she was hearing. Could it be Justin? As she turns her head, she sees Ben walking down the dock. Ben had lived across the street from her as long as Stephanie could remember, but she never thought about it before now. His soft brown hair gently swept across his brow. Starting a faster pace with the image he comes closer to. Just from the look on his face, it was like he knew everything, all the pain she dealt with for so long. Seeing the tenderness in her eyes, it was that look.

A sense of calmness and understanding, “Come with me,” no words but his arms stretched out towards her said it all. She ran and embraced him; she knew she had to get away from Justin. His fingers ran through her soft strawberry blonde curls. She felt the warmth of his body against her tear stained shirt.

As Stephanie started to weep more, Ben just squeezed her a little tighter just to let her know that he was there and that there was no reason to be sad. He wanted to be her all. Just the thought in hind of Stephanie being hurt in any way sent chills down his spine. He gently sat her head into the crease of his shoulder with his imprinted soft hands, helping her feel secure. Like a weightless butterfly landing on a beautiful flower, he gently kissed the top of her head. Ben had waited a lifetime for this moment. Stephanie listened to her heart at this very second. The only thing that kept her pushing through was Stephanie’s love for the Lord. “Father, I come to you open heartedly. I know that you see what I’ve gone through. I’ve been dealt with hatred and with disgust. You see how he abused me, and you’ve sent me someone to help. Please let this be the one”

As Ben heard Stephanie’s whispers, he kept quite until he knew that she was content with the moment. A smile began to awaken in the corner of her eye, something she forgot ever existed. She backed away from him.

Still holding Stephanie’s hand, she saw the stain on his shirt. Startled by the horrified look on her face, “It’s okay Stephanie, don’t worry.” Ben was in love.