The Thunderstorm

I never liked thunderstorms. They have always brought loud noises and memories of my father yelling at my mother and the smell of liquor filled breath. As the individual raindrops pitter-patter on the roof, my boyfriend wraps his arms around me. My head is tucked in the crook of his neck, and the first strike of lightning hits. As the thunder roars, his arms get tighter and I duck further into his neck.

He moves his head, and whispers in my ear, "It's alright. I'm here to protect you from anything and everything you are afraid of. No one will harm a single hair on you." For the first time, I believe that someone is actually there to protect me and look out for me. I've never had someone actually care about if I was okay or not, just my mother making sure I wasn't physically hurt like she was. I only remember her black eyes sloppily covered with layers and layers of make-up looking at my tears and telling me to be quiet or he would come back worse.

I come out from his neck to see a large grin and to return it with my own. He turns his head and I look into his big brown eyes. His smile gets bigger, and he comes towards me. Electricity shot all through my body, and I had never felt so happy. I took my arms from where they were scrunched up on his chest and put them around his neck. I never wanted this kiss to end, but I pulled away to hide from more lightning. When I tried to, he pulled me back by the back of my neck. As he did so, I forgot all fear. He is my protector, and will never let anything harm me. That I am certain of. He is my other half, the one who completes me.

It is him who pulls away this time, and he rests his forehead on mine. He looks into my eyes and me into his. A smile appears on each of our faces, and I put my hand on his cheek. With one fluid motion, I took that hand and gently pulled him back in. I have never experienced such the amount of happiness that I feel whenever he is close.

As the night goes on, we watch the storm to its full extent, kissing whenever there is a long phrase of continuous thunder. By the end, I am very tired and have to put my head back in the crook of his neck, where I begin to fall asleep. He looks down at me and kisses my cheek. A smile is spread across my face as I fall into a beautiful sleep.

In the morning, he is already awake, and I feel a soft touch on my lips. I wake up but keep my eyes closed because I know exactly who it is. His shoulder and neck were as soft as a pillow, but yet, I knew that he was there to protect me from all harm. There would be no way I could ever forget this perfect night. Thunderstorms are finally starting to look better. I forgot the fights of my past and finally looked forward to the next thunderstorm where I could cuddle up to my boyfriend and forget my worries. Although I cannot completely forget the nights my father beat my mother like the rain beat at the windows, I feel better and even safer now that I know I am loved by someone. Someone who will do anything to protect me. Now I can go and face those nightmares myself knowing I will always have him by my side.