Love's Obsession

            The morning sun brought a renewed life to Hans as he lay there next to this amazing girl.  Her long black hair had hints of splatter paint from their adventure the night before.  He felt amazing.  She was amazing.  They had met in the club.  They hadn’t spent a moment apart since they first danced.  Once in the bathroom.  More at his apartment.  Now, even though he lay there exhausted from the lack of sleep, he couldn’t help but smile.  He watched the sunlight creep its way through the window and down her bare shoulder.  As his heart beat heavy in his chest the tan skin of her back was illuminated by the fiery golden rays that warmed their naked bodies. He lightly touched her shoulder, feeling her one more time.  He had been with women before, but none that had captured him like she had.  She reacted to his disturbing touch.  He was up on one arm looking down at her.  As she rolled to meet his gaze she covered herself with his flannel sheet.  “Morning beautiful.” He said as he leaned in and kissed her on the forehead.  A smile was on her face as she shook her head.

            “You’re a hopeless romantic…Got any coffee?”

            “Sure do!” he got out of bed and pulled on some underwear and walked into the kitchen leaving her there to herself.  He quickly put a pot of coffee on the coffee maker and then opened the fridge to see if he had any food to offer this amazing woman.  The food that wasn’t in a white Styrofoam containers looked almost as bad as the food that they contained.  He thought of how having a woman around would force him to be more of a provider.  Something he had always wanted to be since he could remember.  He had always wanted this girl of his dreams to just pop out of nowhere and sweep him off his feet.  His friends attributed this delusion to the fact that he watched romantic comedies just about as much as he people watched.

            “The coffee will be done in just a minute... sorry I don’t really have any food.” He said as he made his way back into his bedroom.  He pushed on the door and found it locked.  His heart jumped.  His mind flashed to his closet.  The pictures.  He took a deep breath, “Honey? You alright in there?” he said gently.

            “Who the fuck are you?” her voice was scared.  He never wanted to hear her voice sound like that.  She was too important to him.  “Shit! You're some psycho ass-hole thats going to kill me!”  She was screaming so loud. The neighbors would hear.  He took the key from atop the doorframe and unlocked it and entered to see her standing by the closet.   “Stay away from me!”  She was wearing one of his shirts; she looked good in it.   “Why do you have all these pictures?” She had a hand full of pictures that he had developed himself.

            “Oh I am a photographer…didn’t I tell you that last night? Oh wait you never like to talk to men before you fuck them.  Isn’t that right?”  She looked at him with shock on her face. “Did you know that you have slept with three Stevens and two Thomases!  I mean I don’t think you’re a whore or anything, but you weren’t hard.  After watching you for a little while it was easy.”

            “Stay the hell away from me!  God, have you been following me? Who are you?”  Her breathing was faster then he had ever heard it.   His blood rushed faster through his body.   He took a step towards her.  She backed herself into the closet and closed the door.  He could hear her sobbing on the other side of the door..

            Hans breathed deeply and knew what he had to do.  Why was it that all his loves acted like this? Shouldn’t they be flattered that he was so interested in them?  He thought so.  He turned the knob on the door.  “Go away! Stop!” she was screaming hysterically.  He had thought she would be different.  “…please…oh please stop.” She whimpered.

            He opened the door expecting to see her curled in a ball on the floor like the rest, but he was knocked off guard as she tackled him to the ground.  Both fell to the floor and she crawled over him trying to get away.  She got to her feet as he lunged at her, throwing her towards the window.  Her slender arm was accentuated by red as she pulled it back through the broken glass.  It was stunningly gorgeous to him.  He locked the bedroom door.

            “Why?” she asked as she leaned against the wall below the window bleeding.  “Why me?”

            “Haven’t you figured it out yet? You’re beautiful! You’re everything I have ever wanted!”  He reached into his closet and pulled down and expensive camera and aimed it at her. 

            Click. Click. “Stop! Just stop! Please don’t hurt me…I will do anything for you!”

            He put the camera on the bed and made his way over to her.  She was accepting him.  She understood.  “I knew you would understand.  The others didn’t, but I knew you would.”  He looked down at her smiling.

            She got up to her feet, slowly and with great pain on her face.  “I…guess I just freaked out a little…” she said softly, understanding of his plight. “I guess I didn’t realize how much you…no…I didn’t know how... how CRAZY YOU ARE!” She screamed as she lunged at him pulling a large piece a glass from behind her and stabbing him in the chest. 

            Hans stumbled back towards the closet as she ran for the bedroom door and fumbled with the lock.  He grabbed the closet door with his right hand, his left on his bleeding heart.  He felt so weak, she was making him weak in the knees.  He smiled as he fell to the ground, pulling a box down with him.  Thousands of pictures flittered to the ground around him and he saw the countless loves of his life.  He saw them smiling.  He saw how they loved him.  He heard her screaming for help outside his room.  She was trying to help him... she must really have loved him.