Desire

Her name was Joy. We were inseparable, best friends, until he came along. I guess she never really liked him, she could see him for who he really was, but I couldn't. His name was Desire and all I could see were his chocolate eyes, perfect smile, and untamed ambition and I wanted him so bad. I didn't even notice her absence at first, I had become so enthralled with his presence, but in the pit of my stomach, a sore began to fester and grow. More friends fell by the wayside: Focus, Decisiveness, Confidence, and Self-Respect, and his friends replaced them: Loneliness, Doubt, Sadness, and Self-Loathing. I thought about calling Joy, but I knew that until I left him, Joy wouldn't pick up. I stared at blank walls as he ignored me and used me and planted a garden of falsehoods around me and I felt nothing. The sore had become a gaping hole that I didn't know how to fill. But one day, I heard singing. Only Joy could sing like that. I followed the sound down a path to a crowd of people. I could still hear her, but more than that, I could see her in their eyes. They parted and there she was standing with a man I didn't know. She led him over to me, the song still hovering on the breeze, and he offered me his hand, his blue eyes full of warmth. She smiled and nodded, but as I tentatively reached for his hand, I looked back to see angry chocolate eyes watching me. He too held out his hand, but it was not an offering. It was a command. I hesitated. Desire burned, Desire as I had never seen him, but then I heard someone start singing with Joy. I turned to see that the crowd had vanished and that the blue eyed stranger was harmonizing with my friend. The pain in my stomach began to fade as he smiled and again offered his hand. I began to reach for him, but Desire smacked me and began to drag me away. I screamed and begged him to let me go, but he wouldn't let someone else have me. The pain returned and began to consume me. As my vision faded, I saw icy eyes approaching. Strong, warm arms wrapped around my ribs and started to pulled me from the grasp of Desire, but as they did, I could feel Desire's name change. Jealousy screamed and clawed at my arms, unwilling to let me go, and just as my vision returned, I saw Jealousy's friends arrive. I began to sob; surely I couldn't resist all of them, but then I saw Joy leading them. She stopped and pointed at Jealousy, his flesh still burning with his old name, and they descended. I could feel his fingers slip from my arms and as they did, I could feel his name change, for the briefest moment, to Regret before he was dragged into the shadows. Joy and the blue-eyed stranger helped me up and he cradled me gently as she tended to my wounds. I looked up into his eyes and asked his name. He smiled and replied in a whisper, "Love."