• Caramella sighed loudly enough for people at either lunch table beside her to hear. The roar of voices seemed to engulf everyone else in daily life. She grabbed her boyfriend Cody’s hand and gripped it tightly. Her focus was on a brick wall a few feet away from her. This was her plan, to stop her from falling apart. Seconds later she shifted; digging her face into his muscular chest. His scent of laundry detergent usually calmed her, but this time it just egged on the tears. She wanted to stay home today, but her father insisted she see her friends. Cody concealed her in a hug, trying to help her through this tough time. She had been struggling to hold her feelings in all day. Worrying someone would only make her feel worse. She could handle this, it just wouldn’t be easy.
    After a couple minutes of this, a single tear escaped her grasp of control and led an entire herd down her face. This pack traveled down until it came in contact with her black polyester pants. Some took a different path, which led to her black silk dress shirt, cotton sweatshirt or to her midnight black three inch stiletto heels. Caramella was so weak from sadness that she couldn’t even lift her arm to wipe away her tears. Cody was in sync with her mind, and wiped away the moisture that he could reach. He didn’t want to distort their arrangement. He was cozy and she was comfortable enough, not that she cared too much. She pulled away once she gained control again. He looked at her, smeared make up and all, with a caring smile. Next he smoothly used his sleeve to clean off some of her make up, and mop up the tears abandoned on her face. She looked miserable and messy. Her hair was up in a messy bun, her make-up was now non existent and her face was puffy and blotchy.
    “I love you, beautiful. I’ll be here for you whenever you need to talk with someone. Even if you just need a hug I’ll be happy to supply them,” He told her staring her straight in the eyes. She felt as if he could read her soul, but truthfully he could only read her emotions. This was the first time he said those three meaningful words to her out of the many months they had been dating. A split second after hearing this she broke into tears again. A strong mix of joy and depression overwhelmed her heart. Cody rubbed her thumb softly to show he was there and cared for her.
    “I love you too, with all of my heart,” She said, honestly. This was a lesson she had just learned. Caramella would now tell everyone how much she loves them, daily not monthly like before. She had already made that mistake with her mother, and that couldn’t be fixed.