My Butterfly

floor, but when she looked back up and found my eyes again, she had a pretty smile stretched across her face.
    “It’s good to see you,” she said.
    I couldn’t help but just stare at her.
    “I heard your song on the radio the other day,” she said.
    I tried to hide my shy smile, as my eyes darted to the floor.
    “Well, what have you been up to these days besides becoming famous?” she asked.
    I laughed.
    “If I’m famous, it doesn’t really feel any different,” I softly muttered, as if it were a secret.
    “That’s probably because you were already used to it,” she said. “You’ve been famous here since I’ve known you.”
    I laughed again. It had been awhile since I had really laughed. It felt good. And it felt good to be holding her hand. God, if this were all a dream, I’m beggin’ you, don’t wake me up. Just let me rest.
    “Isn’t everybody famous in a small town?” I asked.
    The sides of her mouth lifted into another pretty grin.
    “I guess you’re right,” she said.
    She was quiet for a moment. I listened to the words from the juke box as they hit my ears, and I closed my eyes and remembered back to the first night I had played her the same song. On the back of my eyelids, I saw her green eyes lit up by the fire’s flames and her wide smile tempting me to kiss her.
    But suddenly, the sound of her voice forced my eyelids open again, and the image was lost.
    “How’s work?” she asked.
    I took a second before I answered her.
    “It’s been good,” I said. “I worked the last couple of days. It’s good to be back—a little break from traveling. Though, I’m not complaining.”
    “I know,” she said, smiling into my shoulder.
    “So, you like it?” she asked.
    “Like…?” I repeated.
    “The lights, the fans, the entertaining?” she continued. “You like it, right?”
    “Oh, that,” I said, nodding my head. “I like parts of it. I like playing the guitar and that sometimes people get the words you’re singing—makes ‘em smile, you know?”
    She nodded her head.
    “Now, the lights, on the other hand,” I continued, “I could do without them. They’re bright, and they’re hot and just unnecessary.”
    She didn’t say anything for a minute. She just stared at me with those temptress eyes of hers.
    “I told you so,” she said, finally. “Well, minus the lights, I knew you’d like it.”
    “You were just itchin’ to say that, weren’t you?” I asked her.
    “Maybe,” she confessed.
    A smile started to carve its way up my face and then stopped.
    “You never liked the firefighting idea, did you?” I asked.
    “What?” she replied.
    She looked surprised.
    “Why do you think that?” she asked.
    “I don’t think,” I whispered near her ear. “I know, Jules.”
    She stared into my eyes. I watched her pupils dance back and forth as if they were searching for something.
    “Will, you had to have picked the most dangerous career,” she eventually said. “I wasn’t exactly thrilled, but I was sincerely happy for you.”
    “I know. I know,” I said, starting to laugh.
    “And Will, I would have done anything to make you happy,” she said, catching me off guard. “I still would.”
    My smile somewhat faded, and my feet grew heavy on the floor. I had just now noticed that there was a different song coming from the juke box, and I locked my eyes on hers as I moved my hand up the small of her back, forcing her an inch closer to my body. She seemed to notice but didn’t stop me.
    “I mean, we were best friends, Will,” she continued.
    “Are best friends, Jules,” I said.
    “What?” she asked.
    “Jules, we are best friends,” I said again.
    She paused but then slowly nodded her head.
    “Are,” she said, smiling up at me.
    She rested her head on my shoulder then, and I squeezed her hand in mine. Her hand was soft and warm and perfect. And I couldn’t believe I hadn’t told her yet. God, how many years had it been, and I hadn’t told her that I loved her, still love her—that I would quit fighting fires for her, that I would do anything for her?
    “Jules,” I blurted out, causing her to lift her head from my chest. “I’ve, uh, been doing some thinking, and I…”
    I reached for her other hand and cradled it in my own. Then, I closed my eyes for a moment, lowered my head and took a deep breath as I ran my thumb in a gentle motion over the tops of her fingers. But after several seconds, something stopped me. It was hard and jagged. I