Sam spent his nights usually in the arms of different women, he hated being alone but the thought of being “tied down” to just one person frightened him more. His friends romanticised his bachelor lifestyle even though it was laced with misogyny. Until he saw her. Passing the museum after work one evening he gazed over to see her leaving the double doors. Her raven hair perfectly framing her dusky visage, deep emotive warm brown eyes full of mystery and a half sardonic smile as she gazed into the golden hues of the setting sun reflected on the river. His heart actually raced slightly not of the usual highs of the games of seduction he often played but more of a yearning. For many years such emotions had become deadened but he had to know her and even so he felt a certain amount of nervous embarrassment. Looking back she had gone.
That night he couldn’t eat, all his thoughts were of her as if after just one look he had been moved into something more deep than the usual state of longing. Erotic images had been replaced with musings about names, what did she work as? Was she just visiting the museum? Would he ever see her again? The next few weeks he managed to work out that she came out of the museum around 6pm on a Tuesday and Friday, each time looking towards the river. Then she turned a corner and disappeared, always vanishing as fast as she came. No longer did Sam go on dates and had realised that he had to speak to her. When Friday came around he stood bravely outside the museum’s doors counting the minutes until 6pm, she came out and stared directly at him.
“Finally, Ive been waiting for you to say hello”, she said smiling warmly.
“I’ve seen you for weeks and just become brave enough to do that. I’m Sam. Would you like to go out for dinner?” he said somewhat meekly.
“Of course. I’m Claire. You decide where” she smiled as his face betrayed so many fleeting emotions from relief to abject joy.
Dinner was a wondrous affair full of brevity, charm and conversation. Sam couldn’t help being do open with Claire, just looking into the deep pools of sumptuous umber, he was captivated not only by her classical appearance but he playful warm wit. Towards the end of dinner, arms had stretched across the table and now they gently held each others hands. A genuine smile had broken out on Sam’s face as he watched her lean over and whisper in his ear followed by a solitary kiss on his cheek.
“Please come back to mine, I just want to be held.”
Bill paid, taxi ordered. They left hurriedly to get back to Kensington, to a lovely little ground floor flat, minimalist décor as she lead him from the hall to the bedroom.
“I don’t do sex on the first date but cuddling is okay?” Claire said,
“That’s fine. Whatever is best. I’m just happy to be here” Sam started to sound more like a lovesick boy than the serial womanizer. To be in her arms all night would be as close to heaven as humanly possible. Undressing they fell into each other’s arms on the bed, warm in embrace as she kissed both his eyelids.
“Close your eyes” and he responded. The lack of vision heightened the other senses as lips brushed lips, slowly opening the mouth for her sweetened tongue to explore his. Never before had he felt such joyous excitement. Then her hand coaxed part of him into life, as she pushed him on his back and mounted him. He gasped. She returned to give another kiss, but this time her knees dug into his sides, and hew tongue was a rasp. Dry and tasting foul, his eyes flicked open in distress to see the pale opacity of her dead eyes gazing back. Greyish green skin writhed with life under the surface as she vomited a mass on obese murk webbed maggots down his throat. Sam gagged, he couldn’t scream. In his mind he yelled and quailed, hope for some sort of divinity to protect him from this abomination of his love. She approached her end of the love making, he back arched. As cracks appeared in her skin and a deluge of fetid maggots rained down upon him burying deep into his flesh, finding orifices and crawling inside. Food for Claire and in an unholy rite joined together in “Love”.