Dissonance by Drew Elyse

to read Dante’s Divine Comedy now, but it is slow going. Even though I’ve already read a translation and this copy having the side-by-side English and Italian, it’s still a struggle.”
    Had I ever challenged myself to do something like that when it wasn’t an assignment? No, I was pretty certain that had never happened. “Where did you study in Italy?”
    “Rome, Florence, and a week in Assisi. I studied Opera, Italian literature, and worked on my Italian.”
    She was easily the most impressive person I had ever met. “That sounds amazing.”
    “It was. I would have loved to see Venice, though… or the rest of Europe for that matter.”
    “Is Italy the only place you’ve been?”
    “Yes. I want to save up to spend some time going through the rest of Europe. I’ve always wanted to go to London and Belfast, but we’ll see.” There was a tone of regret to her voice. “Have you been?”
    “Yeah. I’ve been all over. England, France, Germany, Italy, Spain. My parents hadn’t been able to go on a honeymoon when they first got married, so once my dad’s business really took off, we went on a family vacation through Europe one summer.”
    “Wow. I wish I hadn’t been abroad alone. I would have loved to bring Eli with me. He worked so many extra shifts to send me, I wish he could have come. I got really lonely over there sometimes.”
    In my mind, I could see her. Her big brown eyes bright and that slightly awed face she’d had when admiring the piano earlier on her face. She could rival any masterpiece I’d seen in Italy, or anywhere else in the world. Suddenly, it was clear to me why I had allowed myself to come in and sit with her.
    “Look, I wanted to apologize for earlier,” I began awkwardly, “at the club. And… after.”
    God Almighty, the blush that crept into her cheeks nearly killed me. When she peeked up at me, her head still down-turned as her sparkling eyes came up to meet mine, I had to count backward from ten to calm my body’s reaction.
    “I want you to know that I’m not…” she swallowed and squirmed a bit. “I’m not a danger to myself. I didn’t get to say that earlier, but you should know that. You don’t have to worry about me… making an attempt. I wouldn’t burden you that way.” The shame in her last statement was stifling, and would likely have knocked me on my ass if I had been standing. Her head hung low and she seemed to physically shrink in front of me.
    I reached out and gently grazed one of her hands, both of which were wrapped protectively around her legs. “Hey,” I said, and she just barely peered up at me again. “I would be far too concerned about you to feel ‘burdened’ in that situation. And, I don’t judge you for this,” I slowly approached the thin scar with my index finger, though stopped short of actually touching it. I wasn’t sure how she would react to that and I didn’t want her pushing me out now. “I can only imagine what it is like when pain makes you feel that desperate.” I didn’t plan my next words, but they came tumbling out anyway, surprising us both, “But just so you know, I think this world is a better place with you in it than it would be without.”
    Now the blush on her cheeks was bright crimson, but her eyes stayed locked on mine. I was glad, because as embarrassed as I was by my own words, I wanted her to see that they were earnest. I may have just met her, but I knew with absolute confidence that she made everything brighter with her presence alone. In the less than twelve hours since she’d moved in, and I already felt that she would impact my life for the better.
    Her voice was a hushed whisper when she replied, “Thank you.”
    She needed to know that she had not scared me off, but more than that, she deserved a warning to stay away. “I didn’t run off tonight because of your scar, and I hate that I might have made you think that, even for a moment. We all have scars, Charlotte, and I would never fault