God's Greatest Creation

 

Why?” he asked, holding her lifeless body in his arms.  “Why would you do this?”

 

Tears rolled down his face as he thought back to the days before…

 

He, Adrian Lennon, was a tall man with brown hair, blue eyes and glasses.  He had had a secret crush on a tall brunette, with the most amazing blue-green eyes, for two–and–a–half years now.

  Samantha Marshall… 

  What a babe!

  They had met briefly, the previous year, at the Junior House Plays, but she paid little attention to him.

  “She’s so beautiful.  Why would she be interested in me when she can have any guy she wants?”

 

All the girls (and a lot of the boys) either called her names or pushed her away.  She was well known, but far from popular.

  All the teachers raved about the excellence and neatness of her work and about her good manners.

  A “Goody–Two–Shoes”.

Samantha was hurt by these names, but just took it as it came because she was taught that if she were ever found fighting, “God would surely strike her dead”!

 

Samantha stared out the window with a confused and lonely expression on her face.

  “Samantha.  Samantha!”

  “Huh?  Oh, sorry Ma’am.”

  The whole class burst out laughing

  Samantha got so embarrassed.

  “Okay.  Okay.  Calm down.”

  Miss Gomes called Samantha to the front.

  “Could you please go around to these four teachers and…” she continued to explain what she needed.

  Samantha took the list and went to the relevant teachers.

 

Once she had gone to the first three teachers on the list, she stood on the stairs outside the last teacher’s class.

  “What am I going to say to him?  What if I make a fool of myself?”

  All these questions crept into her mind at the same time. 

  She stood for a while longer, took a deep breath and started to his class.

 

It was the fourth period of the day and he had a free.  Adrian was busy writing a poem.  He leaned back in his chair, took his glasses off and imagined himself holding Samantha, gazing into her gorgeous eyes…

  His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

  “Come in!”

  His heart stopped.

  This must be a dream, he thought.  Could she really be standing in the doorway?

  He put his glasses back on.

  “Morning, Mr Lennon.”

  “Morning.”

  There was a silence.

  “Um… Sir… Miss Gomes asked…” she repeated what Miss Gomes had told her.

  Looking into her eyes, Adrian found himself lost in her beauty.

  Would she be offended if I hugged her?

  Samantha also found herself lost in the moment, but snapped out of it.

  “So, Sir.  Are you going?”

  Adrian looked confused for a second.

  “Excuse me?  Oh… no.  But tell her I say thanks anyway.”

  He smiled a warm, loving smile.

  Samantha smiled back, “Will do, Sir.  Thanks a lot.”

  “Thank you.”

  As she reached the door, Adrian called her back.

  “Sam.”

  “Yes, Sir?”

  Adrian swallowed hard.  “House Plays are coming up soon.  I was just wondering if you’re going to the auditions?”

  “Of course, Mr Lennon!  But I don’t need to audition.  I’m a born actress.”

  They both burst out laughing.

  “We’ll call for auditions tomorrow.  Just listen out for the announcement.  And, even though you don’t need to audition, I’d like it if you could still be there.”

  “All right.  Thanks again, Sir,” Samantha smiled and left.

  As Adrian watched her walk out the room, he felt like a melting snowman in the boiling sun.  Even just the thought of her standing there sent his heart racing again.

  I wonder who her boyfriend is.

  He scratched his head and went back to his poem.

 

Samantha closed the door behind her and stood with her back against it.  She breathed in deeply.

  “’I’m a born actress…’  What a dork!  I can’t believe I said that!  He probably thinks I’m such an idiot!”

  She wanted to start crying as she walked back to Miss Gomes’s classroom.

  “Hey, B***h!  You piece of white trash!  F**k off home.”

Samantha looked up, but there was no one around.  She picked up her pace.  There was laughter behind her.  Her pace quickened until she was running.  Tears rolled down her cheeks.

  As she ran up the stairs, Mr Matthews walked out if the admin office and they collided.

  “Whoa, there cowboy!”

  Samantha didn’t look up, “Sorry, Sir!”

  She began walking away, but John Matthews pulled her back.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  She looked up t him and started to cry again.  John put his arm around her shoulder and walked her to Miss Gomes’s class.

 

  “The end of the day at last.” 

Adrian was more than relieved.  He had been torn between hiss classes and his thoughts of Samantha the rest of the day.

  When he arrived at his condo on Dragon Beach, he made himself a cup of coffee and started marking a few tests but stopped soon after.  He kept thinking of the thrill when Samantha walked into the class.

  “I wonder what she’s doing now…”

 

  “That was only six months ago,” Adrian said to himself as the ambulance drove off.

Adrian’s thoughts drifted back to the days of the House Play rehearsals just a few months prior.  Samantha had always done her absolute best to get the play perfect.  And she always looked so stunning!

  “So, Tiger, what are we doing tonight?”  Samantha purred as she walked up to him.

  Adrian couldn’t believe how sexy she sounded.

  “Well, Babe, let’s start out real slow and we’ll work our way up,”

 He walked up to her, put his arms around her waist and pulled her close.

  Samantha started giggling.  “I’m sorry, but I’m very ticklish!”

  Adrian smiled, “Okay.  Calm down.” 

  He turned to Denver.  “When you pull her close, do it in a more…uh…a more sexy way.

  Denver arched an eyebrow, “Sorry?”

  Adrian sighed, climbed up the side of the stage and, in his best American accent, said, “Move over, Buster!  Let me show you how it’s done.”  As he said this he pushed Denver aside.

  “Okay, say that last line again, Sam.”

  Samantha gave a shy smile and shrugged her shoulders, “Alright.”

  She walked back a bit and took a few really deep breaths.

  “So, Tiger, what are we doing tonight?”

  As he stepped closer, he said, “Well, Babe, let’s start out real slow and we’ll work our up.”

  He put his arms around her waist, pulled her close and stared into her eyes.  They looked so scared, but yet, they looked naughty as the same time.  He leaned forward, parted his lips…

 

As the curtains closed, Samantha let out a sigh of relief.  The rest of the cast ran up to them and they had a group hug.

  “That was FANTASTIC!”

  “Yeah, it was great!”

  Everyone was complementing her and Denver on that last scene. 

  Denver took Samantha’s hands and looked deep into her eyes.  “We did it, ol’ mum!  We did it!”

  Samantha laughed and said, “That English accent’s as lousy as your Maths mark!”

  Denver gave her ‘The Evil Eye’, but soon started laughing.  He put his arm around her waist and they walked off stage together.

  Adrian was waiting outside to congratulate them.  When Samantha saw him, she ran to him and put her arms around his neck.  He put his arms around her, closed his eyes and just wished that the moment would never end.

 

Sitting in the waiting room of the hospital for the second time, he remembered how unhappy she was the days after the play.

  “What’s the matter?” he asked.

  He could see that she had been crying – her eyes were red and puffy, and the tracks where her tears had rolled down, where still visible.

  She looked up at him with fear and loneliness printed in bold letters.

  What is she so afraid of? He wondered.

  “Howz’it, Mr Lennon!” a couple of boys shouted.

  He smiled and waved.  He turned back to Samantha and saw that she was trembling.  He followed her gaze to see what it was the she was so terrified of. 

  There was a group of boys standing at the top of the stairs.  As soon as they saw Adrian, they all turned and walked away.  He watched until they were out of sight and then turned back to Samantha.  With her back pressed against the wall, she was very pale (almost white) and still trembling.  Adrian grabbed her arms and led her inside his class.  He pushed her down on a chair and crouched in front of her.

  “What was that all about?”

  Little did he know, that the group of boys were standing at the window, threatening her if she said a word.  Samantha saw them there, looked away and started crying.

  Adrian put his arms around her and whispered, “Don’t worry.  Everything will be alright.”

  For the first time ever, Samantha actually felt that someone cared about her.  This made a fresh bash of tears run down her face.

 

  Before that day, Adrian had thought that Samantha had never had problems and had been liked by everyone.

  Now he recalled the reason for the first time he had been sitting in this exact waiting room.  He had stayed at school until around 5pm, sitting in meetings and marking papers.  Samantha had stayed after school to assist Mr Matthews with the stapling of papers and to ask for help with her Science project.

  As Samantha walked to the main gate, she heard someone calling her name.  She turned around, but no one was there.  She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

  “Calm down.  There’s no one there.”

  When she opened her eyes again, she saw someone running to the swimming pool area.

  Samantha decided to finally face her fears and went to see who it was.  As she entered the dark pool area, someone moved behind her and hit her over the head.  He then ripped off her shirt and was about to rip off her panties to rape her, when suddenly, her eyes shot open.  They looked like cat eyes: big, shiny and scary.  With a sudden surge of energy, she pushed him off her and got up to run, but he grabbed her leg, slamming her to the ground.  He wrapped his arm tightly around her neck and began strangling her.  She tried to scream for help, but his hand blocked out majority of the sound.  He then pushed her into the pool and held her head under the water.  She struggled to get air, but soon, everything fell silent.

 

Adrian had just been driving out when he heard an ear-piercing scream, followed by a loud splash!  He jumped out of his yellow beach buggy and ran to the pool area.  When he arrived there, he saw someone standing on the pool edge.

  “Hey!  What are you doing in here?”

  The guy spun around and made a quick get away over the wall.  Adrian started after him, but turned back to the pool.  When he got to the edge he saw a body lying face down in the water.  He pulled the body out of the water and wiped the hair out of her face.

  “Samantha!” he gasped.

  He got out his cell phone and called for an ambulance.  They arrived quickly and rushed Samantha off to the hospital.

 

Sitting in the very same waiting room, he remembered what a struggle it was to get the doctors to see Samantha.

  “We’re not sure if she has medical aid,” Doctor Spencer said.

  Adrian was furious.  “Just get her in there!  I’ll pay the bills, okay?”

  After a long two-and-a-half hour wait, Doctor Spencer came out to the waiting room.

  “So, how is she?” he asked anxiously.

  Doctor Spencer pulled Adrian to a quiet spot, near the window, “She’s stable, but she’s still unconscious.  We’ll keep an eye on her and let you know if anything changes.”

  Adrian gave a loud sigh of relief, “Thank you, Doc.  Can I go in and see her please?”

  “Yes, you may.  But I’m going to have to ask you not to stay long.”

  “Sure, Doc.  Thanks.”

 

As he sat next to her bed for the second time, he took her hand in his and kissed it lightly.

  “Hey, Sam.  It’s Adrian…uh…I…uh…just want you to know that I’m waiting for you to get better ‘cause I need you to be in my next play.”  He laughed at his stupid comment.

  Looking at her, with all the pipes stuck inside, made him feel sick.  He held her hand against his forehead, closed his eyes and said a silent prayer.  As his prayer came to an end, tears rolled down his cheeks.  He opened his eyes, kissed her hand, put his head down on the bed and cried.

 

A while later, Nurse Maria put her hand on Adrian’s shoulder.  He woke with a fright.

  “I’m sorry to wake you, Sir, but you were actually supposed to have been out of here two hours ago.”

  “Two hours ago?” He looked at his watch and saw that it was 22:46.  “I must have fallen asleep.  Thanks a lot Nurse Maria.  I owe you one.”

  She smiled and said, “Well, you can start by getting out of here before I get fired.”

  Adrian turned to Samantha and kissed her forehead, “I’ll see you soon.”

  With that, he left the hospital.

 

As he drove home, Adrian kept thinking of Samantha and prayed that she would be alright.  Sitting at the traffic light, Adrian remembered what Samantha’s ex-boyfriend, Wesley Hunter, had told him.

  He said that the reason he had broken up with her, was because she was suicidal.  She kept writing poems about pain and death.  Wesley had never thought much of the poems until he found her plans to shoot herself.  He confronted her about it, and she just broke out into tears.  He told the school psychologist and asked her to help Samantha until she had gotten back onto her feet.

  Adrian couldn’t believe that Samantha would even think of such a thing.

  Wesley had also told Adrian about the cuts on Samantha’s wrists.  It had, apparently been from the year before they had started dating. 

  Adrian still couldn’t understand, though, why she had tried to commit suicide this time.  The boy who had tried to rape her had been jailed; the boys that had been harassing her were expelled.  What could possibly have driven her this far?

  The traffic light turned green, and as he made a left turn, he kept trying to think of an answer.

 

Samantha had been unconscious for a couple of days.  Adrian had made a point of visiting her every day after class.  The doctors were monitoring her around the clock and said that her condition was improving.  After one more distressing day, Samantha started coming out of unconscious state.  Adrian had just finished class when it happened.  When the hospital called to let him know, he went straight to the principal’s office.  Mr Skinner was writing down some notes when Adrian walked in.

  “She’s awake,” Adrian said excitedly, before Mr Skinner had even looked up.

  “Who?  Samantha?”

  Adrian nodded his head.  “The hospital just called to tell me.  I’m on my way over there now.”

  “That’s great news!  Give her our regards and let her know that she has been in our prayers.”

  Adrian smiled, “Will do, Sir.”

  He was so excited, that when he got to his car, he screamed out “Yippee!!”

 

Adrian rushed into the hospital, nearly knocked Nurse Maria over.

  “I’m so sorry!” Adrian apologised.

  Nurse Maria laughed.  “I see you’re in a hurry to see Miss Marshall.  What relation are you to her anyway?”

  Adrian looked at the ground, “Oh, I’m…uh…just a friend.  Well, actually, I’m her Drama teacher, but I am also her friend.”

  She cocked her head at an angle, “But you like her, don’t you?”

  Adrian looked confused, “Well, yes, she’s an excellent student and she’s very sweet.”

  Nurse Maria’s eyes twinkled with mischief, “I don’t mean like that.  I mean you have feelings for her.”

  Adrian started blushing and went all shy.  Nurse Maria laughed.  He gave her a shy smile and told her that he had liked Samantha for nearly three years.

  She stood there with her mouth hanging open, “And you haven’t tried to ask her out?”

  “No way!  First of all, she’s a student, and she’s not interested in me anyway.”

  “How do you know that?”

  Adrian sighed, “I know the type of guys she likes, and my type isn’t on the list.”

  “Remember, you still owe me one,” Nurse Maria said.  “As soon as Miss Marshall is better, you will ask her out.  Deal?  No one needs to know.”

  Adrian smiled and nodded his head.  He then gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

  “Thank you so much for the inspiration.  You really are the best.”

  She just smiled as she watched him walk into Samantha’s room.

 

  “Hey, Babe.  How are you doing?”

Samantha looked up, “Oh, hi Adrian.”

  “Um, Sam…  I was just wondering if you’re going to school next week.”

  “I’m getting better, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  They both cracked into hysterical giggles.

  “I can’t believe I still remember the basics of those lines and they weren’t even mine!”

  Adrian smiled, “So, how are you feeling?”

  She blushed, “I’m much better now that you’re here.  I was so scared earlier.”

  Adrian held Samantha’s hand in his, “Sam, I know this probably isn’t the right time to ask you this…but why did you…?”

  Samantha turned her head away and looked out the window.  Tears streamed down her face, “It was a bunch of things:  school; so-called friends; family problems – I ran away from home.  But these were all just little things that added to the pile.”

  Adrian didn’t quite understand.  “’Little things’?  Meaning they weren’t the real reason?”

  Samantha nodded, “Yes, there was one main thing that drove me over the edge.  It’s kind of stupid.”

  Adrian, still holding her hand, leaned closer.  Samantha took a deep breath and turned to Adrian.

  “Well, the week before school started again…  How many weeks ago was that, anyway?”

  Adrian counted in his head, “Two weeks.”

  Samantha was totally shocked, “Have I been here for a week?”

  Adrian nodded, “Just about.”

  “Geez…  Well, okay.  Anyway, I decided to go for a walk on Dragon Beach.  It was so peaceful and so beautiful!  The afternoon sun had just started setting over the ocean, the waves lapping the shore.  It was amazing!”

  Samantha sighed, “All that beauty was shattered like a crystal glass, as I continued my walk along the beach.”

  Adrian could see the pain in her eyes as she told her story.

  “Why?”

  Samantha closed her eyes, and the image that had changed her life, came into view.  “I was just walking, not knowing where I was going.  Not really caring.  I came to some boulders, and decided to climb them.  I stopped to look at the houses on the beach.  I was so excited when I saw you standing n the balcony.  But as I started walking towards your place to say ‘hi’, I saw a blonde woman walk out and put stand by you.  She then put her arms around your neck and…”

  Her voice broke off into sobs.  Adrian couldn’t believe his ears – Samantha had been near his house?  She saw him and Carmen together?

  “I don’t get it,” he finally managed.

  Samantha gave him a dirty look and turned away, “I didn’t expect you to understand.  I told you it was stupid.  But I just couldn’t stand the thought of someone else having you!”

  There was a silence.

  Samantha took a deep breath and looked deep into Adrian’s eyes, “I’m in love with you, Adrian.  I have been since you started at this school.  For three years I have watched you pass me by.  When you spoke and joked around with other girls, something inside me wanted you to come and talk to me too.  Sometimes you gave me a smile that just melted all the bad away.  It got my heart racing.”

  Adrian still had a confused look on his face, “So, you tried to kill yourself because you saw me with another woman?  You were jealous?”

  “You became the only reason I got up each day.”

  He looked out the window, “Did you see what happened after she put her arms around my?”

  Samantha shook her head, “No, I was so hurt that I just ran away.”

  “Well, how would it make you feel if I told you that I pulled her arms off me and told her that I didn’t want to see her again?”

  Samantha looked into his eyes to see if he was telling the truth.

  “It would make me feel like a complete idiot,” she whispered.

  He stood up and gave her a hug, “I didn’t mean to make you feel like an idiot.  I just want you to know that I’m in love with you too.

  Adrian pulled away and kissed her.  As they hugged again, there was applause in the background.  They both turned around to see Nurse Maria and a group of other people standing in the doorway.  Samantha began giggling shyly.

  “I knew you could do it,” Nurse Maria said excitedly.

 

Samantha finally got permission to leave the hospital after another day.

  Doctor Spencer gave her a lollipop and said, “Just because you were such a good girl, you can have a treat.”

  Samantha tried not to laugh, but couldn’t help herself, “Thanks!”

  Doctor Spencer became serious, “Sam, I don’t EVER want to see you in here again unless it’s for a check up.  I know you don’t feel safe going home to your family, so for now, I’ve placed you in the care of Mr Lennon.”

  Samantha gave him a hug, “Thanks for saving my life, again.”

  She turned to Nurse Maria, “And thank you for everything.  You’re such a darling!”  She hugged her too.

  Adrian put his arm around Samantha’s waist.

  “Nurse Maria, thank you for giving me the courage to finally tell Sam how I feel.  If only it had been sooner, then this whole situation would never have started.”

  He held Samantha tight.

  “Thanks everyone!” they said as they got into the lift.

  Samantha waved as the doors were closing.

 

As they neared Adrian’s beach buggy, he turned to Samantha and hugged her, “You have no idea how I’ve longed to do that.”

  Samantha giggled, “Me too.”

  “Oh, before I forget…”  He ran to his car and grabbed something out the back.

  “Come on!” he called.  “I don’t have all day, you know.”

  “Well, if you’re waiting for me, you’ll have to put up with my pace.  Because if I walk any faster, I’m going to fall over!”

  Samantha reached the car and Adrian opened the door for her.

  “Why, thank you, kind sir.”

  Adrian smiled, “Anything for you, my lady.”

  He got into the driver’s seat and handed Samantha a big, brown teddy bear.

  “Oh, my word!  This is BEAUTIFUL!!”

  Adrian smiled, “I was hoping you would like it.”

  Samantha’s mouth dropped open, “Like it?  Are you crazy?  I LOVE it!”  She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.  “Thank you so much!”

  She hugged the teddy so tight it looked like it might pop.

  As Adrian started the car, he smiled and congratulated himself on making Samantha happy, for what seemed like the first time in years.

 

The ride home was filled with excited chatter, joking and laughter.  Samantha found it easy to talk to him about everything, and Adrian liked to let her talk.  She had told him that she was never really given the chance to talk about stuff because her ‘friends’ were always too concerned with themselves.

  They talked about their most embarrassing moments, and couldn’t stop laughing at each other.

  When they arrived at Adrian’s condo, Samantha started at it with wide eyes. 

  “Wow!  This place is beautiful!” She said as she entered the beach condo.  She stood in awe as she looked around the condo.

  Adrian took Samantha’s hand and gave her a tour of his house.  Samantha couldn’t believe how big and amazing his place was.

  “May I please go stand on the balcony?”

  “Of course!  You don’t have to ask.  My house is now yours.”

  Samantha smiled and walked out to the balcony.  She stood at the railing and watched the sun setting over the ocean and the waves lapping the shore.  Adrian came outside and put his arms around her waist.  They stood there for a long time.  Samantha turned around to face Adrian.  They stared into each other’s eyes and then shared a long lingering kiss.

  “This is that way I always dreamed it would be,” Samantha sighed as she hugged him.

 

Adrian had instructed Samantha to stay home in bed for the whole week after she was released from hospital.  She felt fine to go back to school, but according to Doctor Spencer, she wasn’t allowed to go back for another couple of days.

  “I’m glad you took the day off,” Samantha said happily.

  “Babes, I told you I would spend the day with you.  But I have to make a quick trip to see Mr Skinner.”

  Samantha pouted her lips, “Ah, no fair!”

  “It’ll just be for an hour.  I promise.”

  “Can’t you go later?” Samantha continued to pout.

  Adrian sighed, “I guess I could.  But I’m already up and dressed.”

  Samantha stood on the edge of the bed and undid his tie, “Not completely, you aren’t.”

  “Is that so?” Adrian questioned as he started tickling her.

  Samantha managed to squirm away and ran down the passage.  Adrian got up and chased after her.  They were both giggling like little children as they ran around the house.

  Samantha ducked outside to the patio, but Adrian ran out another door and grabbed her from behind.  They had come too close to the edge of the pool and they both fell in.

  As they surfaced, they started laughing again.  She looked at Adrian, who had fallen in fully-clothed, and began laughing again.  Adrian splashed water at her and quickly swam to her before she could try and splash back.  And before Samantha could even react, Adrian was already carrying her out of the pool.  He put her down on the first step and sat down next to her.  As they sat, they looked out across the ocean.

  Suddenly, Adrian jumped up and ran inside.  Samantha just sat and stared out at the endless sky.  He came back and carried her to the indoor Jacuzzi.

  They sat side-by-side watching the sun rise run over the water.  Adrian turned to her and they stared into each other’s eyes. 

  He pulled her close and whispered in her ear, “You are the most beautiful of all God’s creations.”

  Samantha put her head on his shoulder and snuggled up next to him.  He put his arm around her and caressed her hair.  She looked up at the sky and said a silent ‘thank you’.  She looked at Adrian, kissed him and snuggled up to him again.

  Adrian couldn’t believe his luck.  He definitely had found God’s greatest creation.

 

Copyright©JosieWentzel2002

 

 

 

Reviews

[Ashley]

Great story, there was a few parts when I got confused but as I read on, I got the gist of it. Thanks for entering!!

[Tim]

A good story. It reads well and holds the reader's interest. There are a couple of misspellings . This is a good piece of work. Enjoyed it much.

[Silver_Moon]

beautiful! loved it!

keep up the good work! :D