Slow Dancingwith theOne I Love

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of theauthor’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Slow Dancing with the One I Love

All rights reservedCopyright © 2006 by J. L. Foster No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form without written permission by theauthor. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means includinginformation storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing from the publisher,except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in embodied in critical articles or reviews.

ravis sat on the edge of his bed, mourning the death of his partner, whose body still lay besidehim. Ben was snug under the covers. His eyes were shut, as if he was sleeping. Travis knew that thiswas not so. He had spent what seemed hours trying to wake him. He had shaken him, cried out hisname, and then he had simply cried. Ben would never wake up again.After two cups of coffee and more than a handful of cigarettes, he made his way to the telephone.His fingers did not want to press the digits no matter how he tried, but somehow he managed to call for help.“I can’t wake him up,” he whispered to the operator. “He won’t wake up…”Paramedics and a coroner arrived within fifteen minutes. An autopsy was ordered, and Travis wastold he would know the cause of death in a few days. Until then, he could start notifying people of Ben’s passing and begin the funeral proceedings.It was two days later when he learned the results. Ben’s heart had simply given out. He had died peacefully, most probably without even a splinter of pain. Overwhelmed with a bit of happiness,Travis cried from the news. Ben had died painlessly, but Travis suddenly realized all of the pain had been left for him. The person that he loved more than anyone else in the world had died and left himalone.He would never again hear the sweet laughter of his love as they enjoyed popcorn and a comedy onlate-night television. He would never again feel the warm touch of Ben’s hand or his welcoming lips.They could never cry together, dream together, or love together again.Travis wondered if he could ever love anyone else at all…The tearing ache in his heart kept him locked in his room until the day of the funeral. It was Sundayand he was forced from bed and into the shower by Jackie, Ben’s older sister.“If you think I’m going to let you just sit there and waste yourself away,” she warned, “you are sadlymistaken!”“I just want to sleep,” he begged, dropping down to his knees in a raging sob.“There will be plenty of time for this later! Right now, we have to get you cleaned up and dressed!What would Ben think if he knew you missed his funeral?”“He would probably think, ‘Man, I guess maybe I shouldn’t have died’!”It was a poor attempt at humor – if it was that, even. Still, Jackie was motivated and had a goal, andTravis was powerless to stand in her way. Before he could second-think her again, he was cleaned anddressed in a freshly pressed black suit.“I can’t wear this,” he whispered, shaking his head. “Ben hated black at funerals. He preferred red.”“If you show up wearing red, everyone will think you’re a whore,” she smiled, dabbing a bit of sweat from his temple.There were a great many people at the funeral. For Travis, it was overwhelming. Always the one to provide a smile to a saddened face, he failed to do this, as he was the one who needed a smile. Manyfriends offered this, and so much more, but it did not help. These were not the smiles he needed.He only needed Ben’s…