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As the sun set on the small school town of Willow Creek, the campus came alive with the sounds of students bustling about, muffling the faint whispers of the night. Amongst this throng of college-goers were two people, who had been engraving their names into the pavement of the University for years. Brad and Rachel, the perfect couple everyone envied, had been dating since their sophomore year. Rachel was the most gorgeous girl on-campus – her long blonde hair flowed like a river, and her piercing blue eyes could make any man lose their footing. Brad, on the other hand, had chiselled abs and messy brown hair which made Rachel swoon. They were every inch the perfect match.

Brad and Rachel had reached the point in their relationship where they craved something more. Every second spent around each other was just not enough. The intensity of their feelings began to overshadow everything else around them. They needed more passion, more adventure, new challenges to keep their love alive.

One day, Rachel was walking on campus when she stumbled upon an ads for a poetry slam contest. Rachel was an avid writer and poetry was her forte. She immediately wondered it would be a great opportunity to showcase her talent and impress the love of her life, who also had an interest in poetry.

Brad’s enthusiasm for the contest was palpable when Rachel told him about it. They spent hours writing intense, passionate poems that they would read to each other in private. Rachel loved how Brad could articulate his feelings in methods that she couldn’t, but still felt she needed to push herself a little harder to stay on top. The competition was around the corner and the pressure was mounting on both of them.

Rachel spent countless sleepless nights, filled with the anxiety of her final performance and the idea of losing the contest and losing Brad. As a result of her restlessness one night, Rachel found herself at a school party, which she had initially decided to skip. The party was filled with people, mostly young men and women, drinking and dancing to the beat of loud music. Rachel felt out of place. She wanted to forget about everything that was bothering her, but the mood in the room only made her feel more restless. She found herself walking towards the bar to drown her sorrows in a cup of whisky.

It was there that Rachel met a guy from her innovative writing class, Ryan. They struck up a conversation and got to talking about the poetry slam contest. Ryan was all the time impressed by Rachel’s writing abilities, and had no idea she was struggling with her final performance. He promised to help her prepare, and with a quick fire deep into her soul, she saw the opportunity to exceed Brad in the race to the hearts of the audience and her lover.

Ryan and Rachel met regularly to write, critique and sound out her poems before the big performance. However, the regular meetings soon turned to something much more intimate. Rachel had felt the fire ignite within her when she was with Brad, but the passion ignited with Ryan was all-consuming and it scared her. She knew she was in trouble when the mere wondered of Ryan sent her heart racing and her skin tingle.

The day of the slam poetry contest had arrived and Ryan offered to be Rachel’s partner for the contest. Rachel wondered it would be a perfect opportunity for them to perform their intimate poems. Ryan’s words and emotions blended like fluid honey with Rachel’s, and the audience was moved by the intense connection they shared on stage. The result was electric. Rachel and Ryan’s performance stole the show and won the poetry slam contest. Rachel and Ryan embraced on stage as the audience cheered. The only person who didn’t clap, the only person who didn’t acknowledge what was happening in front of him was Brad.

When Rachel met Brad after the contest, she saw disappointment etched on his face, and even though she’d never wanted to hurt him, she could not help how she felt. Rachel knew she’d betrayed the person whom she’d invested so much love and time with; she knew she was on the brink of losing everything she had with Brad. Rachel felt lost and haunted by her actions.

A few days later, Brad came to Rachel’s apartment. They sat down and talked about what had happened between them. Brad was completely shattered, but Rachel was heartbroken to see him in that state. Brad expressed his disappointment and feelings of betrayal. He said that he could not trust anyone anymore. Rachel felt tears streaming down her face as she listened. She could not imagine a life without Brad by her side. She tried to explain her feelings for Ryan, but Brad instead of empathizing with her broke up with Rachel on the spot.

Days turned into weeks and the school semester soon came to an end. Rachel had moved out of campus and returned home with a shattered heart. She had lost the person she loved the most, and the wondered of a life without Brad was unbearable.

A few months after returning home, Rachel received an invitation to attend a poetry reading event in the city. She was hesitant to attend, but her intrigue eventually got the better of her. As she entered the venue, a familiar voice caught her attention, and her heart skipped a beat. It was Brad, reading an incredibly gorgeous poem about their love. Rachel sat mesmerized as Brad’s words flowed through her.

After Brad’s performance, they finally caught up and talked in-depth about their past and what had happened between them. Brad was still incredibly hurt and did not want to jump back into a relationship – at least not like before. Brad decided that they should take it slow and rebuild their relationship from the ground up. Rachel cried tears of joy when Brad said those words.

Days soon turned into months, and Brad and Rachel got to experience a new side of each other – one that they never knew existed. They laughed together and spent countless hours exploring new things, experiences and emotions. They even performed at a poetry slam together, it was the first time they shared their feelings for each other once again, feelings that were even more intense than before.

Years flew by, and Brad and Rachel were still together, stronger than ever. They had found a passion that they did not know about, the passion for second chances – for forgiving, learning, growing and most importantly, loving. Through each other, they had learned that the beauty of a relationship wasn’t just in those few moments of fireworks. It was in the quiet moments – the times when they were reading to each other, staring at the stars, sitting by the fire and talking about the future and all the things they would achieve together. Even in moments of stillness, they found that their love continued to grow.

Brad and Rachel knew life would have rough patches ahead. However, knowing and experiencing the strength of their love, they knew that they would face it together, head-on. They would achieve their dreams together and protect their relationship from everything, even existence itself.

Connor Malcolm

The End
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