She Just Wants to be Beautiful

 She just wants to be beautiful
She goes unnoticed, she knows no limits,
She craves attention, she praises an image,
She prays to be sculpted by the sculptor

--"Scars to Your Beautiful" by Cara

The LSU Professor rubs his eyes like he just woke up, even though it's a little after eleven in the morning.

We talk about everything, politics, sex, more politics, physics theories, his two ex-girlfriends, Morpheus, and secrets.

"You're hoping things will change. I like to be around optimistic people," he tells me, referring to my undying hope that Morpheus will someday call and all will be well.

I share with him a secret of mine that I have been holding close to my heart, one that I've never shared verbally, and have only mentioned briefly on my blog.

"That's so sad. I think I'm going to cry...I feel like I peeled another layer off of you," the LSU Professor says sincerely. He wants to buy me a present, and asks, "What do you want?"

Right as we are leaving the coffee shop, he hugs me and calls me "beautiful."