The wind pushes the hard rain into my face, blurring my vision and chilling me to the bone but my feet thud against the surface with a purpose the lightning-quick pain that thrums through my nerves every time I connect with the pavement coexists with the pleasure I find outrunning the dangerous recesses of my mind as I force myself to acknowledge that there's no sweetheart around the bend waiting for a soft denial, a quiet murmur of submission freedom smells warm and welcoming and the light blooms as the sky opens up to swallow me whole.