Authors Note: This is the prequel to My Strongest Weakness. The song I used is "The Arms Of The One Who Loves You" by X-Scape. Oh and the girl in the red jacket I have kept my promise and wrote a second part now its your turn.

The Arms Of The One Who Loves You
By: Pam Marks

Sighing slightly to herself Kim got out of her blue BMW that her husband had just bought her for her twenty fourth-birth day. She headed into the market in LA with her head down hoping no one would notice her and she would not have to make up another excuse explaining why her husband was out of town yet again. She picked out a not so stable looking basket and started going threw the various specious isles lost in her own thoughts. 'What went wrong?' The thought broke threw even after her many times at suppressing it and she had no choice but to think back on the last years of her life.

Everything had started out perfectly she had the best friends anyone could have and a wonderful boyfriend. Her heart twitched at the thought of him, it had been years since she had last thought of him. Tommy Oliver the man of her dreams that became reality in an instant. With just one look he had completely swept her of her feet. His smile was like a ray of sunshine that beamed brightly and his eyes were two pools of chocolate that she would get lost in for hours at a time. He was so warm and friendly to others and he was so shy around her it was adorable. 'If he was so great then why did you let him go?' A tear immediately shown in her eye 'Because I thought I was in love with Mark.' The tear broke free of her control and slid down her cheek as she threw a bottle of pees in her basket.

Mark Shepherdstown that name struck sadness into her heart. 'There was a time when I did love him.' She thought to herself carefully. When she went to Florida she had not known anyone she felt lost and all a lone. She had no family and no friends so she spent most of her time writing to Tommy and practicing. She never went out and she barely spoke to people. It was by chance one day that she met Mark. She had just finished practicing and was walking out and he was walking in. They had literally ran into each other knocking her to the ground. He had helped her up and they had started laughing immediately. At first he had reminded her so much of Tommy. He had his eyes and smile. She had clung to him for this reason and had started to stop writing and calling Tommy. They had fun, he showed her a great time and she made new friends. His family was rich and he was in law school and had a future, her mom had liked him immediately, but then again she had never liked Tommy.

Kim umpped as she remembered what her mom had said to her about Tommy when she met Mark 'Dear Tommy is a wild card! He is going to be nothing but trouble and he has no future! Dear I really do not believe that he is the right one for you! He has a history of drugs and once a druggie ALWAYS a druggie! His mother ran off when he was ten years old for heavens sake! Then his father couldn't take care of him because of it and let him roam the streets! He got so out of control his father moved to Angel Grove just to try vainly to calm him down! Which I do not know if it did him any good or not! Oh honey Mark can take care of you better the Tommy Oliver ever will or ever could!'

Kim smirked; she had foolishly given in to her mom and had actually believed her. Then again she had reasons to believe her mother, she had seen Tommy on days wanting drugs so bad it actually hurt him physically. He had even given into the craving once the night before she had left for Florida. He had not shown up for their date at all that night, she had waited for four hours before finally giving up on him all together. Disappointed but mostly worried she had gone to her room in Aisha's house and put on her night gown, then she had crawled into bed and cried herself to sleep so sure that something had happened to him. Then in the middle of the night something or someone crawling into her bedroom awakened her, it was Tommy and he was high as a kite. She had gotten him to her bed barely as he was saying some stuff that she did not understand and he had passed out completely when he hit the bed.

That version of him had scared her to her very core, he had broken a promise that he swore he would never break, he had used. The next morning with out waking him she had left and drove herself to the airport. He had caught her however just as she was boarding the plane, he looked awful, his naturally tan skin was hidden under a grayish color, his hair was mated to his head, and his eyes were bloodshot red. He had started to cry that day begging her not to leave him that he would never do it again and if he did then she could leave him no questions asked. The part that had broken her heart was when he had broken down crying at her refusal to forgive him. He had hit his knees crying hard as she had started to walk away from him, she had turned to take one last look at him and saw this and her heart immediately broke in two as he cried her name. She ran back to him, took him in her arms, and held him as he cried. He had bear hugged her begging her not to leave him like his mother did. She did not leave him that day; she had taken a later flight that night so that they could have the day together, and talk.

Later, sitting at a lone table in the youth center he had told her why he had used that night. The memory of his mom walking out on him and his dad was stronger then ever and he was so scared that she would walk out on him all so. He couldn't handle that she was leaving, it tore him up because he had a gut feeling that he was going to lose her in Florida and all of this had proved to much and he had used. She had reassured him that her love for him was too strong and they would all ways be together so matter what, she had lied.

She had broken his heart in the cruelest way she ever could, with a cold letter. She had not called him and had cut off communication with him after it. He had tried to call but she told her roommate to tell him that she was out or she let the answering machine pick up. She returned all his letters unopened back to him, she was cold and after a month he quit writing and calling and that was the end of it. She had lost the best thing that ever happened to her and for what? She had a life that she did not want and a loveless marriage.

She slowly let out a low sigh as she tossed a carton of milk into her basket. The wedding had been beautiful she had felt like a princess about to marry the prince. When she marched down the bright white isle she had looked around for Tommy but did not see him anywhere. He had not called anyone to let him or her know that he was not going to be there in fact he had not called anyway that week. It was later found out that he had vanished as if into thin air. His roommate at collage had said that when he got in that night from collage on the day Tommy received the invitation to the wedding all he found was the wedding invitation on the floor and his stuff gone. No one had heard from or seen him since; it has been four years, and still nada. 'It's my fault.' She grumpily thought to herself, she had broken his heart and killed his spirit. She had paid the price for her mistake in thinking she loved Mark though. It was a loveless marriage from the start. Just two months after they had gotten married he had started taking 'business trips' to ski resorts with women clients who he claimed his law firm was representing. She had believed him for a while until she had found a love letter from one of his 'clients' telling him how good he was in bed. Surprisingly to her she had not shed a tear she had started to laugh. A great since of relief had flowed over her at that moment as she realized that he did not love her. It had all most immediately been shattered when she realized that she was stuck in the marriage. His mom would not hear of him getting a divorce it was improper in her eyes and he would destroy her in court because of it, she was stuck.

Kim had kept the fact that she knew about his affairs a secret from him and continued to be his wife for appearances sake all though they slept in separate bedrooms. They never talked to one anther and he went his way and she went hers; he had become a stranger to her.

Kim sadly dumped the squash into her basket and turned the corner. Her breath hitched in her throat when she saw him standing there a few feet away with basket in hand. 'Tommy.' Her mind called out in shock as she just stood there staring at him wide eyed.

She felt like running to him and wrapping herself around him and kissing him long and hard but instead she kept on staring at him. 'God he looks awful!' She thought to herself, as she looked him up and down. He had his hair pulled back into a tight ponytail with a green bandana covering everything but his ponytail. A pair of black jeans clung loosely to his thin waist, and a baggy green tee hung on him like a rag. He was pale as a ghost and looked like the slightest gust of wind could send him to the floor. His chocolate brown eyes that she loved so much were hidden under dark sunglasses. She watched him as he picked up ketchup bottle and she realized he was shaking like a leaf. She covered her mouth when he dropped it and all most fell over when he went to retrieve it. 'Oh Tommy what happened to you! He looks just like he did the day he used...oh Tommy NO!!!' She thought as tears began to trickle down her cheeks as he shakily took a couple of unstable steps down the isle.

Kim was at a lose for words or actions at that moment, half of her wanted to run to him and take him in her arms and hold him but the other half reminded her that she was a married women, she was torn. In the end all she did was stand there and watch him stumble down the isle until he turned the corner and disappeared out of her life once again.