"Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your heart, or burn your house down, you can never tell."

-Anonymous

You only get to fall in love once.

Sure, some people think differently, but I'm going to stick to my guns, love only comes once a life time. Not the superficial, I am in love with you because you're hot love, or the I'm in love with you because I want to save you kind of love. The love I'm talking about is heart stopping, and head pounding. It is the type you cannot live without, its loss make it impossible to breath, and its presence drives you forward.

It takes you by force, and teaches you that anything you had felt before is inadequate to it. It's an intensity that flows through your blood and attaches itself to your DNA.

But there's a catch.

This love, so sweet, intoxicating and pure can only happen if you want it too. You have the power to accept or deny it.

That was the position I found myself in the summer after high school. True love, presented to me on a platter, happiness just within my reach. Only for some reason I couldn't bring myself to take that one last step.

I'm not sure why people deny themselves of happiness, but for some reason we do. Maybe we're scared that something so good could never last, or what will happen if it all fall to pieces. Maybe we're more scared of the work that we would have to put in. Everyone fails to mention that happiness is hard work. That behind that heavenly exterior there are hundreds of arguments, and dozens of fights.

Love isn't about ripping your heart out of your chest and serving it to the other person on a silver plate. It's not about giving up or in.

It's about that gray area, the middle ground, where nothing and everything make sense. It's about closing your eyes and free falling backwards, hoping that you won't hit the ground.

Love only comes once.

When it does you better open your stubborn arms and accept it.

AN: I've wanted to edit this story for awhile, and The Candy Man is giving me some problems so I decided to go ahead and get a head start. If anyone wants to read the orginal, or needs it to figure out what's going on in the The Candy Man you can PM me your email and I'll send it too you.

Anyways . . . I hope you enjoy this version as much as the first, and a big thanks to everyone that reviewed the orginal. I should have the first real chapter up by this Sunday I think.

Review if you feel the urge!

: )