“The epitome of love is within me,” she whispered softly as she gazed into the future. He watched silently as the sun formed a halo on her golden head.  Maybe she was an angel, this girl in the ripped jeans and the old shoes who sat before him, chin resting on her hand.  
“What do you mean?” He asked, his voice sounding harsh against the silence above the city. He cleared his throat, embarrassed.  She smiled.
“I think that everybody has the capability to love.  I think if everybody loved, the world would be perfect.”  Her voice was thick with conviction. Her foot shifted slightly on the cement wall.  
“If everybody loved, maybe there wouldn’t be any pain.” 
“Oh.”  It wasn’t an awkward silence, but he didn’t know what to say.   Did she want him to speak?  He glanced up at her and quickly looked away.  He stared at the ground.  The gravel beneath his shoes.  He wondered what gravel was doing up here.  Maybe the birds brought it up here, although why they would he couldn’t possibly imagine.  

“It’s okay, you know.”  Her voice startled him.  She was looking down at him.  Watching him.   He swallowed nervously.  What was okay...
“It’s okay to not have any words,” she continued, “’cause if someone is always talking, then nobody is listening.” 
“I’m listening,” he cracked, grinning crookedly.

“That’s not what I meant and you know it,” she said with a smile. Then she sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest, looking out into the distance again. 
A cool breeze sent shivers down his spine.  He tugged his jacket around his shoulders.  
“Hey Alix, are you cold?” She didn’t respond.

“Alix?”
“Come here,” she said suddenly.  He slowly got to his feet, crunching on the gravel as he walked over to where she was. 
“What...What is it.”  She pointed at the receding skyline.  It reminded him of his dad’s receding hairline. 
“Yeah, it’s a sunset.  It’s beautiful.” 
“No,” she breathed, “no it’s more than that.  Don’t you see it?”  He gazed at the horizon.  
“See what.” She laughed. 
“You can look, but I guess you have to have the eyes to see it.”  He was getting frustrated.

“See what?” She laughed again and grabbed his hand. 
“Come here!” He jumped onto the wall beside her.  She spread her arms and spun in a little circle. 
“Everything is beautiful,” she said, face glowing as she turned to him.  He pulled her close to him, into his warmth and stood, breathing her in as he watched the fiery ball sink into the earth. She was quiet.  He listened as the city below them came to life in the darkness.  The sunset cast its last rays across the universe.
“I see it,” he suddenly whispered in wonder.  It was like he'd been given new eyes, for here, above the city, everything was golden.