It ended in ordinary arguments about moving in together, Commitment,
that's what Emily would tell you, but if you asked Steve he would
say it was all about candles.
When they made love, which was usually at Emily's place, she always lit
candles. If you could see her apartment this wouldn't surprise you;
it was crammed full of crystals, josticks, hand-dyed scarves and heavily
embroidered cushions (or little bits of new age crap as Steve put it).
They would lie there with the light licking at their bodies, their limbs
mingling in the soft shadows.
When Steve was telling me this he said "Have you ever really
looked at a candle? Really looked.
Candles are like souls, I read that, and you know they are. They sway
this way and that, straining to escape, but they're trapped.
And then we snuff them out."
The kicker for Steve was when he gazed into Emily's hazel eyes in the
candlelit room; her eyes were brimming with souls, the way the moon
can be imprisoned in water.
After that, he could never really look her in the face again.