She cried until the tears would no longer come and still it wasn't enough. The loneliness ate at her with the hunger of a starved dog. All she ever wanted was for someone to love her, but even the pretense of it was beyond her reach. Sex was just that. Something that burned a few calories, but never filled the void within her heart. She wasn't ugly. At least that's what her friends told her. She sometimes wondered if they really meant it or if they just said that to keep her from getting depressed on them. Not one of them could understand when she tried to tell them of the ache it caused to see others have what was beyond her grasp. She had tried to have a normal relationship, but that had ended. In fact it was the reason she was crying. Not so much that he had left, that had hurt. But his last words to her.

They were what made her feel the longing grow more intense.

"I can't be what you want. I tried, but you demand more than I have to give. There is no fairy tale prince out there waiting for you. There are no romance novels going to come to life and I'm tired of trying to live up to your expectations of me." He hadn't said them harshly. Just with a lack of feeling. That had made them hurt worse than if he had screamed at her. So she continued to cry, the sobs threatening to make her vomit with their intensity.

Suddenly, she felt a breeze and heard a sound like wind chimes. Lifting her head, she saw a man staring at her. So weary from emotion, she didn't even start. She just stared at him for a moment, something about him teasing her memory. Then she knew who he was.

"You're the Goblin King." she stated simply, as if it was a common occurrence. A sad smile played on his lips.

"Yes I am."

She was puzzled. "But I didn't wish for you to come. You don't even exist. Not that I'd mind if you did, but you're not real."

"You don't believe that. If you did, I wouldn't be here." He moved closer to her, a trail of glitter falling behind him. "As wishing for me, well, you may not have said the words with your voice, but you soul has been calling for a long time. Tonight, only for a second, it became a wish. But that's all I really need it to be real for." He brushed the hair from her face. "I've been watching you ever since the first time you thought of me. I've seen the emptiness of your heart. I can make it go away."

She stared into his eyes, looking for the cruelty that he was known for. All she saw was concern.

"What's the catch? I mean, you usually have a price. I've seen the movie."

He snorted. "That movie. Why does everyone think that's all I am? I don't know which is worse, the movie or the stories people make up about me after it. There was never a Sarah. I take only children who are truly unwanted. And I don't turn them into goblins. The goblins can increase their numbers quite well without my help." He shook his head and chuckled, "Although that Henson chap did quite well with who he picked to play me. Could almost be my twin, don't you think?"

She looked at him and giggled. He did look like Bowie, but there were differences. His eyes were both the same colour. A deep green that made emeralds seem pale in comparison. She stared into them and saw, well she wasn't sure what she saw, but it made her feel as if he knew her every longing. "So why did you answer me? I'm not pretty, or smart."

"As I said, I've been watching you since the first time you thought of me. And what I see is a beautiful, intelligent creature. You weren't meant for this world. You feel too deeply. More deeply than anyone can comprehend. I've come to take you where you can have what you need. If you stay here, you will surely die. Most likely by your own hand."

She reached out to touch his face, surprised to find it warm, not cold like the marble it resembled. "But you don't know me." He smiled.

"But I do, and..." he hesitated. "It may not seem true to you, but I fell in love with you. I have felt your pain and loneliness. I want to take it away."

She just stared. *Do I dare to believe and let him take me? How do I know it's real?* As if he read her thoughts, he caught her in his arms and kissed her. A deep soul touching kiss. A forever kiss. She closed her eyes and kissed him back, surprised at the strength of it. As she kissed him, she felt the breeze again. She opened her eyes and drew back. They were no longer in her room. The walls here were made of stone.

"Welcome home, love. I won't make you do anything you don't want to. And we have all the time in the world to learn anything we don't know about each other. In fact we have forever."