A simple love story

She cried herself to sleep last night. It was not in her to cry like this. Having no person to share her sorrows to – she doubted if even Max would understand. How to, when she herself could not even begin to see what it was all about. Faith always strengthened her in times like this. But now, weary and listless, she spent most of her time wandering aimlessly down busy suburban shops and amidst the busy chatter of happy shoppers, her heart cried out for something more.

Their hands clasped together tightly for the first time, as though it was so natural to be so, a perfect fit, hands searching for each other for the longest time. After heart wrenching experiences with men, other men whose presence in her life served no purpose but only to confuse and sadden her, Symonds’ presence was like a breath of fresh air. She admired him for all that he stood for and his rough way of saying that he liked her. She knew that there was something special in him the first time they met.

As they walked down a steep incline leading away from Fort Park, she told herself in her heart that this man was alright. The voices she heard calling out her name, the inner demons with no face or reason to be there, had slowly faded away. She was not going to give away her life to these insecurities, wondering whether those tumultuous times that seemed so long ago, yet happened only the year before, was a figment of her imagination, or something like in cursed dreams, sent to taunt her into submission. All along, Coral was not one to take things lying down. Her willful nature actually became a good factor in areas she was championing for. Teamed together with her love for creativity and interpersonal skills, she seldom lost out in this rat race of life when people her age were still trying to come to terms with their identity.

She looked at him almost achingly, wanting to voice her thoughts, but after a split second, decided against it. She wanted to let him know that his face was the one she wanted to see, first thing in the morning, forever – but thought that this would probably scare him away before he could even tell her that he loved her. He did, a few days later, and she knew that he was the type who would not mince his feelings, who told the girl exactly what his heart felt or thought, who wanted her very much and was not afraid to say so. Such a refreshing gush of air compared to her past experiences with men. Symonds looked almost shyly at her and then downwards, perhaps escaping from the brilliant intensity that shone in her eyes. She had such a passion for life before, even though being much subdued now she still had a brimming radiance around her, full of energy.

It was almost like a fairytale beginning, she mused, after yet another night of wakefulness between letting her tears fall softly at the irony of it all. Yet another failed relationship. At least, it was not like the ones she saw, couples with no passion for each other, just a longtime friendship which never could be translated into true, deep love. She saw couples where only one person had the deep love for the other and knew that, this was not what they initially wanted. She saw couples that were incompatible in every way except perhaps their passion for each other, and that was more than enough for the relationship. In the fairytale beginning, it was not like this. Never like this. Everything was perfect, no arguments, no heated tears, no turning away. In a place where there was only love and acceptance and the bonds formed, so deep that not a single dark or depressing thought could ever hope to thrive in that place. And the way he looked at her, as though he had seen the light for the first time, a small smile blossoming on his lips that said he liked what he saw very much. Eyes that betrayed nothing in his heart yet spoke volumes when he couldn’t face her intense gaze. The willingness to accompany her to strange places she wanted to go, just to break the sad monotony of life she was facing. She knew this was it.

And then the heartbreak began.

To be continued...