Love's Promise

Love’s Promise

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.” ~Corinthians 13:4-8

Nathaniel glanced at the house, no, mansion, where she used to live. It is a different world from his. He will wait for her while slowly making his way to reach her world. She lived in a mansion with sparkling chandeliers, maids that were summoned by just clapping and a coupe with an ever waiting butler to attend to her every need. But it is also a world where everyone’s under surveillance, people can’t be themselves because the elite society demands elegance and finesse – a faitour to appease the affluent crowd.

On the other hand, Nathaniel’s world is full of knave people, a world where only the strong ones survive. It was where people just have enow money to last a day- a day with only a single meal. He lived in a vacuous and grungy house, no, hut- just enough accommodation for a night’s sleep and a shelter during harsh weather.

But fate has its own way of twisting lives. One day, Nathaniel was hired by Rachel’s mother to fix a ruined part of their garden. He was focused in his work when he heard a sweet tune of flute filling the air. He glanced at the window above him and saw a pair of hazel eyes staring back at his dark ones. She has long black hair that was currently dancing due to the wind. His heart skipped a beat when the soft pink lips curved into a gentle smile. He unconsciously smiled back and dropped the tool he had been using. She raised her hand as if to tell him to wait for her. After a few minutes, she emerged from the mansion into the garden.

That was the beginning of their secret rapport. They were having a tryst, a rendezvous in the mansion’s garden in the midst of the night. They had tried to make their affair inconspicuous. Rachel always wore a babushka in her hair to appear like a servant whenever she escapes. She liked being with Nate, as she calls Nathaniel, because he is a buffoon, most of the time he will blurt out a random topic and start funny piffles. Whenever she was around him, she knows that she can drop her façade, being taciturn and coy, and be herself.

      But happy moments do not last very long, because Rachel’s parents discovered that their contumacious daughter had a secret relationship with a boy who lived in a slum area. Her mother vociferated that they did not give her a superfluous life just to have it ruined by a gold-digging poor rat. They decided to send her to US as soon as possible and let her study there.

      That night, Nathaniel found a letter in their old meeting place. A promise that she will return to claim back the love they had shared. “Even jokers do cry”, he muttered as streams of tears run down his cheeks. “I promise to persevere and cross to you world. I will wait for you . . . even for a lifetime.”