*Bruno*
The wind rushed into the car, tousling our hair. Lucia had a big smile on her face as we drove around the bustling city, which never sleeps. “Wow, I never thought this part of the city would be so beautiful at night,” she says.
“You never know a lot of things,”. I said, and she turned to look at me. The car stopped in front of a red light. She looked beside her to see a place which was crowded by people in pairs. “What’s that place?” She asked.
I looked at it, stretching my neck to get a clearer view of it. “That’s the famous soul bond,” I said. She arched her brow, still staring at it. “What’s that?” She asked.
“A place where two lovers go. They bond their souls there. It is said that their love lasts forever when they do,” I said. “Is it like a ritual thing?” She asked curiously.
“Well, it seems…” The blaring of horns by the car behind us interrupted me. The light had turned green. I moved the car, driving away from the spot we were in. Lucia kept looking at it until it was out of sight.
“So what did you mean? You were about to say something,” she said. “Yeah, what was I saying?” I tried to remember my last words. I took a sharp turn. Lucia reminded me of what I had said last. “Yeah. So, what I mean is that it doesn’t seem like a ritual. They just go there to tie something or so and leave it there,” I said. “They come back after the next hundred days, and if they don’t remove it, it means they will be together forever,” I said.
Lucia nods, looking away from me. “You seem to know a lot about it. Have you been there before?” She asked. I shook my head, “no,”
“Oh. I forgot you’ve never been in a relationship,” she paused then continued, “then how come you know so much?” She asked. “Well, I’ve lived over half of my life in this city. Isn’t it only right that I know about some famous things?” I asked her.
In this day and era, I wondered why people still believe in such things.
“Well, I guess you are right,” she shrugs her shoulders and looks outside. She extended her hands through the window. I wondered if she was trying to catch the wind.
She looked so beautiful that I almost couldn’t concentrate on driving. “So where is the surprise?” She asked.
“We are almost there,” I said.
I was taking her to my favorite place in the city. It was the place I loved to be in at night. I took one last bend. This time, we drove away from the bustling city a little. The car soon stopped a few feet away from a lake. I stepped out and walked around to open the door for her, but she opened the door before I could get to her.
She stepped out. The wind was cold. She pulled the sleeve of her jacket down a little, looking around, she said. “So where is the…” she stopped. Her eyes have found it. The lake was hidden in most of the grass.
It was a blue lake. “This is beautiful,” she says, looking at me. I extended her hands, and she placed her slender hands on mine. “This is my favorite place at night,” I told her and began leading her through the grass lawn at the side that led to the lake.
“How did you find this place? It’s so beautiful that I feel like staying the entire night out here,” she says.
Well, this lake wasn’t always this beautiful. “Did it become your favorite place because it was beautiful?” She asked. I shook my head. One of my hands was deeper into my pocket. I led her to a fallen branch which lay at the side.
“No,”
“Then why?”
“Because this lake tells a story. Or rather, because I could relate to the lake,” I replied. She raised her brow, “how did that…”
“This lake wasn’t always this beautiful; it wasn’t always called a blue lake. It was once called a dead lake,” I said. The new revelation seems to have stunned her for a while.
I went on to tell her how it changed and how no one knew the reason for it changed. “But I figured out that if a lake can change, then a person shouldn’t be any different,” I said. “And that was how I changed, too.” She nods.
I picked up a stone close to me and threw it in the lake. It came up a few times before finally settling in.
“Guess change is as constant as most people say,” she said, putting one hand over the other. Her eyes moved around, taking everything in. I took a deep breath, wondering how I was going to start. “It has been so long since I saw a lake this beautiful. The last time I saw a lake, it was covered with blood.” She said, I turned to look at her.
I could tell that all she wanted me to do was listen. “A woman had single-handedly killed five bulky men. I had hidden behind a tree as I watched her splash their blood like it was the normal thing to do.” She paused to look at me for a while.
“Though I sympathized with the men who lost their lives, I couldn’t help but admire how cool the woman in front of me was. I nodded.
She took a deep breath. “How about you? What is your dream? You never told me,” she said.
I pressed my lips together.
“That would be you, my sweet girl,” I said to see her eyes widen. Blood rushed up to her cheeks. Was she blushing?
***
*Lucia POV*
It has been a long time since I got to see and feel nature so raw, so pure, and so beautiful. The sky had stars scattered all over it. Moonlight reflected on the water. Fireflies settled on the low grass at the side. The lake was calm and serene. There was a bumpy bencemg at the side, but Bruno walked right past it and headed for a fallen branch at the side. The wind swayed the trees back and forth. I kept tucking my hair behind my ear.
Nature proved to be the most striking in beauty, and I couldn’t help but get soaked in it. All I felt was tranquility, pure beauty. It felt like a different world. All I wanted to do was run down the side with my bare feet.
Bruno’s company was one I couldn’t get enough of.
He made the night more blissful. We chatted, saying things we’d never said before. I told him my dream wish was more like a wish I had when I was fifteen. That moment was still vivid in my mind.
I took a deep breath. “How about you? What is your dream? You never told me,” I asked Bruno. I swung my legs, waiting for his answer as I stared into the lake. “That would be you, my sweet girl,” my heart skipped a beat. I felt my cheeks go warm.
He must be joking again. I brushed off his words. Trying to keep my stupid heart, which was about to burst from just one statement from him, calm. “This isn’t time to flirt or joke, Bruno,” I said, refusing to look at him.
“Who said I was joking?” He spoke into my ear, his voice husky and warm. I turned and he moved back. “I mean every word,” I heard him say. I was confused. He turned my face to look at him. His chest heaved up and down.
“My dream is waking up each morning with you by my side. Falling asleep in between your laughter and whispers. Making my favorite meal, with you in front of me, sitting with hands on your jaws,” his eyes shone with resolve. I felt a rush of emotions run through me. He wasn’t done yet.
“My dream is laying my head on your producing stomach as I wait for the fruit of our love to reveal itself to me. My dream is to support you even when you are with a third leg, and all your hair is as white as snow. My dream is YOU,” he said.
I felt a drop of tears on my cheek. Everywhere suddenly became quiet, and his confession kept replaying in my head. But amid the love and desire I feel towards him was the fear of putting a title to whatever we have between us.
He stared into my eyes, waiting for my response. I pressed my lips together and took a deep breath. I think he already knows how I feel about him. But then, “What if this is an illusion? I can’t deny the fact that I am very much in love and attracted to you, but what if we don’t last? What if we stop loving each other,” my words were mixed with the fears and love I felt for this man in front of me.
After Jason, I didn’t plan on falling in love with any other person. I was scared of love; love became pain. I vowed never to put myself in so much pain. No man was worth it. But I couldn’t even keep half of the promise I made to myself. I fell for the man that bought me.
He reached out and entwined our fingers together. “Sometimes you find the most extraordinary things in unexpected places. You find eternity soon after you have been shown how temporary things can be. Let me take a step closer to your illusion; who knows, maybe our reality can be in between that illusion,” he says.
He inhaled a scent of breath sharply, “I love you, Lucia; I don’t think I’ve ever loved anyone this much. I don’t want to love anyone but you. I promise to love you for eternity,” his words carried the weight of his love. I loved this man, too; maybe I should give myself a chance to be his.
“Be my woman,” he said.
It was a question; it wasn’t a statement. It was more like a command. I found myself drawn towards him more instead of being angry. He wiped the drop of tears from my face with his thumb. “I love you too, Bruno,” I confessed. Maybe there was no need to deny how I felt or what I wanted. His hands moved to the back of my head, and he pulled me closer, meeting my lips with his.
I was officially his woman. This kiss was to seal our relationship. I wrapped my hands around his neck, pulling him closer to myself. I didn’t need to try hard as his free hands went to my waist, and he grabbed me there, pulling me closer to himself.
His tongue opened my mouth, and he stuck his tongue inside. I moaned into the kiss. Feeling another type of sensation. I couldn’t barely control my breath. This man has so much effect on my body. He sucked on my bottom lips. My tongue went into his mouth, too. I wanted to taste every corner of his mouth.
His hands went over my body. My breath hitched when he rested his hands on my left breast. He gave it a light squeeze. I moaned, kissing him harder. He stopped pulling away.
I wondered what was wrong. His lips were red from the intense kissing. He stood up. I stood up with him. Before I could understand what was happening, he lifted me, carrying me in a bridal style. He walked as fast as he could towards his car. “Let’s take this home.” He whispered.
The ride back home was a bit bumpy. When we got home, he didn’t wait, and so did I. He grabbed me and met my lips with his. And slowly, we both went inside his room.