Four Week Fiance

“Do you remember the poem?” I asked softly.

“Do I remember?” He chuckled again. “It has been burned into my brain for decades,” he said and looked back down at the photo. “It is one of my fondest memories.”

“Tell me,” I said and reached over and grabbed his hand. “Tell me, No

“Okay.” He nodded and then he cleared his throat. He was about to start talking again when he had a coughing fit.

“No

“I’m fine.” He shook his head and frowned. “Just a bad cough.” He took a sip of water and then looked over at me and smiled. “Stop worrying and start listening.”

“I am listening,” I said and laughed.

“That moment when your heart skips a beat. When all worries turn to joy. When all fears fade away. That moment when our eyes meet. And our souls reco

And the silence sings a song. That’s the moment that I remember. That’s the dance that I live for. That’s the journey that I pray for. That’s the you that I dream of. This is the moment I was made for.” He stopped and I looked over at him, and saw tears ru

“Oh, No

“Don’t be sorry.” He shook his head and gazed into my eyes. “She was my true love and I miss her, but I will see her again.”

“Oh, No

“There is nothing else in this world more precious than true love, Mila.” His eyes were bright as he gazed at me. “There is nothing worth living for if you don’t have love.”

“Well, life itself, right?” I said, trying to make light of the situation.

“Life is for the living.” He nodded. “And love is what makes life great.”

“Yeah, I guess,” I said as my heart lurched and I thought back to TJ again. “Some of us aren’t as lucky as you and No

“What are you talking about, Mila?” His eyes narrowed as he looked at me.

“Nothing,” I said and shook my head, embarrassed to tell No

“Are you not happy, my Mila?” He studied my face shrewdly and I could feel the tears starting to build up. I didn’t want him to know exactly what was going on. I knew that he had to know that something wasn’t completely right. I mean, TJ had essentially just fallen into my pocket in a matter of seconds. Real life didn’t work like that.

“I’m fine.” I took a deep breath. I had to be a big girl. I was not going to let No

“You want to go down to the beach?” No

“The beach?” I asked, flummoxed. “That’s random.”

“Let’s go to the beach and talk.” He looked at me lovingly. “We both could do with some fresh air.”

“Oh.” I looked up at him. He knew there was something I wasn’t telling him. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, mi cara. You know you can’t keep secrets from your No

“I know.” I sighed and stood up. “I love you, No

“I know.” He pulled me into a hug. “I love you more than anything, Mila. You’re my beautiful princess and all I want is for you to be happy and taken care of.”

“I know.” I rested my head on his shoulder and looked up at him. “How did I get so lucky as to have you as my No

“You’re blessed.” He kissed my forehead and gri

“You sure you’re okay to go out, No

“I’m fine, my dear.” He wiped his mouth. “Let me go and change into some warmer clothes and then we can leave.”

“Okay.” I nodded and watched as he walked out of the room. I then grabbed my phone from my pocket to see if TJ had called or texted. I was hoping he’d have left some sort of message saying something like, “I made a mistake, I really do love you, come home,” but of course there was nothing there when I checked. My heart sank as I put my phone back into my pocket and I sat back on the couch and stared at the photos as I waited for No

***

The beach was desolate as we walked along the sand. It was too cold for people to go into the water and there was only one guy on the beach with us and he was walking his dog. I stared at the dog as it ran down the beach chasing a branch and I thought to myself what a life the dog had as it ran back and forth to its owner, gri

“So, Mila, tell me what’s going on.” No

“Oh, No

“Why do you say that, Mila?” No

“Because I’m a royal fool. The biggest fool on the planet.” I tried to smile at him, but he didn’t smile back. Instead I watched No

“You’re not a fool, mi cara. Don’t ever say that.”

“I am.” I sighed.  I gulped and looked down.

“Then tell me, why are you a fool?”

“Because I really thought that there was a chance that TJ really loved me. I really thought that he could be the one for me.”

“You don’t think he loves you?” No

“I love him with all of my heart.” I closed my eyes as my heart froze. “You don’t even understand. It’s something I feel in my soul. It’s something that I can’t stop thinking about. Just saying his name makes my heart jump for joy.”

“I know the feeling. That’s how I feel about your No

“How can it be true love if he doesn’t love me?” I sobbed. I knew No

“Mila, I’m going to need for you to explain to me exactly what’s going on.” No

“I don’t even understand what I’m saying sometimes.” I took a deep breath. “And that’s not the only thing, No

“Mila, tell me what’s in your heart.” No

“I just don’t know what to say. I don’t know how to let you know what happened. I don’t want you to be ashamed of me. I feel so weak.” I sighed.

“I would never be ashamed of you, mi cara. You are my heart. You are my soul. Everything I do is for you. You’re my only granddaughter and you are everything to me. You know there is nothing I wouldn’t do for you. All I want in this world is for you to be happy and to never suffer. It pains me to see you suffer. It pains me deep in my heart. Your pain is my pain. I don’t want to see you cry. I don’t want to see anything in your eyes that makes me think you’re going through turmoil. You know that, right?”