Two Lives Lost

I look over and see her quietly sitting on the weathered green bench; paint flakes pepper her old tattered jacket.

She sits there staring off into the distance. Years of pain and strain on her beautiful aging face. Her soft, steady, delicate hands, that once held a paintbrush, are now wrinkled, callused, and shaking.

I have seen her many times. I know her story.  I know why the pain is displayed on her face.  I understand the hatred that gleams from her emerald green eyes.

A single tear gracefully rolls down her delicate cheek, like a raging river through the earth; it glides through every wrinkle on her face.

The pain she wears on her face started 60 years ago when she met Albert. Strong and steadfast, yet gentle and kind, it was love at first sight.

...............................

He walked by and his scent invaded my nose, catching me off guard.  I lost my footing and stumbled off the sidewalk. I felt hands grab my arm a booming husky voice asked me

"Are you okay?"

Grasping for words I yelled "I’m Fine!"

Trying to get my composure, I dusted my slightly bruised ego off, while staring at this man walking away from me.  I slowly and silently jump back on the sidewalk and followed him.  A gust of wind dances across my face, his smell, his glorious smell.  I can't keep my delicately painted lips from smiling.  Like a giant cat stalking its prey I study his movements, his arms gracefully swing at his sides, his footsteps are cumbersome, but amazingly graceful at the same time.  As he turns the corner I quietly pick up pace.  I can't lose him; I can't lose this unknown man.

I dart around the corner, then bam like hitting a brick wall, my face buries into a hard chest.  I feel two strong arms wrap around me.  Stunned and in shock i instantly start to apologize. 

"I am sorry" I begin to stammer "I should watch where I am walking" I then thought to myself, I lost all self control trying to get closer to my mystery man.  Every fiber of my being needed to be close to him.

Then like an angry army invading my senses his smell takes hold.  It's him, my heart begins to race, and like a helicopter taking flight it leaps from my chest leaving me alone.  

I slowly look up at him, first catching his broad shoulders, and then slowly moving up. His chin was strong and square, his face was worn but handsome.  Then I looked into his eyes, OH GOD, how they peered into my soul.  Like he was reading me like a book.

"Are you okay?" This booming voice escaped his lips.  

"I am okay, I was rushing and not paying attention to anything around me." Yes rushing I thought to myself, rushing to get closer to you.

He starts to laugh; it was like thunder rolling on a stormy night.

"Now where are you rushing off to?" He asked with a slight smirk on his face.

Quickly I searched my jumbled mind trying to grab an answer that would suit him.

"I have an art class and I am running five minutes late already."

"Really? Well let me walk you there, just to make sure you make it without a doctors visit." He reached down and grabs my hand.  His huge soft hand, his fingers slowly enclose around mine.

"I'm Albert Johnson by the way."  He takes a small step forward as if he was making sure I could still use my legs.

"Hi, Albert. I am Annalisa Westin, but everyone calls me Annie for short." I take a step trying to keep pace with him. 

Then as if a load of gravel was being dumped on me, ART CLASS, they are closed on Mondays... now what!  

The small chatter was nice and intoxicating, I was getting drunk off of him.  When we reached the cold, dark building of my eminent doom, the bright, knife stabbing orange sign out front was taunting me with CLOSED.

He looked down at me with a slight devilish grin on his face.

"Well, I guess they forgot you were coming today."

I looked up at him and with a roar of laughter he threw his head back, His laugh was as contagious as a common cold, I then burst into uncontrollable laughter. What seemed like minutes was only seconds.  Like he flipped a light switch he stopped laughing and peered down at me.  Fear began to set in.  Did he just figure out why I was rushing?

Then he drops down on one knee, NO, he can't we just met. 

With a serious tone in his voice he said. "I guess this means you’re free. So would you find it in your heart to accompany me to a cup of coffee?"

Without letting him finish I screamed yes, then we both burst into laughter again.

We stopped laughing and in one gentle swoop his thumb collected the tear that escaped and was rolling down my flushed cheek. He smiled at me in a way a lover would smile at his loved one, I smiled back hoping he would not notice the wanting I had building inside me.

"There is a coffee shop four blocks from here on the corner, I will meet you there in two hours." I looked up at him with confusion, two hours, why not now? Why can't we just walk hand in hand to the coffee shop?  What if he changes his mind and doesn't show?  I gracefully pulled my thoughts together.

"I would not miss it for the world." I smiled at him again, trying to conceal the hurt, and with all the will power I could gather I pivoted on one foot and walked away.

..................................

The coffee shop was small but quant.  Tables littered the sidewalk.  Some where filled with couples cozied up together, engrossed in conversation.  Others had men and woman who were vigorously writing in little journals.  I wonder what they were writing about. Me? There small existence? The love they had and lost? The woman who was closest to me had tears in her eyes.  

I opened the door and the inside was beautiful. The smell of fresh ground coffee stimulated my senses and instantly gave me the energy I needed to face Albert. The walls were painted a deep burgundy.  Pictures of Paris scattered the walls, neatly framed.  The tables were not like the ones on the sidewalk, these had black linen table clothes with vases that held silk cala lilies.  

My eyes scanned the room; there were only a few people in the coffee shop.  The one that stood out was a man dressed in a black suit.  He had his right foot propped up on his left leg. He looked to be talking to himself, as if he were running a conversation through his mind. I slowly walked to his table, quietly so I did not disturb him. 

"Albert?" I lightly touched his shoulder. He jumped slightly only to turn and greet me with that amazing smile I was graced with earlier.

"Hi Annie, my dear sweet Annie, you look lovely." I looked down at the well-worn dress I was wearing.  It was black, with hints of red through it.

"Thank you." He swiftly got up and pulled the seat across from him out. I sat down and made sure to tuck my dress underneath me.  He took his place across from me. He waved at the waiter and like he was waiting on cue he came walking over to us.  He was tall, skinny, but the look of desperation was on his face.  What has this poor man been through? I felt his pain and sorrow and it was building inside of me.  I had to look down at my hands.  Oh boy my hands, green and yellow paint stained them. While Albert ordered our cappuccinos, I tried to pick as much of the paint I could off.

"So Annie, you are a painter?" He looked at me with question filled eyes.

"Yes, well I would not say a painter, but I do love to paint and one day I would love to see my work at the Museum of Modern Arts in New York." I searched his eyes to see if he approved, only to be met with confusion. 

"Have I seen any of your work?" The waiter came over and placed two white coffee cups on small plates down in front of us.  I grasped my cup in my hand feeling the warmth of the coffee warm my fingers.

"No, I dabble here and there but nothing major, what do you do for a living?" He looked at me and grinned, my heart skipped a beat.

"I am an art curator." My eyes wide open, mouth dropped I stared at him.

"Oh." Oh, really Annie? OH that is all you could say to this amazing man sitting from of you. The one man I fully now believe was made for you.  The one man who would get who you are, and want for yourself in life. He chuckled and took a sip of his coffee. He looked at me with a serious look on his face.

"I know you were following me today.  That is why when I got out of your site I doubled back hoping you would run into me. The moment I saw your tiny red lips, your amazing emerald eyes, I was in love with you. Even in passing your smell is invigorating." He looked down at his hands that were folded in his lap. I could tell he was nervous. I started to laugh, not because he was nervous but because here this man was describing my feelings towards him. I placed my hand on the table in hopes he would reach for it. He did, his hand grasped mine.

"Albert, the reason I was following you was because I was in love you with you the moment I saw you walking my way. I felt an electric shock, shock my heart and I knew I had to get to know you. I had to meet you. Every fiber of my being was screaming to be near you. I am in love with you too Albert." We took a moment and stared at each other and in one fluid motion he was up and pulled me into his arms. His lips touched mine creating this lighting bolt of electricity that ran through my body.  I melted into him, it was more then I could ever have imagined. 

.............................

The weeks passed quickly, and Albert and me saw each other everyday. We spent our days at museums and him watching me paint, and our nights talking and laughing. Just being near him was more then I could ask from him. 

One night Albert asked me to meet him at the little coffee shop on the corner. The thought of seeing him that night sent a rush of emotions over me. I walked into the coffee shop and there he was at our table. His eyes met mine and he ran over to me holding me close to him and kissing me with a passion I have never felt from him before. He grabbed my hand and escorted me to our table. As always he pulled my chair out for me. He took his place across from me.  I could see he was nervous and scared. 

"What’s wrong Albert, are you okay?" I stared at him hurt filling me as I looked at my strong man fumbling over himself.

"I want to ask you something." I looked at him with my signature eyebrow raise. He grinned.

"What?" I stammered hoping he would not catch that, but nervous as to what his question could be.

"Annie, my dear Annie." My name running off his lips made my soul seize up.

"I know this may be sudden, but Annalisa, will you marry me, and for sure make me the happiest man alive?" I dropped my coffee cup in panic. Was this happening to me? Was this amazing man whom I fell in love with by first sight asking me to marry him? 

He pulled a small red box out from his lap, opened it up and the most gorgeous ring I have ever laid eyes on.  It had a silver band, with a princess cut diamond in the middle of it.  My hands were shaking at the thought of being his.

"Yes, Yes Albert I will marry you." Tears filled my eyes, before they started streaming down my cheek; he slowly took my left hand and placed the ring on my tiny paint covered finger.  Once he had placed it, he then lifted my hand and kissed my newly decorated finger.

"Annie we must right away, tonight!" Laughing and full of this new feeling, I jumped up ran to him and wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed his lips with the lightest kiss I could.

We walked out of the coffee shop and two blocks away was a twenty-four hour wedding chapel. We started our walk hand in hand when I heard a man shout.

"Hey stop right there, you need to empty your pockets and I want that ring on her finger." Albert turned around to be met with a stalky older man holding a gun to Albert’s chest. I could see the desperation in his eyes.  He seemed to have had a hard life and he was wearing it on his face.

"Now fellow, we don’t want any trouble, we are on our way to get married, I would be more then happy to give you what is in my wallet, but don’t take her ring." The stalky man stepped forward into the only light on the street.  His eyes were dark like the night sky; his clothes were tattered and torn.

"I want all of it, everything, your watch too." The man shoved the gun in Albert’s chest. Albert pushed me aside and reached for the gun. The stalky man drew his hand back and then like the world stood still, like my own heart stopped beating. Time stopped dead in its tracks. The sound of gunfire rang through my ears. The smell of gunpowder was nauseating. My stomach began to churn, and bile made its way to my throat. I looked at Albert as he dropped to his knees and the stalky man ran off into the night. I screamed desperately for help but the sound choked me, like the room was closing in and the air was being sucked from my lungs. 

I ran over to Albert’s side, blood was gushing through his fingers like a waterfall over the side of a mountain. He tried to speak, but words were not his first priority. He looked over to where the man stood. He was looking out for me still with life draining from his body; my Albert was trying to keep me safe.

"He is gone Albert." The look in Albert’s eyes was hurt, failure, needing. I ran my fingers through his hair, which was soaked with sweat. I rubbed my finger along his eyebrows, across his face; lastly I put my hand on his heart.  He looked at me and with his last breath he reached up and took my face in his blood soaked hands. 

"I love you my dear sweet Annie." Tears filled my eyes my heart broke in two, no you cant give up, I wanted to shake this man. You cant leave me now Albert. His head fell back and his eyes wide open as if accepting God, he fell to the ground.  I sat there legs crossed to the side holding this man, I knew only for a few weeks, but loved more then my own life itself.

At that moment my life stopped.  I withdrew from his hate filled world, this world that had no reason as to why. I didn't look at painting the same; it had no life in it. It was dead to me; slowly I fell into the darkness that stalky man created for me that summer night. I died.

....................................

I went back to the park the following day, same time, same place, but the old woman was not there.  She was no longer sitting on her bench, wrapped in Albert’s tattered jacket staring at the spot in the street where she held her love for the last time. The spot where that stalky man took Albert’s life.


By: Bable