The Little Messenger

 

I have been getting chocolate from my sister and Cristian. They give me candy for delivering some papers to each one from the other. It’s a pretty easy job, maybe I can become a professional messenger –I never read them. I can’t read that well anyway. Viola gave me a letter to give to Cristian so I ran and took the letter to him quickly as I could. I secretly hoped I would get more candy.

 

 

 

 

 

June 5th

Sweet Viola,

 

I miss you! Your brother is a great messenger.  I wonder if he reads our letters. Seeing him brings me joy –for I know that words of love draw near. He is our Cupid! And with his wings he brings sweet honey in writing! I wish I could see you today but I know your parents are very strict and I respect that. Do they not know that the more forbidden the fruit the more intense the longing for it? I cannot describe what I feel for you, my Viola, and though we are only 15, these feelings you stir in my young heart are as old time itself. They have been felt by both people much older and much younger than I. Love really has no age.  I eagerly await your letter.

 

I love you,

Cristian

 

 

 

June 6th,

 

My dear Cristian,

 

Thank you for the letter! If only you knew how deeply and effectively you have captured my heart. Every moment we are apart is a slow torture for my heart; a torture only remedied by the hope and knowledge of getting to see you soon. My parents do not know or understand what we feel. Perhaps they do not remember what it was like to be in love as we are. They say it is just young, silly love. But part of me wonders if they are they right. Are they?

 

I love you dearly,

Viola

 

 

 

June 7th

My Sweet Viola,

 

Of course they don’t understand, my Love, how could they? This doesn’t happen every day and no one else can understand what we feel.

When can I see you? I miss holding your hand and kissing your soft cheek. Looking at you looking back at me and everything around disappears. Did you know that? You have consumed my entire world and it has become a better place for it. I don’t remember what sunlight looked like before I met you. I can’t remember music sounding as sweet or water tasting as refreshing. The moon lights a path with a purpose now: to guide me to see you.

 

I can’t wait to see you,

Cristian

 

 

 

June 8th

 

My Cristian,

 

I count the hours until I get to see you again. You make every day feel special, even more so when I get to see you. Just being with you brings me the purest of joys. I would love to see you tonight. Please come well before dusk, as I have to be home before dark. Hurry, my Love! Time flees and waits for no one.

 

Truly yours,

Viola

 

 

 

I took the letter and candy that Viola gave me, placed it in my satchel, and was walking home when a girl interrupted my task as messenger. She was pretty, with dark black hair and fair skin. She looked to be around the same age as my sister and Cristian.

“Delivering a letter, are you?” she asked with a smile.

I nodded and continued walking.

“Would you like to make your sister even happier?” she offered.

I was intrigued; I did love my sister and if I could make her happier I would. If only I had known then what I know now. The girl put out her hand and asked for the letter from Viola and gave me another letter in exchange and told me to take it with urgency to Cristian.

“This will make them both very happy. Does she like surprises?” she asked.

“Yes! She does.”

“Perfect.” And with that she disappeared into the distance.

I walked to Cristian’s house, delivered the letter, collected my treats, and headed back home. I wondered about the girl all the way back.

 

 

 

 

June 9th

 

My beloved Viola,

 

Is what the letter said true? Is there another man you love more? My heart prays that this is not true but my mind troubles me by doubting. I can promise you that if he should build you a house, I will build you a castle; if he should fight a beast for you, I will fight a thousand more; if he should bring you a flower, I will bring you a garden; if he should promise you a star, I promise you all the heavens above. I pray that the winged Cupid delivers this letter swiftly to you, my lovely Viola.

 

I love you,

Cristian

 

 

 

 

Cristian seemed very troubled when he caught me in town playing in the park with my friends. I was instructed to take the letter home at my fastest possible speed and then he gave me twice as much candy as he had before. He told me to head home right then and give the letter to Viola. I placed the letter in my satchel and headed back home a t full speed as soon as he finished speaking.

Just around the corner from my house, I saw the biggest serpent I had ever seen. I set my satchel down and proceeded to try to catch the snake. I coaxed it with a large tree branch I found on the ground but it slithered away into a small hole in the ground. I spent about an hour trying to bring it out of the hole. I even brought a dead mouse I found to try to lure it out. No luck. I finally gave up and walked home. I went inside, set my satchel down and took a nap.

When I awoke I continued to play as any other day and spent the days as any other days. After three days, I reached in my satchel to bring out my book to read and I saw the letter. The letter! With all the strength in my small legs I ran all over the house trying to find Viola. I finally found her sitting under a tree in our yard.

“Viola!” I screamed.

She turned at look at me with a glum look on her face. I knew it was because of the delay from Cristian. “Has he sent me a letter?” she asked with oceans of hope in her eyes.

“Yes,” I answered I hope she would forgive me for forgetting to give her the letter.

I eagerly watched her; waiting to see her face light up with joy. Instead I saw it filled with confusion and worry. She jolted up and started running down the street towards town. She was headed to see Cristian.

 

 

 

When she arrived at his house, he wasn’t there. She walked to where she knew he would find him: the small river that divided the two neighboring towns.

She saw him standing on the edge of the river bank appearing to be preparing to jump in. He had already convinced himself that what the fraudulent letter had said was true. He no longer had a place in Viola’s heart and that killed him inside.

He jumped into the river just as Viola ran to the river’s edge screaming his name. Cristian had heard her calling his name, but ignored her for he could not bear to hear the words from her mouth; in her voice. Viola feared that he would drown because of the strong rains that had swelled the river. Cristian, on the other hand contemplated ending his life in this river. What do I have to live for now? He thought to himself.

“Cristian, please come!” It was Viola’s voice that was drowned by the river’s ferocious currents. “Please!”

Cristian continued swimming in the rivers when he entered a strong whirlpool underneath the surface water of the river. He kept his head above for some time before the current pulled him down further. His head only came up a few times before his legs were intertwined with the weeds growing at the bottom. The savage waters devoured him as if he were a paper boat.

Viola watched in panic as her true love was being drowned by nature’s fury. Without hesitation, she jumped in and swam to him. She struggled with bringing him back up to the surface by pulling the weeds that held on tightly to both of his legs. The water choked every breath they attempted and with its claws it dragged both of them down.

By a stroke of luck or divine intervention, they both were thrown out of the whirlpool and swam back to the river bank where I watched from. They coughed and coughed in each other’s embrace.

“What were you doing?” she asked him.

“Trying to clear my mind —I’ve been going crazy, Viola. Is what that letter said true? Do you love another?”

Viola stared at him in complete bewilderment. “What are you talking about?”

“The letter you sent me –it said that there was someone else…”

“I didn’t write anything like that.”

“Really?” he asked with tears in his eyes.

“Of course, you know I love you; my heart belongs to you and you only,” she pushed forward and kissed him deeply.

Cristian knew at that moment that she did love him, as he loved her. Who sent the letter? Cristian knew who it had been –Cynthia. She had been trying to steal him away from Viola for some time now. But Cristian did not want to worry Viola; they were meant to be together, and nothing could stop them now that he knew exactly how they felt about each other.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walking home, they found Cynthia giving me another letter for Cristian. There was nowhere she could flee to. It was all three of them face-to-face.

Cristian’s eyes were gleaming with fury, his shoulders tense, and his nose flared. He stood facing Cynthia with my sister at his side, with a slightly confused look on her face.

“What are you trying to do?” Cristian’s voice roared. With good reason, in my opinion; she was trying to take something dear to his heart.

Cynthia eyes pierced the happy couple. She scowled at Viola since she was the person, the obstacle, between her and her love.

“Your problem is with me –not her,” Cristian asserted.

Cynthia’s gaze returned to him.

“We could never be together, I’m sorry to tell you, and if I hurt you, I am sorry for that as well, but I cannot give you false hope for you and me to be together one day. That day will never come.”

Cynthia’s attempts to withhold her tears were futile; they were streaming down her face by the end of Cristian’s last word. Her eyes looked pleadingly over at Viola, as if supplicating to let her have her Cristian. My sister just stood next to Cristian, holding his hand. I had backed away to allow them some privacy. I didn’t want to leave, though.

Cynthia tore up the letter she was going to ask me to deliver, which I would have torn up myself, and stormed away. She never once looked back at where we stood.

“What was that all about?” asked Viola.

“She just wanted to have something that belongs to someone else,” Cristian told her as he kissed her forehead. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the doorstep, I left them outside while I went inside. I still know what happened though. Cristian hugged her tightly and gave her a long, passionate kiss. He asked, “When can I see you again, Viola?”

The silence was broken with, “It will be in my next letter.”