wordsmith-writerlady-blog

[wordsmith-writerlady-blog]

The Warmth of the Candle

“What’s going on?” He asked rather loudly whist walking in an unusual and speedy fashion.

I was already confused by the amount of women screaming, and men at points of raging. But when Adam came, storming up the hill, just as panicked as everyone else, I then really questioned what was happening.

“Adam?” I wearily spoke. “Why are the people crying?”

“Haven’t you heard? Palmers Shipyard just closed.” Said a crazy and frightened man who overheard my confusion. “Everything is going to go to shit!”

That’s when it finally began to make sense. Jarrow, a small town of the heavy industry, housing ship builders and steel workers, had been fearful for months now. My mother and father and brother had been fighting recently. Jack, my brother who just got a job with my father in the shipyard, was speaking about unsteadiness in the economy. The one fact he told that I actually listened to, was the horrifying suspicion that he and father could lose their jobs. The jobs that put bread in the breadbox and blankets on our beds.

The crazy man spoke of an announcement of redundancy to all workers at Palmers Shipyard that was said at eight O’clock this morning. Adam and I stood frozen, wondering what would happen to your families… to us.

“Elise…?” He croaked. “Does this mean our dads lost their jobs?”

I saw the growing worry on his face, and dragged him into an alley way to get away from the rising amounts chaos. He looked at me with fear in his eyes. I had known his dad, a widower, was struggling to raise four children on his own. And now without a job to put food in their tummies, he would crumble, just like the economy.

“I’m 14! There are no jobs left for teens, everyone looks at adults!” He grew more frightened as I clutched my jacket tight to keep me warm.

“Well don’t look at me,” I smiled with comical sympathy. “I’m just 13.”

He took his eyes off the ground to look at me, being so calm and collected. The fear faded in his eyes as the kindness grew while he lent forward and held me in his arms. Our hug was long, warm. I knew we would be fine if we were together. Even if the rain soaked my socks, even if the bread we use for sandwiches is hard and burnt, even if we become homeless. Just two kids living on the streets, we would be happy, if we had each other.

When I told him these things he smiled my way as the crowd got brassier, and took my hand, softly pulling me towards his house. The damp mouldy wood that made up his home greeted me yet again, the rising smoke exiting the chimney and the smell of fresh bread from the bakery next door made it a home. His three sisters and father were likely out with the other riot members in the town square. So we were alone.

I stepped through Adam’s front door, like I have many times before with him close behind me, sweetly grasping my hand in his. The house hadn’t changed a bit; clutter crowding the living room, a washing pot on the front porch, and even a rather large teddy bear sitting by the fireplace that had a steel pot boiling on a rotisserie over it.

As I looked around at what I already knew, I realized we left the door open. This was brought to my attention by a possibly insane and odd woman in the street, who had just set fire to a trash can with three other men. The heat burst with height as one man poured a can of petrol on the flame. It smoked and the angry workers screamed with rage as Adam pulled me inside and slammed the door behind us. His warm embrace engulfed me, holding me tight as I breathed heavily into his chest.

The sudden realization of what was actually happening had just hit me.

There will be a riot, a rebellion maybe.

Men have lost their jobs, women have lost their life support, parents have lost their kids safety.

“Were is your family?” I asked for a sure answer.

“They’re in Newcastle for the day. They’ll come back tonight to see all this. This insanity.” Adam replied pulling back the curtains to look out the window.

I joined him by the cracking and old glass sill to see the distressed woman from before running through the streets. She was on fire. Pity, she shouldn’t have lit it. I was shaken and terrified at what I had just witnessed. But every morsel of me held back my tears of fear.

“Come Elise.” Adam said from behind me. “You shouldn’t have to see that.”

I was unable to remove my eyes from the burning woman. Some part of me overcame my body and I froze. Not moving at all. Until, I felt his soft fingers on my face. His thumb brushed my cheek and I felt my soul come to life again. The light in my spirit lit again, and I stumbled away from the window and into his bedroom. I recognized the metal bedframe harbouring damp grey sheets and the small round window painted blue.

He traipsed forward to a large but breaking dresser and pulled out a candle from the top left drawer. It was red like his jacket, and blue like his eyes. A multi coloured candle it seemed. He flopped down onto the floor, legs crossed like a kindergartener. With the candle in his reach, he placed it ever so perfectly on the floor in front of him. A small part of me wanted to know what was happening, another wanted to kiss him, right there and then. But instead, I joined him on the floor. I sat next to him, my arms wrapped around his and my knees under my chin.

What came next was a match. Adam pulled a half empty matchbook out of his pocket, which he used to light cigarettes behind the school when we felt rebellious. As he lit the candle, I rested my head on his shoulder and held my fingers mystically over warm flame.

“So what do we do now. We’ll have no money, the both of us.” Adam spoke worried but strong.

“I still stand by what I said earlier.” I looked at him gallantly as the tree outside brindled on the window glass.

After no reply, I spoke again. “We could run away. Then your dad will only have to provide for three.”

“You want to leave our people?” He snapped sharply.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you. I only want you to be happy. I want everyone to be happy.” I went on sadly as my fear about him leaving me grew less unlikely.

“That’s all you ever want Elise.” Adam said. “You put everyone else’s wellbeing and contentment before your own. I admire that.”

I timidly stared into his kind and deep blue eyes with my fingers still hovering over the warmth of the candle.

“I can admire you too Adam. You have a sense about you, one that will always protect people no matter who they are, or how evil they may seem.” I held benignly and amiably, still not cracking a smile.

Until, he lent forward, as quick as light, and kissed me.

“No leaving.” He alleged after pulling away from a long and heartfelt kiss. “We won’t abandon the ones we love.”

[wordsmith-writerlady-blog]

Floating in Space

He stole us two suits. I have no sliver of an idea as to how on earth he did it, but I was excited enough to dissipate my suspicions. The moon glistened brightly in the distance, and the ship shuttered as usual, while we walked towards the Spacecraft Maintenance centre. We were not but little specks floating around space in a giant metal ship, along with 2.2 million other souls. All absurdly unique in their own different ways. But perhaps the kindest soul of all, Him. I’m talking about the nice boy from Room 2BA. He was oddly reading a book about the chickens’ reproductive system when we first met in the library. An unusual circumstance, and place to meet someone, but I never cared about that. All that ever crossed my mind, whether I was with him or not, was the simple but yet so very complicated feeling that is so stubborn, it just won’t leave me alone. I am unable to describe it. It’s like a fire inside me, a sort of fire I’ve never felt before.

Is it nerves?

Is it fear? No, it’s certainly not fear.

Is it worry, regret, or perhaps happiness?

Is it lust?

Is it love…?

The thought had brushed my mind at times before, when we would spend all night talking in my closet, each with torches under our noses, and silent voices not to wake my mother and sister. Or just last week at Christmas time, when he brought me a seashell. Oh how surprised I was to hold something from the home I never got to see. I imagined the warm and foamy ocean water that would have brushed it each time the tide was high. I imagined the hot sand grains under the sun that it would have sat in all day until a small child came along and picked it up for their overflowing shell bucket.

“How did you get this?” I asked as I finally regained my breath, taken by shock.

“Old man Kent from down the hall had three. I traded a few old books and a music box for the biggest one.” He replied with his usual sweetness shrouding his voice.

To this moment I hold this shell in my blue jeans right pocket. As we stowed down the curious but ominous looking hallway, I fiddled with it during my throttling excitement. As everyone partied with orange punch and snacks and happiness in the hall, celebrating another year, we snuck out by the cover of a crowded room. Of course it is only a troubled and finicky crowd that has need to celebrate just another plain old year. I’m sure 2094 will be no different than 2093. But for some untold reason, a part of me believes that to be untrue.

As the door we wanted to sneak through crept closer, he grasped my hand and tugged me faster. His touch made me jump, it made my heart race as we ran wearing baggy but rather scratchy suits, into a large and dark room with two big metal doors, bordered with yellow and black caution stripes.

“That’s the door.” He said before handing me a round helmet with a glass face.

With this particularly heavy astronaut hat clutched in my hands, my mind raced back and forth from scenario to scenario as he plugged a large tube into the back of my suit. It trusted cosy warm air throughout my suit and made me jolt momentarily.

“It’s okay, I’ve watched my Dad do this a million times.” He smiled with his warm and strong hands on my shoulders.

I turned to his loving and kind face, the smart, but sexy look about him made my breaths grow heavier by the second.

I held his hand in mine and whispered; “I trust you.”

And with that, he slid on my ridiculous looking helmet, plugged in his own tube, and own hat, before taking my hand once again. I squeezed it as tight as I possibly could, with excitement now turning into nerves, bashing rogue-like inside of me. He pushed a large red button and typed a 4 number pin into a beeping keypad. A green light above me lit, and a passable rumble shook my feet as air drained from the room. Slowly my boots began to lift from the floor with out me moving a muscle. And as quickly as I processed that, my entire body floated without hesitation. I couldn’t help but let a slight, but quiet and happy scream surpass my grinning lips. Close to me, he smiled and stared at my pure joy. I softly bit my lip in a heart racing reply.

 Time speed up from my slow and romantic thoughts and the thick metal door creaked open. As it revealed the stars and glowing sun on the other side, my smile grew wider and wider. Without a second thought, I drove myself closer to the edge. His hand still not parting with mine, we trusted out into the abyss of space.

Stars and beauty surrounded me and I felt like I was the luckiest person on the ship. Or even the luckiest being in general for that matter. At that moment I felt like my time with him was never going to end. I want to capture this feeling and hold it close to me for as long as I live. It was a complete sense of freedom that flowed throughout my veins, carrying love and blissfulness with it, it took control of my whole body.

 The sudden reality hit me, and I realized there was nothing below me, not wood, not concrete, not dirt. Just nothing. As I was stupid enough to look down, a hasty fear over took me, I wrapped my hands around him and fell into his arms.

“It’s okay.” He caringly assured me. “You’ll be okay. Now, go conquer the world.”

I floated slowly towards the dusty brown planet once called earth, covered in craters and rubbish piles it spoke to me, along with the sun to my left. And the half lit moon peaking over the world. It looked just like heaven itself; pure serenity, and ease.

I gaped over Earth and saw nothing but stars and, well, nothing. It’s an endless void, space. Some say it goes on for eternity, and nothing or no one will ever reach an end. But others say, at the edge of the universe, at the edge of the Milky Way, lies the spirits of any soul with a kind heart. God’s Promised Land they call it. Perhaps I will find my dad there someday. Someday…

But not today. Today I’m going to float here. Smelling the liberty so strong, it distracted me from what was presently happening. Arms around my waist. His warm, strong hands comforting me in my day dreams. His chin resting on my shoulder as he hugged me from behind.

But that all had to end at some point…

He enthralled my hands, delicately returning me to the maintenance room. He smiled at me through his helmet, and closed the doors behind us, as the room began to fill with air again.

“I love you.” I said after removing my own helmet.

Without another word, I took off his, exposing his kind face to the outside again. To my surprise, not a vowel came from his lips. Instead he stared at me with a blank expression, but still revealing his soul through his cosy brown eyes, he leant forward. Our noses inches from each other. Before I could brush my fingers through his curly brown hair, as I usually do, I felt his soft, warm lips pressed against mine.