The Dance
How they would dance!
All of their life together was one long, intricate dance,
every movement and action perfectly in sync. For as long as she could remember,
he had been a part of her world, and she of his.
Perhaps this was why she suffered so, watching his steady
decline. There was very little she could do for him now. Only watch and wait
for the inevitable.
Lately
he seemed to favor his right side, comfort eluding him even in troubled sleep.
She spent every spare moment trying to heal him, attempting to meld her body
into his as the hours dwindled down to a precious few.
They had experienced much in their life together. Memories
of lost children floated through her mind. So much promise tinged with so much
regret. How they had survived such calamity gave testament to their union,
unbreakable and complete. It would be just the two of them in the end. If she
could not make him whole again, at least she would be present. He would not die
alone.
He turned his face away from her for the last time, his
breathing jagged and slow. She hovered around him, turning and turning in
graceful circles as the last vestige of life drained out of his tired old body.
She knew the moment he left her as the water gently
unmoored him from his final resting place and carried him to the surface, her
frantic movement pushing him higher and higher. She could see, from a great
distance, his body being lifted out as she desperately trailed behind and then,
he was gone. Gone in an instant, as if he’d never been. Gone away from her
forever.
As the water calmed, she resumed her lonely vigil in the
place where he had been. All too soon, the mysterious, shimmering surface would
call for her, but not today. She began to swim around and around in mournful
celebration of her lost love, and how they would dance.
A. Elizabeth Herting is an
aspiring freelance writer and busy mother of three living in colorful Colorado.
She has had over 40 short stories published and has a collection of short
stories called "Whistling Past the Veil" that will be published
in April 2019 by "Adelaide Books."
For more of her work/contact her at:
aeherting.weebly.com,www.facebook.com/AElizabethHerting or Twitter:@AmyHerting
Tags:
Short Fiction
That was beautiful and so sad. Thank you for sharing.
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