"I remember when you gave this to me, with all the promises and sacrifices behind it." She said once again. "I remember the day clearly."
It was in the mid of summer, some summer evening, seven years ago. The two were in summer school that year and had just been from detention for their cheeky behaviors and paid the ultimate price.
Elena had written a note and passed it to Ethan during their home science class of how the head of the teacher looked like the tomato he was cutting. This was one of those unfortunate days the two hadn't saved a space for the one who came later. They both came late that day and were stationed at different stations. Ethan was found with the note and Elena's handwriting was quickly picked out. And so for two good past class hours, the two were stuck with some students in the alien room. When they walked home that evening together, they couldn't help but laugh out of the horrible day they had.
"Wow... that was so dumb of us." Elena shrieked. There was a rumble in the sky. The sound of an upcoming rainfall had come out of nowhere without a warning.
"Oops... Elena, it's gonna rain." Ethan quivered as he grazed his eyes at the grey sky. Another rumble was heard.
"Let it," Elena told him smirking. "It's already been a crappy day for the both of us."
"Hmm... okay." He scoured his dark green eyes at her. Her black hair swayed massively against the brushing cold wind. The weather had just snapped.
The two were generally in an open field with a few high-rise buildings near them, but they didn't opt for shelter from them.
"Let it rain. And let the waters wash us away." Elena affirmed her earlier statement, her face facing the sky. Suddenly, the rain began to fall drastically as it started with drizzles at first, cold as ice biting on their exposed flesh. The summer clothing they had won earlier in the day couldn't help them. The day had been generally hot, and the rain seemed to have come out of nowhere. They should have watched the previous day's night news perhaps.
"There it is," Ethan said later on as he breathed in the rain, and felt its wet on him. They continued walking through before it became a little rowdier and they opted to run and play in it like little kindergarten kids. Elena ran in front of him as he chased her from behind, skipping over wet poodles and wet surfaces, stepping on some intentionally. Suddenly, Elena hitched a sudden stop, and Ethan, who had been in front of her, stopped. He looked behind him and found her getting up on her feet, after picking some brown wooden packet, the size of a matchbox, from the ground. She opened it.
"Oh my, would you look at this?" She exclaimed. Ethan could only afford a slight chuckle. "A diamond ring!" She chimed as she studied its content. "This is so expensive!" Ethan had kept quiet all along. Elena looked at Ethan, then at the ring, then back at Ethan. She gasped.
"Ethan, is this yours?" She asked, brows conjoined in confusion. Her dark eyes danced around as she scoured his face.
"Yes." He finally answered her with an accompanying nod. Elena looked at him strangely now.
"Elena, the truth is that all my life... ever since I saw you, I've been drawn closer to you, day by day, by every passing minute." He stretched his hand to her so that she could hand him the ring. She gave it to him and zipped up the small pocket of his bag, probably from where it had fallen from. "I've been a jerk and scared most of the time to tell you and now Elena, I'm not gonna be a scary cat anymore." Elena gulped as she listened to him.
"Elena, I love you. Not like... but actually love you. A lot." He told her after a moment of silence. "I really love you." She closed her eyes, feeling the weight that he was putting on her.
"Ethan, I don't know..." She cried out. "Please don't make this hard for me."
Ethan smiled abruptly as he nodded. "I know... you're not ready for this or anything. I get it. You're not ready and I'm willing to wait. As long as it might take... I will wait, for you."
He took the ring and held out her left pinkie with his other hand. Watching each other's eyes, he slid the diamond masterpiece into her finger. It fit perfectly– almost. The rain was on and around them. They were damn wet... but it seemed like it was necessary for this moment.
"It might take weeks or months or years. It's okay... I will wait. When you're ready... I will be here for you."
Elena nodded as she looked at the ring once again, before she settled her face to Ethan's at last. "Thank you for understanding." She told him smiling.
"It's okay." Ethan told her. And with that, they walked away, hands locked together.
Back to the present.
"It was a memorable day." Ethan said, recalling the sweet events.
Elena looked at the ring and tried to hide her tears. She took it off her finger. "I can't stay with this." She said.
He shivered when he heard those words from her, as if she was taking something golden that belonged to them. The both of them– together.
"Elena... please don't." His voice turned sour and heavy, lingering with an ounce of a painful cry behind it. He couldn't believe that this was happening. He had known what she wanted to say, and now that she said it, it broke him.
"Ethan, I can't. When I look it, all I remember is how you lied to me, all the fake promises you told me and how you made me pay for them."
"Elena, I'm sorry." He cried out and muffled his lips. He was trying to hide his tears. "Please don't do this. Elena please. Give me some time. I'll make it up to you."
Elena scoffed after she studied his worried face for a long time. "Some time? How? Which time? If I'm correct you have fifteen years to serve here. Where are you going to get the time?"
"Elena please! I don't know how I can ever make it up to you. I know it's a lot of time but I'm just asking you to be patient. Give me some time and–"
"Give me your hand." Elena cut him short, a lot of hurt in her voice. He disobeyed the command, shaking his head slowly and felt the stinging of his eyes, tears begging to come out.
"Ethan please," She cried out and muffled her lips. A tear stroke down her cheek again. She wiped it off with her free palm. "I swear I'll leave it at this table Ethan." She warned him, her heavy voice toggling along.
With a lot of pain and regret, he brought his hand forward, tears stroking his damaged face. She took the ring and gave it to him. When he finally had the ring on his hand, he sobbed bitterly that a promise he made to her was never going to be fulfilled. He wiped his tears away and looked back at her. She was whimpering.
"I didn't ask for this, Ethan." She said. "You brought this on yourself."
"I'm sorry..." He cried out again, hiding his torment as he wiped his tears away.
"I was just getting justice for myself. Isn't that what they taught you back at school?"
"With this kind of hurting, I now know that you didn't come all this way to congratulate me on our birthday. So now that you've done that, what else do you want from me?" Ethan told her instead.