It was a hot summer day. The sky was crystal clear, and the birds flew round and round. Musicians scattered with smiling faces, and parade floats sailed somewhere deep. Performers took turns as they danced for thanksgiving. And food lined on banana leaves, ready for a boodle fight.
Beach shores filled with families gathered to celebrate the last day of festivities. A group of college students swam on the sea, others played volleyball, and some were seated on the sand a couple of steps from the sparkling sea waves.
It was a joyous occasion, but not for everyone. A slim figure stood motionlessly, looking for the target. Layers of ice oddly appeared on the woman's feet, producing a different eerie feeling. But none of the mortals saw how long she watched them there. Then her lips curled up as she checked the clock of life and waited for the show to begin.
A young man not older than twenty-one held his guitar from a distance. He intently stared at the fluttering figure whose knees were soaked in the bluish seawater, clothed in a floral sundress. Her hair was as bright as the leaves of the coconut trees. Skin flawlessly kissed by the dazzling sun. Mesmerizing round eyes, a pointed nose, and a pair of pouty lips left him thirsty.
His heart shattered with the howling wind. Desires and longing failed to protect the darkness within. And only through death does he believes that they will be together for eternity.
"Ricardo, why don't you talk to her?" a feminine voice returned his rambling thoughts.
"I've tried many times, but she doesn't want to--" Ricardo replied
"We know it's hard for the both of you. We'll give you time," his closest companion promised
"I know--" he murmured as malicious intent flashed within his eyes
"No matter what happens, just don't force it--" his other friend advised, and so he nodded passively
His friends comforted him for a few months now.
But he knew that none of them could take his pain away. No one can ease the suffocation he sees whenever he closes his eyes and faces his secretive past filled with nightmares. And these people might never understand what he's been through after the breakup.
Suddenly he noticed that the woman he was eyeing walked in his direction. It feels as if the surrounding crowd ceased to exist and the background blurred with the motion. Yet no one saw the snow-colored smoke as it built a barrier separating the couple from everyone. The strumming of his fingers on the strings halted as the woman he loved sat beside him. His eyes mirrored pain and betrayal, extreme emotions stuck in his heart, screaming to be free.
Love was the only reason left in him, but the person he treasured the most was so unfeeling that she listened to her conscious kindness. A dutiful daughter gave up what they had shared in a relationship that lasted for a few years. But how can he forget things and do what she did?
"I cannot agree to what you want. It's hard for me too! My parents, they still need me," the young woman spoke, reaching for his frozen hand.
"Don't you love me?" he asked as he avoided her touch
"I do-- but I just can't run away and never look back."
"I need you too, your parents and mine will never agree to our marriage, but they also have other children. If we elope, no one can stop us!" he persuaded
"I'm sorry-- I just can't" her hand fell on her side as her head bowed down.
Then she slowly moved and attempted to stand, but he caught her hand, and his grip tightened.
"What are you doing?" she asked with a panicked expression, but none of the people around them noticed the abnormalities.
"You're leaving me! I won't let you-- I just can't let go" tears fell on his face.
"No, don't do this-- let go!" she tried to escape.
"You're staying, stay with me!" his strength doubled
"I said let go! Let go of me!"
"Never!"
With a pocket knife at hand, he stabbed her repeatedly.
"Why?" she asked, but she was too weak to hear his reply.
On the sixteenth stab, her body trembled as she slowly collapsed on the sand.
The woman finally wore a crimson-dyed white satin dress. When people observed the awful incident in broad daylight, they felt numb. It was a devastating tragedy culminated with the young man reclining on his lover's lap and killing himself with a heart-stopping plunge. Nobody considered moving and stopping them.
The rescuers were too late to respond. Ricardo's grip on the knife loosened as the last teardrop fell on Evangeline. Everything felt too surreal. Their college mates hurriedly called their family members to retell the bad news. And the festivities were put to an end as the nearest police station began to investigate the murder case.
Sometimes life was unfair to those who genuinely gave their love and effort. Ricardo's family has long declared war against Evangeline's family. People say they've loved each other because of solid hate, and others often comment how deep revenge should be.
It was unavoidable. Who the heart chooses is beyond a person's control. And many became victims of love's greed.
The untouchable figure in the crowd began to move forward. The lashes of the woman's eyes fluttered as she pitied the tragic scene. She described the woman as ignorant and the man as stupid. Why choose the afterlife?
"Do mortals believe in myths that dying for love means eternal accompaniment?"
She chuckled and walked a little closer.
"It's a pity, and the characters have wasted their lives for nothing. Those given with beauty and intelligence should never waste their time focusing on a kind sentiment. My great grandfather never created them to be puppets of fate."
"Humans are greedy of things they can never have, so they bring them to death."
"Without knowing that death is not the end of their cycling journey."
The rays of the sun shone on her. She wants to feel its warmth, but there's only an endless coldness in her body's constitution—a goddess born with the power of ice.