Peter was petrified. What would happen if he comes up?
He could almost taste the fear in his tongue. He strained his ears. He could
hear Jean’s voice and a deep male voice conversing. The man did not seem
agitated, which was a good sign. But he could sense the fear in Jean’s voice
and he also knew that the fear was for him. He heard them move around a bit.
Soon the formalities and customary exchanges ended. Jean made some comment
about Joyce being away all the while and his remarks grew more and more curt
and irritated. Peter realized from his reactions that Joyce was slightly drunk.
Seconds turned into minutes as Peter waited for Jean to come up. After almost
an hour he finally heard the final burst of abuse and heavy steps storming off.
But thankfully Joyce didn't come up. Apparently his room was somewhere
downstairs and he stayed there. Sometime later, the door of Jean’s room opened
and she appeared. Peter breathed a sigh of relief.
“Tomorrow morning before Joyce wakes up, I’ll take you
to the rail station. A train leaves for the city everyday and you have to be on
it if you want to live”, Jean whispered in an uneven voice. Peter didn't know
what to say. He was recovering well but he had not considered the possibility
of going away so early. He stared at her. There were tear tracks on her cheeks.
He knew that with Joyce back he couldn't risk staying with her; he also knew
that he did not have the slightest intention of leaving her.
The next morning was like a blur of colors of the town
and whispers passed between them. Peter and Jean stole out of the house very
early. The streets were empty so they did not have any trouble on the way and
reached the station even before they had anticipated. The train was waiting at
the platform.
She helped him get onto the train. “Take care of
yourself”, she said, her voice cracking. Peter could not bring himself to leave
without her. He felt like he was leaving a part of himself with her and he was
terrified that he would never get it back.
“Come with me. You don't have to stay here!” he
pleaded.
“He’s my family Peter” she said.
“But he’s not worth it! He doesn't care what becomes of
you and you know it!” Peter could feel a hint of anger and desperation in his
voice.
“I know. But I have to believe that someday he’ll
realize what he was done and that day, he'll need me to be there for him.”
Peter felt a tear slide down his cheek. Jean’s eyes were tearful but her face, resolute.
“I’ll come back for you when this is over”, he said.
Jean smiled, “I’ll wait.”
The train blew a whistle and sluggishly started moving
forward. He waved at Jean,eyes fixated on her face for as long as she could be
seen. She was smiling and waving back. As the train left the station, the black
pillar at the perimeter hid her from view. Then Peter finally turned his head
and looked ahead, to the approaching horizon. The world out there was fast
moving toward him. It held an uncertain future. Peter knew that this time
around, he would make it. Jean had gifted him his future and he would make sure
that the future would be worthy of the two of them. He would succeed; for
himself and Jean.
The
End
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