I was born alone and poor, grew up as poor in my dirty, worn out, ill-fitting shoes.
I met a woman who was just as poor and lonely. Lonely in this colorful world where loneliness lied beneath, only for the ones selected, her and I being one of them and fortunately enough, I was lucky to meet her.
Loneliness did fade but poverty didn’t. We had ambitions when we bought the 2 dollar ring for each of us on our wedding day, ambitions being overcoming the poverty. Those were all ambitions.
It’s been same ever since, we were used to getting up on a dirt-stained mattress and sleep every night on the same, spending hot summers without a fan or winters without heater.
Sweaty and hungry, I woke up first. She was sleeping beside, like a baby asleep and dreaming something beautiful.
I woke her up and as usual we were ready for a morning walk.
There was a forest to the west of slums, it was quite known among people as a forest in which once people get in, never return back. They had made fences surrounding the forest so that nobody could get in.
Me: Wanna go in there?
Rebecca: Where?
Me: The forest
Rebecca: You kidding ? What if we lose our way back?
Me: Do we have something else to lose for?
Rebecca: …….
Me: Come on
We got into the forest somehow. Outside it was covered by tall and green trees. Deeper the atmosphere was wholly different. It was all shady, cold and cloudy inside. There were tall and leafless trees.
We didn’t want to leave, Rebecca was equally hooked into exploring the forest.
Me: Are you scared?
Rebecca: No, why?
Me: It’s quite gloomy, isn’t it?
Rebecca: Yeah, totally different from outside
Me: Looks like a perfect place to have sex
Rebecca: (laughs)
Few moments onward, we saw some other people coming towards our way. We decided to hide so we got behind one of those huge trees. Being unnoticeable, we just peeked towards them. As they grew closer to us, we saw their faces.
They looked exactly like us but if were a bit older; they had good clothes and looked richer. I was scared, scared to even look towards Rebecca. It was not just my imagination or hallucination or whatever, even Rebecca saw the exact same thing.
They went past us and slowly faded into the forest, just within a glimpse like one of those airplanes fading into the clouds. I looked towards Rebecca and said “WHAT THE FUCK?”
I suggested that we should leave and started to run towards home but we were delivered back to the same tree. It didn’t take me long to realize we were stuck in that forest.
Me: Now what do we do now?
Rebecca: I don’t know John, I don’t fucking know
Me: I am sorry, it’s me who caused all of this shit.
Rebecca: But what do we do now?
Me: Move further, that’s all we can do.
And we got on our way.
The forest kept getting deeper and deeper as we went further.
We didn’t feel any hunger or any tiredness, we kept moving with ample energy left in our bones.
Few hours later
“JOHN”
“REBECCA”
“YOU CAN’T MOVE FURTHER”
“YOU ARE DYING”
“GO BACK”
These echoed voices rang in our ears sending shivers down our body.
“Rebecca, you heard that?” I said.
“Yeah and what the fuck was that?” She said.
We were both scared and wanted to return but had no way back so we kept moving.
Rebecca: You think we’ll die here?
Me: I don’t know
Rebecca: But what if we do?
I hugged her and said “We’ll not die alone.”
Those echoed voices didn’t stop ringing in our ears but we kept moving, desperate to find a way out.
Several days had passed since we got in yet we had the same amount of energy left in our bodies, just that the forest didn’t end. We didn’t know where we were, how far or near, just lost.
Suddenly, with a blink of an eye, we were in somewhere where there was no light. Heartbeats grew even faster and we were frightened to death.
Those voices kept echoing, even stronger in the void. Disturbed, scared and agitated we were moving.
After weeks of walk, we finally saw a ray of light. We were finally happy, we felt it was finally an end to that hellhole. We started running, and as we kept running, the ray seemed to come closer. And we jumped out, jumped out right through the ray.
Rebecca was right beside, held between my arms sleeping as I woke up. I was not sure if it was a dream or something else but I was happy. I opened the window to see morning rays fall right onto my face. I felt the content I had not felt in these 30 years of my life. A new love grew for Rebecca right onto me.
Me: Wake up, hey Rebecca
Rebecca: Let me sleep
Me: Sun’s out already
Rebecca: Yeah so? Does it bring any difference?
Me: Come on wake up honey, we’re going on a walk early today.
Rebecca: Yeah alright.