The Voice of Heart

11| Waltz

Wilhelm lingered in the backyard garden. He was enjoying the warm sunshine kissing his face. It was the only place where a cherry tree and sweet-scented lilies grew luxuriantly. It all seemed like a little paradise to a simple soldier like him, who had been sent off to the war where he saw the atrocity for quite a long time. He was tired of the war scenes. He longed for peace. He no longer cared about his country's interest in world domination and the notion of racial superiority that Hitler delivered constantly in his speech. He was just a human being who craved peace and happiness, just like everyone else. "Because all mankind deserves this," he thought.

He turned his head to the house. He saw two figures through the window that gave on to the backyard. It was Adeline and Jeanne conversing in the dining room. Shortly thereafter, they went away. He headed back home, passed through the dining room and the kitchen. As he walked toward the front door, he saw Jeanne stepping out of the house. At this moment, it was just Adeline and him in the house. He was looking for her and then found her in the sitting room where she was reading a book.

"Your garden is beautiful. It reminds me of my house," Wilhelm said.

"You must be homesick," she stopped reading, put back the book onto a bookshelf and then stood by the window.

He smiled.

Indeed, he missed his house and his family in Germany but he was also happy to live alongside her in this house. Not that he was happy to take over her house as a conqueror but the opportunity to meet her was a blessing for him. If it was not the war, he would have never met her. "We're destined to meet in wartime as the conqueror and the conquered. It was such a shame!" he thought to himself.

He looked closely at a walnut cabinet that was completed with three partitioned shelves displaying a vinyl collection. Above it, a wine red gramophone stood between a white ceramic table lamp decorated with coral-style carving and a black wooden framed photograph that showed Adeline, Louis, and Jeanne celebrating New Year's Day in 1939. The vinyl collection caught his attention; he found a good subject to talk about. He was elated whenever he had a reason to make her speak so he could hear her voice.

He knelt down, browsing the vinyl collection in the walnut cabinet. "You like listening to songs from various languages. French, English, German and . . . I found classical music here. It's Canon in D Major, one of Pachelbel's finest works. He's my favorite composer."

"Words can't describe how magnificent this piece is."

"Yes, it's indescribable," he said and then continued to browse another vinyl collection again, shifting it sideways one after another. His face lit up when he found Waltz music. "Les Patineurs by Émile Waldteufel. He's also my favorite French composer. I didn't know you like waltz."

"I took a waltz class two years ago. I really adore this dance. The flowing rhythm of the waltz makes it easy to float across the dance floor and move in elegant spins. I always feel like I am at a royal ball with all of the couples floating, swirling and circling the dance floor," she paused for a moment and then asked, "Can you waltz?"

"I can waltz like a pro," he smiled. "It's been a long time since I waltz. Oh . . . I miss its music when I sway to its rise-and-fall rhythm," he looked nostalgically toward the gramophone.

"If you want, you can play it on my gramophone."

"Thank you for your kindness." He chose Les Patineurs by Émile Waldteufel. He took it out of the album sleeve, placed it on the platter of the gramophone and the music played. He approached her with a hand extended. "Would you like to dance with me?"

She was dazed, feeling torn between the desire to dance with him because he'd been kind to her and the fear of getting a bad reputation because he was the enemy. After a while, she accepted his invitation. She took his hand and he guided her to the wide space. They stood face to face. He placed his hand in the small of her back and she drew a great, quivering breath.

The sound of music filled the air. They began to dance, moving gracefully across the floor. Their bodies were in a perfect synchronization as they twirled and swirled in a beautiful harmony. They felt their heart fill up with happiness. Everything around them seemed to fade away as if it was just the two of them in this world. They looked and smiled at each other. There was softness to their gaze that they could feel deep in their souls. They were in love with each other. Only at this moment, they could feel their souls were drowned to one another. They wished they could freeze time so this moment would last forever. They fell in step, letting the rhythm control their movements. The musical notes grew more intense in a single chord, leading to the concluding section. Simultaneously, the music and the dance came to an end in a dramatic way.

They stood close, gazing deeply into each other's eyes.

"Thank you for spending time with me. I'll never forget this moment," he said.

"So will I."