Hiding You Somewhere New

Chapter 1 - Letter From Thunder

Dear Love,

If I sit there, on top of a bench on a high mountain, everything might seem microscopic but the only prominent thing would be your heart that I often clean with my imaginary hands. I suppose the vision would be so clear that I would pick up a paper and pen and write about the intricate lines that beautify your heart. On another note, don't you just love how love has subsided with such deepness inside my bones? I can almost feel it growing above me and caressing my hair.
__________

It was winter yet again and her mind had drifted back into the storm that always pushed her bones down to the grave. She was seated across the small heater in her room, a cup of tea in her strong hands. For a long time, neither was there a movement in the lips nor was the cup re-positioned. Suddenly the door of the room slid open.

"It seems to me that after ages the time has come to a halt. I feel as if no one else can listen to this silence created by the static clock," She confessed to her husband as he sat beside her on the couch. "Is it just me or the world is tumbling down again?"

"Oh, my dear. It's just that time has been harsh on you, Yumna, nothing else."

"I wish it was the time I could blame. But I won't lie." Her hands slightly quivered with the over growing weakness inside her soul. "Time is innocent; it ticks, it counts and it moves on. There's no other purpose to it. However, life is another debatable matter."

Her husband closely looked at her; how the age was slowly embracing her into a deceiving hug, and bit by bit, it took a piece of her along with it. He slowly took the cup from her hands and placed it on the side table. Inching closer to her, he wrapped his arm around her shoulder and let her head fall over his bony chest.

"Things will mend in the end. Maybe life is giving you a chance this time. Whatever has been hurting you might finally come to a peaceful end," He said in a calm voice. It was the sky beyond the fall of curtains that seemed gloomier than the state of Yumna's heart. Perhaps, unexpected letters and bad weather had always had a deep connection. "I know that I don't have enough knowledge of what exactly happened but I know that I care for you. Your well-being means the world to me and if I have to do anything for you, I will do it. I might not be as young as I used to be but my passion and determination are as strong as before."

"You've always been so optimistic about everything. I wish I still had it in me."

"Don't underestimate yourself. I know you've lived a life no less than a warrior." He softly pressed her hand and waited for her to say something. In silence they both stared as the clouds outside started to clatter against each other and thundered in anticipation.

"You know I was very young, the first time when I made this theory that whenever the weather turned dark, it was a sign that somewhere, something amazing yet terrific was going to happen." She smiled in pain. "It's the second time in my life this theory has proven to be true."

Her husband contemplated whether to ask or not. "The first time? I'm trying to recall it."

"It was from another time. A time I would like to tell you about soon." She glanced at him, took a deep breath and began again, "I want you to give me two weeks. Before she comes, I want to tell you what I've kept to myself all these years."

He looked appalled but deep inside he was glad that finally, she was going to let in completely.

"But you have to promise. You'd not hate me for what I used to be."

Yumna looked down at their entwined fingers. "I'm a different woman now, one who doesn't live in the past."

In some part of his mind, a fearful thought lingered in that moment that he might not like what she would tell him but he conquered the pessimism.

"Past might try to mold the perception for a few seconds but the weight of present sincerity keeps it rigid as before."

So, he ignored his thoughts and gave her company in her solitude where they spoke spiritually through sighs and unshed tears. Even though Yumna was aware that her past was not as horrible as others', but she had always believed that a problem, big or small, hits with the same acceleration; the only difference is in the magnitude of outward disaster because─if it's not huge physically, you should measure the destruction deep inside the soul.

***

Yumna picked up the diary and grabbed a pen from the side drawer. The moment she held the pen in her hands, she felt something inside her eyes unlocking; her past life events were casting themselves into little butterflies that wished to break out through the thick glass of jar that had been imprisoning them for far too long. The best way to describe her life, her pain and her monsters was through man's only friend; a story.

So, almost two weeks before Aleeza's visit, she started scribbling down a world that had not only him but also her; the real her, the one she hadn't been like for ages. She wouldn't write in big words, she wouldn't promise of big twists but she would offer her generosity.

________

Author's Note: Hey guys! Okay, so this story's idea has been roaming around in my mind for quite some while now but I wasn't writing it down since I always fail at writing novels.

However, this time, I'm going to try to at least update with smaller chapters (as long as I write something, right?) . There will be errors because I don't get enough time these days to reread and edit stuff but I'll try to fix things up as soon as I have free time.

I hope your support motivates me and I can finish writing a novel for the first time in my life c:

Constructive criticism is welcome.