— a twice-broken heart —
March 25th, 2019
EVERY MORNING SINCE she left him standing by that tree over six months ago, Giselle woke up wondering if Will felt the same aching pain in the center of his chest.
In a very vengeful way, she hoped that he did. Hoped that he felt the same hurt she did—the same one that people promised went away with time but never actually did. Because a broken heart never heals properly when you can't be with the love of your life.
That's what she had come to refer to Will as. The love of her life. It didn't matter if she had barely lived, she knew without a doubt that she could never love any other man the same way she loved Will.
That's why everything hurt so bad, and had kept hurting even after six months of being away from him.
Throughout the months apart, she had learned a lot. Mainly that a heartache was a powerful thing. It had the power to leach any happiness out of a situation in the blink of an eye, like how it reduced Christmas to a sad holiday that she couldn't spend with Will and turned the act of dancing into something she avoided at all costs because it reminded her of him.
Giselle also learned that the best way to combat heartache was by distracting herself. She spent nearly all of her time working at the florist shop, and picked up the hobby of gardening and tending to Hester's flowerbeds.
Ajay came over often. His presence also helped to keep her distracted. He had been the first person she told about that night at the party. He'd been just as mad at Will as she was, and had been there to console and comfort Giselle as she cried until her eyes were swollen.
She told Selene everything a week later when the woman showed up at the house in the middle of the night—dead tired with her hair up in pin curls.
Selene had been shocked when she heard about the fight, Will having never said or done anything to reveal what had transpired.
Hearing that had hurt Giselle a lot. She had hoped he was distraught over everything. Not eating or sleeping or shaving distraught.
All Selene could say was that he seemed to add a little more brandy to his evening nightcap than usual, but that did little to comfort Giselle.
Selene was called back rather frequently, which felt almost like a slap to the face for Giselle, who woke up each day anticipating that she would be called back, only to go to sleep with nothing but a broken heart in her chest.
She kept her suitcase nearby at all times, adding to it a little more each day. So far, it was filled with Christmas presents, Albert's and Frank's and—most recently—Marguerite's birthday presents, and other little trinkets she had picked up and wanted to give to the kids.
"Giselle, Ajay's here!" she heard Selene yell from downstairs, ripping her from her thoughts. Selene had been back for a little over a month, perhaps the longest stay she had had over the past several months.
Giselle sprung up from the chair at her vanity, having spent time putting on a bit of makeup to cover up her dark circles.
Ajay and Selene were chatting on the couch when she entered the sitting room, Ajay wearing athletic clothes and his running shoes. Giselle faltered.
"Oh, tell me you're not going to make me go running again," she whined.
Ajay laughed, standing up to give her a quick hug. "I was hoping you'd be up to it, but you don't sound like you are, do you?"
"Nope," she told him honestly.
"Well, we could go to the cinema and see something," Ajay suggested. "I could call Yvonne and have her come as well."
Giselle shook her head, though she wouldn't mind seeing Yvonne Morrison—Ajay's longtime friend and girlfriend of four months. She was lovely girl, and seemed like a better match for him than Giselle ever could've been.
At least, that was what Giselle thought because Yvonne was sweet, caring, and didn't happen to be in love with another man she could only see through the use of her magical time-traveling tree.
So, yeah, Yvonne was great.
"I don't know, Ajay, I was kind of hoping for a lazy day."
Ajay groaned, plopping down onto the couch. "But you always want a lazy day."
"I'm a lazy girl," Giselle said, sitting down next to him.
"I know something you two could do," Selene announced. "You can put together Mum's new walker. It came in the mail earlier and I haven't got a chance to assemble it."
"I'll have to pass," Ajay said. "I'm not much good as building things."
Giselle rolled her eyes. "We'll do it," she said, earning a look from Ajay.
"Great!" Selene smiled, standing up. "I've got to go pick up Mum and Mrs. Jo from Mrs. Sophie's. Do either of you want me to pick up something for lunch?"
Ajay and Giselle shared a look before Giselle shook her head 'no.' Selene left soon after, making sure to show them were Hester's unassembled walker box was before she departed.
Giselle opened the box with a box cutter, dumping the pieces and instructions out onto the floor.
"Blimey, you chose this over going to the cinema?" Ajay questioned, eyeing the pile of metal screws and pieces in horror. "I'll never understand you." He flopped over on the couch.
"Hey, I'm doing a nice thing, here." Giselle moved to the floor, picking up the instruction pamphlet.
"Yeah, whatever." A beat of silence passed before he spoke again. "How has your day been? Did you sleep well?"
She shrugged. "It's been alright, and I slept well enough."
"No nightmares of he-who-shall-not-be-named?"
"Voldemort? No, I can't say that I had any dreams of him," Giselle smirked.
Ajay gave her a droll look. "You know who I mean."
"Yeah, I do, and I don't want to talk about it."
Ajay raised his hands in surrender. "Alright. No more talk of Voldemort, got it."
"Is that what we're calling him now?" Giselle raised an eyebrow, getting up to go find a screwdriver.
"Might as well. You seem to shut down every time I mention his name."
"I do not," Giselle protested, opening Hester's junk door and rifling through it. When she didn't find it, she shut the drawer and walked back to the living room. "If you were a mean old lady named Hester, where would you put a screwdr—"
Something in her chest shifted, her head snapping towards the living room window, in direction of the tree.
"What is it?" Ajay asked, sitting up. By the strange twinge to his voice, she could already tell he had an idea of what she was feeling. "Is it the tree?"
She nodded silently. "Yeah, I think it is."
"Well, go!" he urged, standing up and pushing her her towards the back door.
Giselle shook her head, resisting him. "I'm kinda of scared, Ajay," she said, looking up at him with worried eyes. "What if he's moved on? Or what if he wants nothing to do with me? Maybe he's lost all feelings for me like he wanted to . . ."
Ajay frowned, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Don't think like that. I doubt Will would ever lose his feelings for you, and he doesn't seem like the type to go off and date someone. You know how busy he is all the time." Giselle nodded, looking down at the floor. "I can come with you," he offered. "I haven't seen them in a while, and it would be no trouble for me since I can leave when I please."
"Ajay, you don't have to do that."
"I want to," he told her. "Really, I do."
She looked at him for a while, debating whether she should accept his offer. Having a friend with her might help.
"Okay," she ended up telling him, her body eager to move. "Let's go get changed. I think I still have some of your old clothes in my suitcase. But we need to hurry."
She rushed upstairs to grab her luggage, taking entirely too long to sift through the contents of it and retrieve their clothes. As soon as she handed Ajay his clothes, she shot into her en-suite to change, her legs and arms shaky in a mix of anxiety and excitement.
She quickly slipped on her white day dress with blue cornflowers spotting the fabric, securing it with a matching blue belt and stuffing her feet into her white heels.
She exited the room when she was done, meeting Ajay by the back door where he was rummaging through her bag.
"What are you looking for?" she asked him.
He looks up at her, smiling. "Well don't you look like a 1938 woman," he complimented. "Though," he reached out and playfully tugged a straight piece of her hair, "I don't remember seeing hair like this back in the day."
She rolled her eyes. "Technically, it's 1939 there now, and," she caught her reflection in the mirror on the wall, frowning at her straight locks, "this will just have to do. I doubt we'll be seeing anyone outside of the family, anyways."
"I hope that's the case," he said, standing up. "I don't have any appropriate shoes, unless you think these work with my outfit."
Her eyes surveyed his outfit, quickly realizing that his bright, white Nike running shoes did not, in fact, go with his light gray suit or the decade they would be traveling to.
"It'll be fine." Giselle waved a hand.
Ajay bent down and scooped up the bag, then held out an arm to her. "Are you ready, milady."
She took his arm, matching his joking tone. "Let's get a move on, my lord."
• — • — •
The first thing Giselle heard when she arrived in 1939 was the sound of music floating through the air. The second thing was girlish giggling from not too far away.
She sat up, blinking several times until she had clear vision. Her eyes caught at two figures a few yards away.
A boy in a suit and a girl in a dress and flowered hat leaned up against a tree, the girl laughing and blushing as the boy whispered something to her.
"Bloody hell," Ajay groaned next to Giselle, rubbing his temples as he sat up. "Why do I always get the worst headache when this happens?"
She ignored him, her eyes fixed on the couple. Something about the way the boy moved seemed familiar. It wasn't until he turned his head and she got a glimpse of his side profile did she realize who he was.
"Frankie!" she yelled out, shooting up from her spot a little too fast. She had to lean back against the tree for her head to stop spinning before she was able to start walking towards him.
He turned in her direction, eyes going wide when he took her in. She could see that he was a lot taller than he had been when she had last seen him, looking more like he was fifteen than thirteen.
His hair had darkened, too, and was parted and slicked back. It startled her how much he looked like Will, especially in the dark blue day suit he wore.
"Ellie! You're back!" he exclaimed, meeting her halfway and enveloping her in a hug. He was almost an inch taller than her then, she noted.
She returned his hug, watching over his shoulder as the blonde girl with the flowered hat shyly approached.
"Frankie, are you going to introduce me to your friend?" Giselle asked.
He pulled back suddenly as if remembering the propriety of the era. "Oh, yes, forgive me. Giselle Saunders, this is my friend Sophie Henderson. Sophie, this is Giselle, the family friend I've always told you about."
Giselle briefly froze, staring at the girl in a new light. It was Sophie. Hester's friend. She was sure of it. The dark eyes, heart-shaped face, button nose, it all looked the same no matter what year it was.
Giselle momentarily shook off her surprise, extending a hand to the girl. "It's—it's lovely to meet you," she told her.
"It's lovely to meet you as well," Sophie said sweetly. "I've heard a lot about you."
"Oi! Way to run off and leave me!" Giselle heard Ajay exclaim from behind her. He was at her side moments later, suitcase in hand. "Hey, Frankie," he greeted with a nod. "And Frankie's friend."
"You're here too?" Frank asked, looking back to Giselle with questioning eyes.
"Yeah, he wanted to swing by and say hello," she informed him.
"Well you chose an interesting time to do so," Frank murmured to himself.
"Why's that?" Ajay asked.
"Marguerite is celebrating her birthday. Half the town is here."
"'Half the town?'" Giselle repeated, slapping a palm to her forehead. "Of course this would happen. I'm gonna stick out like a sore thumb with my hair!"
"Don't fret," Frank said, "we can sneak you into the house undetected so that you are able to fix your hair. Oh, and you should leave your time-traveling luggage here to keep any eyes off of you."
Giselle's eyes darted to Sophie, who looked calm despite definitely having heard him say 'time-traveling luggage.' "Frankie," Giselle hissed, her eyes going from him to Sophie.
"Oh," he blushed suddenly, "um, she already knows," he said sheepishly. Giselle went bug-eyed. "I told her years ago."
Sophie nodded. "I didn't believe him at first, but then he showed me the magic radio when I was over one day," Sophie said. "But don't worry, I promise to keep your secret. And," she swiftly removed her hat, handing it over to Giselle. "Use this to hide your hair."
It was pink and didn't match Giselle's outfit, but she was grateful for it regardless. She took the hat and stuck it onto her head, mulling over the notion that future Sophie might have known who she was all along.
"Um, thank you, Sophie," she said to the girl, her head feeling like it might split open. "Ajay, go ahead and hide the suitcase somewhere," she called over her shoulder before looking back to Frank. "If your brother finds out you told her . . ."
"I know," Frank said. "Just, please don't tell him—about that or about me being in the forest. He has a strict rule that children are to stay away from the forest."
"I won't tell him," she promised. "Now, let's get going."
They walked as a group towards the house, the sound of swing music getting louder the closer they got.
"I think I might be going insane," Ajay whispered to her as they walked, "but I swear, that girl reminds me a lot of Sophie Eaton."
"You're not going insane," Giselle assured him. "I really think it is her."
"Blimey," he breathed out. "Time travel is wicked. A little scary, but wicked." He eyed the younger Sophie as she walked ahead of him with Frank. "You think she remembers us from this day?"
"I don't know," Giselle shrugged.
"Marguerite is going to be so happy when she sees you," Frank mentioned as they broke through the tree line and headed towards the side door.
Giselle started to say something back, but stopped when she caught sight of the party several yards away at the back of the manor. Sure enough, Frank wasn't exaggerating when he said that half the town was there.
There were people everywhere. Men in nice suits. Ladies in flowy dresses and flowered hats that put Giselle's outfit to shame. Tables had been put out with vases of pink carnations as the centerpieces. Servers weaved around bodies and furniture carrying trays of hors d'oeuvres. It brought her back to the night of the party, making her stomach knot up.
She frowned, feeling slightly underdressed and very uncomfortable as she took in more of the lively party.
A band played off to the side, a few couples dancing in fairly close to Giselle and her group on a patch of grass that served as a dance floor.
Her eyes moved on to look at something else, but got caught when she saw Will dancing with a blonde woman. And he looked happy, a goofy grin on his face as he swung the woman around.
She froze in place as her breath got violently ripped from her lungs, her heart breaking all over again.
Call me back, you stupid tree! Call me back right now!
"Oh, Giselle," Ajay said to her, stepping in front of her to shield her view of the happy couple. "Come on, let's get you inside." She let him pull her away, happy to be taken anywhere that didn't have a good view of Will and his dance partner. "It's okay, let's just get you some water and we can talk about this, alright?"
She didn't say anything, her eyes cast to the ground as the grass became floorboards. She vaguely realized that they were walking down the hallway and towards her room when a feminine gasp stopped them in their tracks.
Ajay turned around first. "Marguerite," he said in surprise. "Uh, happy birthday!"
Giselle turned around next, spotting Marguerite dressed in a beautiful pink and orange chiffon dress with her dark hair perfectly-curled and tucked into a stylish, white hat.
The birthday girl jumped up in excitement before bounding over to them and wrapping her arms around their necks in a hug. "I'm so glad you two made it!" She pulled back, looking them over. "Heavens, it's been ages! How have you been? Do any of the others know you're here?"
"Frankie, but we left him outside with his girl," Ajay answered, his eyes sweeping to Giselle. "The others haven't seen us, but we sure saw Will. "
Marguerite's gaze followed his to Giselle, her eyes softening. "He was with Gertie, wasn't he?"
"Blonde? Really pretty?" Giselle questioned. She nodded sadly. "Then, yep, he sure was." She tried to keep a brave face, but even that was hard to do with a twice-broken heart.
"Oh, darling," Marguerite said, drawing her friend into another hug. "I'm so sorry you had to see that."
"How long?" Giselle croaked out.
She felt Marguerite's chest deflate against her, breathing out a sigh. "He's been seeing her for a few weeks now—but it's nothing serious," she rushed to say. "He says that he's happy, and tries to act like he is, but I can tell it's not genuine. Not like it was with you."
Giselle shook her head, drawing back from the hug. "Don't give me hope," she told her, her eyes dropping back to the floorboards. "Enjoy your party, I'm going to stay in my room and try to rest." She began to turn away, but Marguerite's lace-gloved hand shot out to stop her.
"No! You can't do that! That little trollop Gertie will win!" she exclaimed. "You need to knock some sense into Will!" Giselle started to shake her head, but Ajay chimed in.
"She's right. Mess with his head some," he suggested. "He deserves it after rejecting you."
Marguerite nodded in agreement. "Yes! You need to go out there and show Will what he's missing!"
Giselle picked apart their words, reviewing over them in her head, the idea becoming more enticing the longer it simmered. But it got stopped. "But I'm not as dressed up as everyone else," she said sadly, "and my hair isn't right."
Marguerite grabbed her upper arm, pulling her towards her room. "Then it is a very good thing I have tons of dresses and that curling iron you gave me! We'll make you look gorgeous, Ellie, just you wait."
• • • • • • • • • • •
Words: 3,329.
Question: What is your favorite dog breed? Or if you prefer cats, what is your favorite cat breed?
I'm a dog person and I love weenie dogs. I just think they look really funny and they always have a lot of personality.
They're also pretty loyal. My male weenie dog has always been very loyal to us and is very protective whereas my female one is very loyal to whatever hand is feeding her. So, yeah, loyal.
PLEASE VOTE AND COMMENT TO MAKE ME SMILE!!!