Luke wrapped his arms around
himself and began to weep.
He wept hot
tears, wincing as the liquid trickled down to his face and stung
the blotches there.
He could still feel the boils and
blotches on his body. He was burning up. He was on fire.
And he allowed himself to feel it. The
pain feels good, he thought. Really good.
Gradually, he stopped screaming as his
body adapted to the pain.
After a while had gone by, he stopped
focusing on it. The Wind had told him to return to dreamland and
take the third spoonful, or else It would scatter Alyssa’s spirit
and she wouldn’t be able to get to Paradise.
He needed to fall asleep so that he
could make sure that Alyssa was OK.
* * * * *
Chapter 19
He dreamed that he was back in the
cornfield. The wind was blowing especially hard, knocking the
cornstalks over.
He looked up and that the moon was
gone, swallowed up by dark clouds.
Luke took a step forward.
“
Alyssa?” he called
out.
No answer.
He took another step forward, then
another, venturing deeper into the cornfield.
He heard rustling around him. He looked
around carefully but could not see anything.
He took a step forward, and froze when
the rustling started again.
He turned to his right, and saw
Alyssa’s face peeping out at him from among the
cornstalks.
Excited, he ran toward her, only to
find her disappearing as he approached. Instead of clasping her
tightly in his arms, he clasped empty space.
The empty space began to fill with
wind. Before he could process what was happening, he was lifted in
the air. He realized he was in the eye of a mini
hurricane.
“
Why did you come back?” a
voice asked. It was the voice of the Rain Drop, but Luke could not
see it.
“
Let Alyssa go!” Luke
demanded. He was now high above the cornfield. The cold Wind bit
him on the face and neck.
“
Not unless you finish the
bottle. Take the last spoonful,” the voice insisted.
The bottle emerged into the periphery
of Luke’s vision and flew straight into his hand. The bottle was
freezing cold.
“
Drink it first!” the voice
demanded.
“
Help!”
Luke looked to his right. It was
Alyssa. She was struggling in another mini hurricane next to him.
She cried out in pain, and Luke cringed.
“
Drink it or I’ll scatter
her spirit and she’ll never get to Paradise.”
Luke looked at the bottle in his hand.
He remembered how this had all started in the first place. Alyssa
had selflessly made him drink it, making him unlove her so that he
would not hurt anymore. He felt like a selfish jerk.
Now, it’s my turn to be selfless, he
thought. I’ll drink it so that they’ll let her go.
He raised the bottle high in the
air.
Then, he put it to his lips. The liquid
washed around in his mouth, and then he swallowed it. He was
surprised that it did not taste bitter, but sweet, like
nectar.
He let the empty bottle fall, clanking
onto the ground.
“
I’ve done it,” he yelled.
“Let my girl go!”
Both he and Alyssa dropped onto the
ground. He rushed over to her, embracing her. He had almost
forgotten how good she felt in his arms, how soft her body was. He
inhaled the vanilla and peach that was her signature
scents.
“
Luke,” exclaimed Alyssa.
“Be careful. They’re still around.”
In the near distance, Luke could see
something flying. It was diving down from the dark skies, and was
zooming straight for them.
“
What’s that?” he asked
Alyssa.
“
The Rain Drop. The head
reaper.”
“
What does he want? I’ve
drunk the whole damn bottle already.”
“
I think it wants to kill
you and then scatter my spirit.”
“
But it captured you before.
Why didn’t it just scatter your spirit?”
Alyssa held onto Luke’s body. “I think
it was greedy. It was using me as bait to lure you out.”
Without hesitation, he stepped in front
of Alyssa and shielded her with his arms wide open.
“
What are you doing?” Alyssa
cried, trying to step in front of him.
“
Protecting you,” replied
Luke, batting her back behind him. “Do you know what happens if I
die here in my dreams?”
“
No,” she said.
“
I guess we’ll find out
then,” he said.
As the shape dove toward him, Luke felt
a change in him. He felt a great peace, as though nothing could
faze him. The only time he had felt it was when he was in Qualicum
Beach with Alyssa.
As the rain drop got closer and closer,
the Wind harassed the two of both, nearly blowing Luke
over.
Resolutely, Luke squeezed his eyes
shut, and stood his ground, preparing for impact.
The shape rammed into him full force,
stunning him and knocking him over. He felt like he had been hit in
the stomach by a baseball at full speed.
He screamed, as the pain stung his body
all over.
He looked behind him, and saw Alyssa on
the ground with him, trying to shield him with her tiny
hands.
Then, everything went black.
* * * * *
Chapter 20
When Luke woke up, his room was a
beacon of sunlight. The late summer sun had pushed through the
clouds, dispersing them in a single stroke. The light landed softly
on his face.
Luke sat up in bed. He touched his
face, chest, arms and legs.
The blotches were completely gone. He
felt normal and as healthy as ever. Amazed, he hurried out of bed
and rushed into the bathroom. He stripped off his shirt and
pants.
It was confirmed. The blotches were
completely gone. He touched his forehead. The fever was gone
too.
He was all better.
He remembered his dream. The Wind was
after him, but at least he got to see Alyssa. But he had taken the
last spoonful of the unlove potion. Did that mean that he did not
love Alyssa anymore?
Realizing it, he felt weak, as though
his muscles were atrophied.
He took a look around his room, and was
surprised to see the picture of him and Alyssa at Qualicum Beach on
the nightstand. It was back and repaired.
He picked it up, savoring the feel of
the glass and the frame in his hands.
Somehow, he must have broken the spell.
That meant he still loved Alyssa, after all.
He gripped onto the picture, peering
into it. He looked at Alyssa’s smiling face, her windblown hair.
The love he felt for her was still there. He felt it in his heart
as soon as he looked at Alyssa’s beautiful face.
Relieved, he put down the picture and
looked around for the unlove potion. It was nowhere to be
seen.
Instead, he saw the cherry blossom,
their cherry blossom, sitting on the nightstand. He picked it up
and sniffed it. It smelled and looked as healthy as
ever.
Luke then stepped into the living room.
Alyssa’s three paintings of cherry blossoms had returned, all
lining one wall. It was the most beautiful sight he had ever
seen.
He returned to his room, and slid open
the balcony door. He felt the light of the sun on his face, all
warm and fuzzy.
He looked at the horizon. There were
the usual tall buildings. The traffic running below. The park in
the distance. And the sun.
The sun had finally come out, Luke
noted with relief.
That night, he had a dream. He was in
the sky, his feet dangling over a cloud. The sun was setting,
casting a soft cherry blossom pink over him.
“
Beautiful, isn’t
it?”
He turned his head and saw Alyssa there
beside him. She was in a white dress, and looked totally
serene.
“
Yeah,” he agreed,
nodding.
He leaned over and kissed her. When he
pulled back, he uttered a simple, “Hi.”
“
Hi,” she said,
smiling.
“
So what happened?” he
asked, pulling his arm around her.
“
They’re leaving us
alone.”
“
How?” Luke scratched his
head.
“
Because of you,” replied
his wife.
“
Of me,” he repeated, not
quite understanding.
She nodded. “You undid the effects of
the unlove potion. I think it was because you fully felt your pain.
And shielded me from them.”
“
Good. Does that mean you
get to stay?” He looked at her wistfully.
She shook her head, her shiny hair
bouncing back and forth. “No, silly. It means I can leave in peace,
knowing you’re OK.”
“
I’ll be OK.”
Then he put his head on her shoulder,
and almost whimpered. “I don’t want you to leave.”
“
Hey,” she whispered, her
breath on his neck. “At least you’ll still love me.”
“
At least I will,” he
agreed.
For a while, they just held each other,
staring at the shiny stars all around them.
Luke stirred after a while. “I just
want one ordinary day with you. Just one more ordinary day where we
lie in bed lazily, and go for walks whenever we feel like
it.”
“
We have that right now.
Just one last little while together.”
Luke looked at Alyssa, and understood.
This was their time together.
“
I want to go on that walk
now,” he said. “That walk you wanted to go on that night we had
that stupid fight.”
“
Let’s do it.”
She snapped a finger and a cloud
transport appeared under their feet. He helped her into it, and
together, they descended. Luke marveled at the wisps of cloud
floating alongside them. One wrapped itself around Luke’s hand,
then disappeared. The clouds looked like adorable little puppies.
But most of all, Luke marveled at how beautiful his wife looked in
the fading glow of the sun.
After a while, they landed on the
beach. The sun was already gone, replaced by the twinkling of the
stars and the dim glow of the moon.
It was cold and Alyssa shivered,
leaning into Luke. He gave her a little kiss on the neck and
wrapped his arms around her. He felt her hair caressing his
neck.
Neither one talked. The only sound was
the gentle sloshing of the waves.
Alyssa broke the silence. “When dawn
comes, I’ll have to leave. I can’t come back to see you
anymore.”
There was a pause.
“
What do we do?” Luke
finally asked.
There was another pause. Then, Alyssa
looked at him with conviction.
“
We continue to love each
other.”
He began to tremble, shaking violently
as he held onto his woman.
“
What’s wrong?” Alyssa
asked, trailing her fingers along his cheek.
“
You know what’s wrong. I’m
not going to see you anymore when I wake up.”
“
Let’s not worry about
that,” she said, her gentle voice his only solace. “Here we are
together.” She pointed to the beach and all around them. “Let’s
just be together. Let’s just relax here and enjoy the sound of the
waves together.”
Luke said nothing, and just continued
to hold onto her. He listened to the sound of the waves as it
rolled in, then out. He closed his eyes, and enjoyed the feel of
her skin against his, and smelled her familiar vanilla peach
fragrance.
Alyssa stirred and lifted her head.
“Will you promise me something?”
Luke nodded.
“
Would you take care of that
little boy, Drew? The one that lost both his parents in a car
accident?”
The little boy sounded vaguely familiar
to Luke.
“
I will,” he
said.
She held him closer. “I got you a
little present. I was going to give it to you for your birthday,
before our falling out. Look in the drawer of your
desk.”
Luke nodded, and murmured something
incomprehensible.
All too soon, he felt light on his
closed eyelids. He opened his eyes and saw the sun peeking out from
behind the clouds.
Alyssa looked up. Luke could see fear
in her eyes.
“
Goodbye, my love,” Alyssa
murmured, her voice barely audible to Luke.
She was starting to fade away,
dissolving all around him.
Luke grabbed onto Alyssa.
“No!” he yelled. “No!” He tightened his grip on her, but he knew he
could not hold onto something that had no substance.
Her body became transparent, and then
it started to disappear in little sparkles, melting directly into
him. As her spirit entered him, he felt neither fear nor pain, but
just plain serenity.