(Alison)
A TEAR fell from Olive’s eyes while walking on the same road where she used to meet with the love of her life every night. She spent most of her happy days walking on that road. The two of them used to walk on that road every night to pass the time. And there, he would listen to all her complains and frustrations about work including her dreams about their future. Desmond always made sure that she would not go home dejected.
After hearing her story, he would give her a bear hug, would shower her butterfly kisses on her face, whisper encouraging words in her ear, and would look at her with those light brown eyes filled with love and understanding just for her.
Yes, he spoiled her a lot. And he… loved her a lot.
When the wind blew, Olive stopped walking for a moment. She shivered because of the cold, but she ignored it. Instead, she opened her hands and welcomed the falling snow. It was the first snow of the winter. But she could no longer feel that familiar thrill inside her chest. Maybe because Desmond used to be with her in every single occasion, in every event, no matter how big or small they were. And now that he was gone, it was hard for her to enjoy things alone.
When she was with Desmond, she used to follow his footsteps. She would make him walk first and then she would trace his every footsteps on the snow. That way, she would feel that they were one. But Olive was on her own now. This snow, this winter season, like most of the things in the world, will end, too. Just like her relationship with Desmond.
While she was in the middle of the road and looking at the sky, she felt like she could still hear Desmond’s gentle voice and his adorable laughter. Her tears started to fall as her lips curled into a smile. Olive knew that if she were to go back to the past, knowing full well how her relationship ended with Desmond, she would still choose to be with him all over again. Because he was worth the heartbreak and the tears.
“I love you so, Olive.” She remembered him say. He used to whisper those words to her night after night.
“I love you, too, Alexandros,” she whispered. And I miss you very much. You will always be missed. You will always be… inside me.”
After writing the words “The End”, I froze when I read the last line of the novel. My chest heaved out of mixed emotions when I realized that I wrote a different name there. I quickly deleted it and replaced it with ‘Desmond’. After saving the file in the USB, I turned off my laptop.
I leaned on the chair out of exhaustion. I’ve been feeling too worn-out these days that I could not manage to write something else. There were so many things that I needed to think about these past few days that I did not have enough time to think about another plot.
And so I wrote my life story instead. Although I changed the ending of the story.
Olive was me. All the things she experienced in the story were my own experiences. But Desmond, on the other hand, was so much better than the man I used to love. Besides, I still believe that Olive and Desmond’s story was still better than mine because their love for each other remained solid until the end. The male character never cheated on her. He would never hurt Olive intentionally. He would never leave her hanging unlike what Alexandros did to me.
After a few minutes, I heard someone knocked on the door. Not long after and the door opened. As expected, Greta came in. She was my stepdad’s niece. She really did come early in the morning, just as she told me last night. She did not even allow me to breathe and rest for a moment. I haven’t slept and ate properly just so I could finish my manuscript as soon as possible.
“I’ve allowed you to stop writing for a few days because you said your daughter got sick. But now, if you will tell me that you’re still not finished, then that’s too much. You’re not being fair. I won’t let it slide this time, Alison.”
I can’t believe I’m the one being unfair in her eyes. But I was in no position to talk back. And after all that I had gone through; I doubt if I would ever be given a chance to talk back.
“I just finished writing it. I could just send you the file via email. You didn’t have to come here.”
“You’re done? That’s good. I needed to come here to make sure.” Greta’s face brightened up. She sweetly smiled as she rushed towards me with her hand open.
I handed her the USB. “I wasn’t able to write the sequel that you wanted me to write. I wrote a different story instead. It has a different ending, but-“
“What do you mean?” Greta’s brows furrowed. She lifted the USB she was holding. “Are you saying that the manuscript here doesn’t have a happy ending?”
I looked away. “Some stories don’t need to have a happy ending to be beautiful, Greta. Besides, some stories don’t really have a happy ending.”
Even if I can’t see Greta’s reaction, I knew her enough to know that she was sneering right now.
“Oh. Just like your own story?” When I turned to her, I caught her clicking her tongue. “But then again, what do you know about happy endings anyway? Your groom ran away on your wedding day. I’m actually surprise that you’re still able to write and describe something that you had never experienced. That is what you could really call ‘talent.’”
Greta grinned before she turned her back on me. “Anyway, just make sure that this story would be approved. I don’t want to disappoint my Editor. Remember, your family expenses depends on this.”