Ascension...

Two stories in one...! Folks, the post below has 2 stories, completely different ideas, by two different authors! Both written for the Ascension short story contest at Clarity of Night. 

Both have been inspired by this picture.

The first one by Rashi V:

Till Death Do Us Part

When I saw them, I knew where he had got his looks. He had his dad’s smile and his mother’s eyes. But the mischief was all his. That is what I had fallen in love with. He had asked me to marry him 3 days ago. And I was going to meet his parents for the first time today. I remember him getting down on one knee having only the waves and the stars to be witness of our love.

My heart fills with emotion as I remember us going hand in hand to the local Leopold café to celebrate. It was the same place I had met my English man. He was returning home after 7 years and wanted me to come along. “Be my bride in white,” he said. I remembered how he gazed into my eyes and brushed the hair off my face. I remember being jolted back to reality with loud shots. From behind a desk, I remember seeing a couple of gunmen a few feet away. His arms around me, I felt safe. As the mob disappeared, I remember saying my prayers. I remember seeing his ashen face, the shock and sorrow in his eyes. I remember seeing the blood at his chest.

As I step on the escalator, to receive his parents at Mumbai Airport, I remember the promise of making all his mine. Suddenly, I hear a whisper, his voice, “Not even till death do us apart.”

Soon, I’m going to England.

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The second one by me, Leo:

Living For Our Dream

We were a family, always together. Just the three of us, in the small single bedroom apartment I rented.

I worked in a software company that didn’t pay much, but had managed to save every penny for one thing. She had not spoken even by the age of five, but doctors said that with surgery, an expensive one, we would hear her speak soon. It was our dream, something we prayed for every day all these years. When I got home from work, she would jump into my arms and smile. Yet, she could only write her thoughts on a sheet of paper. I would hug her and go to the verandah and sit there, crying silently, daily.

When she was ten, I got a good job offer, complete with high pay and perks, but I had to go abroad the next day itself. Even though it meant going away from them, I knew it would help realize that dream. I accepted. When I told her, she cried. She wouldn’t leave my shoulder, and I didn’t want to let go either. She held my hand all the way to the airport. Trying not to cry, I extracted her hand and walked away. I turned back to see her silently waving at me. I started to cry. After looking at her for what seemed like an eternity, I stepped on the escalator.

Then I heard the words…

“Daddy, I love you. Don’t leave me.”

We are a family, still together.

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Hope you liked both...! Comments and criticism welcome!