***
When Abigale awoke, it was late morning. Through the half opened wooden window, the rays of the sun streamed steadily into the room. The brightness of the light had her closing her eyes. Her head hurt. Turning away from the glare, she placed her feet carefully on the left side of the bed. A fit of dizziness assailed her. Oh gracious. She hoped that she was not coming down with whatever Josh had. This might also be as a result staying up almost the whole night with Josh. The good news was that when she left him early that morning, the fever was gone. He should be up and about in the next two days she thought. Placing a hand over her he
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Lydia was fighting vigorously to get a view of the body, but two of the men were trying to restrain her. Eventually they managed to drag her away from the crowd, and led her to one of the neighbors. She fell prostrate on one of the front stone steps, oblivious to the sympathetic stares and murmurs. Out of the corner of his eyes, Sean saw someone gently hold her up and place a bottle under her nose, maybe smelling salts. When she revived, one of the women forced a glass of water into her shaking hands. Squeezing his eyes shut, Sean took a deep shaky breath, then turned away from the sight and calmly addressed the crowd.‘
The following days passed in a blur. Sean did not go out into the fields, but had decided to stay close to home and work on the balance of the repairs around the house. It had been four days since the old man’s death. Bringo was laid to rest the day after his demise at the small cemetery located across the river. The whole community had shown up, except those who were too old to make the five mile walk. Four men were stationed at each corner of the plain, wooden coffin, leading the procession. Hymns were sung to and from the cemetery to pass the time. After the service, there was a wake at Bringo’s house. Sean did not go to the wake, but from what he heard, Lydia was distressed, trying to come to terms with what had happe
***Sean waited two more days before he decided to pay Lydia a visit. He was not certain what he would say to her, but he had walked with the rest of the money. At least this would help him in his opening remarks. In light of the recent turn of events, and his conscience, he thought that it was the right thing to do. A week ago he would have forgone the whole matter and refused to give the balance. But the tables had turned and unfortunately not in her favor. It was a little after nine o’clock he surmised, a beautiful night to be out. The moon was full and huge. It shone boldly in all its grandeur creating a canopy, offering a kind o
‘Lydia, this might not be the most opportune time for me to say this, but I would like to apologize again for my behavior and actions towards you the last time we were together. It was selfish, insensitive, and cruel. I was angry and was not thinking clearly. You made me so furious…you somehow managed to bring out the worst in me.’ Pulling away from him, she took her position clumsily on the couch, and pulled the end of her t-shirt to wipe her tear-stained cheeks. ‘I am also sorry for my conduct. It h
Before he could turn his back, she grabbed his hand and whispered, ‘Don’t go, please.’ Seeing that she was starting to cry again, he held out his hands and she went gratefully into his arms. He held her close and breathed in her scent. It felt good hugging her. She was always a hugger, the affectionate type. When was the last time that he had hugged her? It was the day before he left for school. It was so long ago, so much had changed. She smelled of peppermint and mothballs. He wondered where the t-shirt that she was wearing had been stored. Reluctantly, he pushed her away and gazed deeply into h
Humming to herself, Abigale strutted leisurely down the path towards the meadow. It was a beautiful day to be outdoors. She relished in Mother Nature and its intricacies, but most of all in this cloudless day. The sun was shining brightly but was not unbearable. With a straw basket and a knife in her hands, she stopped every few minutes to trim flowers and plants alike. She needed fresh bouquets to replace the ones at home. This time of year, the flowers were lovely with so many buoyant and lively colours. Bending, she meticulously cut the stem of a small purple flower and brought the petals
***‘How is the mathematics practice coming along?’The teenagers jumped at the voice, which resonated in the much too quiet room. Their heads were close together as they focused intently on something in one of the textbooks. On the desk that Sean had roughly patched up for her, were several sheets of papers and scraps used to practice the Mathematics sums. Sitting upright, Jerald scraped his chair away from Suzie’s, cleared his throat and answered, ‘It is going well, Mr. Montgomer
The days flew by and turned into weeks. The people of Larouse had settled to their normal routine after the glum. The children had returned to school and the house was unusually quiet during the day. It gave Sean and Abigale the opportunity to spend some time together and put some extra time in the fields. Although he would not admit it, Sean missed Jerald. The boy had really grown on him over the past weeks. He now made it his duty to ask about him whenever he saw Richard. It looked like his sentiment was returned because bright and early Saturday morning, Jerald came looking for him saying that he would work with him on Saturdays since he had no school on that day. Clasping the boy on the shoulder Sean had handed him a cup of tea.