Ella a lizard. The idea is enough to make you laugh, a bright, booming sound that briefly fills the empty house with light. Once upon a time this house was lousy with laughter; you could hear it echoing in the walls, feel it in the wood beneath your feet. Once upon a time this place was beautiful and warm.
The laughter - the warmth - fades away quickly, suffocated by sorrow, but the ghost of a smile remains. "Nah, not a lizard. El was... was my wife. She died." The smile vanishes, and on your face it's clear: you don't want to talk about it.
Your almond eyes fall shut a moment, pressing back the memories, the light. You don't talk about El very often, which is perhaps a selfish thing- she deserves to be remembered. To be celebrated. You're just too weak to be the one to do it.
But for him? Maybe you can be strong. The silence stretches a moment longer, and you take a shuddering breath. "Anyway. We moved in. Slept on the floor down here for weeks, an' would wake up with crabs in our hair. The roof fell in on the second week. A storm hit the third and tore down a wall. Felt fuckin' impossible, an' then one day... It was done."
It had felt so incredible, standing in their finished home, your arm around your young wife's waist, her head on your shoulder. You were twenty years old, and you felt fucking invincible.
It's fourteen years later, and you just feel tired.
The laughter - the warmth - fades away quickly, suffocated by sorrow, but the ghost of a smile remains. "Nah, not a lizard. El was... was my wife. She died." The smile vanishes, and on your face it's clear: you don't want to talk about it.
Your almond eyes fall shut a moment, pressing back the memories, the light. You don't talk about El very often, which is perhaps a selfish thing- she deserves to be remembered. To be celebrated. You're just too weak to be the one to do it.
But for him? Maybe you can be strong. The silence stretches a moment longer, and you take a shuddering breath. "Anyway. We moved in. Slept on the floor down here for weeks, an' would wake up with crabs in our hair. The roof fell in on the second week. A storm hit the third and tore down a wall. Felt fuckin' impossible, an' then one day... It was done."
It had felt so incredible, standing in their finished home, your arm around your young wife's waist, her head on your shoulder. You were twenty years old, and you felt fucking invincible.
It's fourteen years later, and you just feel tired.
and in the sea that's painted black
creatures lurk below the deckbut you're my king and i'm your lionheart
creatures lurk below the deckbut you're my king and i'm your lionheart
