Fleeting Dreams



Your journey has come to an end... Your quest accomplished through daunting trails that tested your mettle and pushed your limits beyond your own expectations. You stand victoriously over your conquest laid out before you. The curtain has fallen on the final act as you stop for a brief moment to collect your thoughts and reflect upon them. The battles fought, the hardships endured, and the friends made along the way all flashing before you as your mind races with the surge of your ordeals. Suddenly the myriad of images shatters and your mind focuses on her like the last beacon of hope in a stormy night. Everything around you fades to black as if the stage were simply effaced and you see her standing before you.

She grabs you and pulls you close, burying herself into your embrace, fearful of whats to come. She holds you tightly as her chest quakes with each exhale, choking back an ocean of tears, but the dam is not impenetrable, and her resolve cracks, trickles of her sadness cascading down her cheeks. She glances into your eyes for an instant, that almost feels like an eternity slipping away. Events playing out in slow motion, nearly frozen in time like an ageless painting forever capturing the significance of the moment. Eyes wet with her love pooled under them, gently flowing like rain drops plummeting towards the cold earth below. You wish you could have this moment forever, but it is not meant to be. Fate's cruel hand intervenes separating you from the woman you've come to love as your pulled away. Powerless against it, you feel as if you are falling. Your outstretched hand slowly breaking contact with hers as you both struggle effortlessly to hold on to each other. You look deeply into her eyes as her fingers slip through yours. A thousand words shared without a single one spoken. As your grip falters so does her composure at the thought of losing you. She sinks to her knees and clutches her hands to her chest with hopelessness etched in her beautiful emerald green eyes. With tears that flow like silent rivers pouring down her features she mouths “I'll never forget you...”. You give her a look of affirmation to her words as if you've always known. The space between you grows exponentially, your gaze never breaks from her as the darkness takes her from your sight; engulfed in the inky solitude of distance until your left alone.

“Is... is it over?” You consider in your mind, nothing to comfort you but the sensation of falling and the dark emptiness that surrounds you. Time is meaningless, you close your eyes and give yourself over to the void.

Your eyes gently flicker open as the sunlight of the morning breaks through your window and illuminates your face in its radiance. Slowly you pull away the covers that embraced your body in warmth throughout the eventful night. The memories still painfully fresh, overwhelm your thoughts as you sit up and adjust your body to let your feet touch the cold wooden floor of your bedroom. Supporting your elbows on your knees and holding your head in your hands for a moment you release a long heartfelt sigh. You can still see her face clearly in your mind as if forever framed in a silhouette of sorrow. “Was it all just a dream?” You question yourself as you raise from your bedside. Something catches your attention as you glance at the glass top of your nightstand. You see her misty eyed face peering back at you bearing the faintest hint of a sad half-smile. “Don't forget us...” echoes softly across your ear with a cool haunting breeze as shes disappears into your own reflection. Your teeth sink into your lower lip softly as you choke back the emotional rush of the experience. Reassuring yourself that you'll carry her with you... always...