No one moves at first. No one can believe their eyes. A thick,
black pool of blood is forming slowly around his cracked skull; a small
firework shard rests inside it. Next to him, a young woman screaming, her knees
on the floor, her fingers pushing his chest as if trying to tear it apart. Her
cry pierces through the night, stilling the hearts of the ones nearby. Sirens
can be heard in the distance, mixed with the music of marching bands. The
people on the island will know, soon enough. The rest will find out in two days
time, as there won’t be any newscast in the morning. Nobody works in Corfu on
an Easter Sunday.
c’
He better be there. I won’t forgive him if he isn’t there. Why am
I here? What am I hoping for, after all this time? For a happy ending? Will he
even recognize me? Will I recognize him? Dammit, of course I will, don’t be
stupid. I’m sure he’ll be late. Like half an hour late, he won’t even catch the
fireworks. I’m sure he miscalculated, like he always does. He probably thought
there wouldn’t be too much traffic, or that he would park his car nearby or
something. As if that has ever worked. Always optimistic. Had to love him for
that. Maybe he forgot all about it. Maybe he’s with some girl at the other end
of the world right now. Well, if he is, I’ll find him and break his face, like
he broke his promise. Where is he? This is our spot, there’s people with
candles everywhere, the fireworks have started, it’s officially Easter, as far
as I can tell. Where is he?
b’
Οh, shit. The fireworks started. I hope I’m not too late. Please
be there. Shit, shit, shit. I need to park somewhere. Why are there so many
people this year? And my flight was delayed, it’s like the universe is trying
to keep me away. Like that Coelho saying, but, like, the opposite. Shit, fuck
this, I don’t care. I’ll just leave the car here, let them take it, let the
bands walk over it, I don’t care. I need to get there now. I hope she came, I
hope she’s there now. Of course she’s there, of course I stood her up, as
always. Five years, not a single thing changed. Not a thing. For me, at least.
Please, get out of the way people, yes, thank you. Shit, I can’t run to save my
life. I should’ve hit the gym, like my dad used to always say. Well, too late
now. Please be there. Please be there. I’m coming.
a’
It’s a beautiful afternoon at the city of Corfu. They are sitting
at a coffee place on the central street, a place that’s been there since they
were both children. The sun has almost set behind her, the wind is soft and
warm, swallows fly all around them in an intricate display of absolute freedom.
He can’t take his eyes off her, trying to carve her image inside his mind.
He’ll be needing it, for the days to come.
“Did you know that hundreds of people are injured each year by fireworks?”
he says. “There are cases where they explode imperfectly, or end up flying
sideways, all sorts of gruesome stories about people’s hands flying off and
houses burning down.”
“Don’t be silly, love, they’re just pretty. Why would you say all
that? Have you ever heard of someone being hurt by a firework? I think you
spend too much time on the internet.”
“You understand, I hope, that our own experiences aren’t the whole
truth, right? There are more things happening out there.”
“I’m much more worried about the things happening in here”
she says, pushing her finger to the side of his head.
“Hah, fair enough. Why were we talking about fireworks anyway?”
“Because I like them, and because goodbyes suck.”
“So, that’s gonna be our meeting point?”
“If you remember to come.”
“How could I ever forget.”
“You forget things all the time. I wonder how you even remembered
to apply for that Master’s program.”
“Well, if I didn’t, I would have regretted it for the rest of my
life, you know that.”
“I know, love. I’m glad you did. Your beautiful mind would rot in
this place. I’m just sad I can’t come with you.”
“Sure you can! Just give me some time to set some things up, and
then you can come and we’ll be great!”
“And what will I do there? You think I’ll find a job there? You
think I’ll make friends? I’ll just be stuck in a house all day with no one to
talk to.”
“You’ll have me, come and we’ll figure this out, together!”
“No. Here I have a job, I have my friends, my small apartment. I
cannot leave, there is no chance for me out there. No. We’ll have to see what
happens when you come back. If you come back. Though, know this, I’ll be happy
for you anyway.”
“Of course I’ll come back. In five years time, on Easter, at our
spot, near the castle walls, where they light the fireworks. That’s the deal,
right?”
“That’s the deal.”
“See you in five years, then.”
“Not if I see you first, mister.”
______
Starfall by Dimitrios Kokkinos is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License