AncilChapter 6: The Secret Stash
Kate and I lay on the bed motionless and silent, entangled in each other’s arms. As our breathing steadied, I felt her head sink deeper into my chest and into her thoughts. The silence grew as I began to recount the amazing experience we had just had. “What am I thinking now?” I asked, breaking the silence.
“Your poetry is flawed,” she answered.
“Flawed? Really?”
“Yes, flawed. It’s full of holes. Right now you’re trying to think of something impressive to say but even though you have trained your mind to champion words like Michael Jordan did basketball you can’t fathom a single complete thought because right now you can’t think straight. Your mind is in disarray and you-“
“I love you,” I interrupted without even thinking.
She looked surprised almost as if she had seen a ghost. “You don’t mean that.”
“I really do.”
“We only just met Saturday,” Kate protested.
“Time is irrelevant, remember?” I said.
She smiled a little. “Okay, I’ll accept it but first I need you to say it like you mean it.”
“I love you,” I said, stressing on the word love.
“Don’t just say it like that. Be a bit more creative. You’re a writer.”
“Okay.” I went into deep thought. “As a fish that washes upon the shore gasping for breath, so my heart gaspeth for you.”
“That’s beautiful,” Kate said softly. “But next time don’t use gaspeth. We’re not living in medieval Britain.”
“Got it! Now, it’s your turn.”
“Okay,” she went into deep thought. “Scientists say that-“
“I can already tell this is going to be interesting,” I interrupted.
“Shhhh,” she hushed me. “Scientists say that the universe is made up mostly of empty space. But that empty space is made up mostly of darkness, so who are we to say that the universe is made up of empty space? It’s like walking into a dark room and concluding that the room is empty because nothing can be seen amidst the darkness. Maybe, there is an entire civilization in the dark reaches of space that we just can’t see. Without light, the intangible void of the universe is nonexistent to us; a universe which was probably there all along without beginning or end. The Big Bang in itself was probably not a massive explosion that dispersed material into nothingness but a massive explosion that dispersed light revealing the somethingness of the universe. No matter how much we touch, smell or just feel, without light everything is nonexistent in our eyes,” she paused with her eyes glued onto mine. “You are that light to my universe.”
Once again, Kate had me unable to speak. Nothing I could have said could have compared to her poetic declaration. Therefore, I said the same thing she had told me after, my now insignificant line. “That’s beautiful.”
The room grew silent once more and after a few moments, Kate raised her head a little, repositioning herself so that she now looked directly into my eyes. “You want to see something cool?”
“Ummm, like, right now?” I asked.
“Yes, like right now.”
“What is it?”
She got up, threw her clothes back on, and went downstairs. She told me to remain on the bed and that she’d be right back. While she was gone I took the liberty of throwing my clothes back on as well. After what seemed to be only a few seconds, Kate came back carrying a big green ladder which looked kind of heavy. I felt guilty letting her hold such a heavy ladder but in my defense, I didn’t know.
