HIT & RUN (Short Story)
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Alicia’s nervousness increased as
she listened to the words of the
priest standing before her. She
clutched the well trimmed and
beautiful flowers in her hands. Her
palms were sweaty. This was to be
a very joyous day for her, but she
was not happy. Not that she
wasn’t, she just felt awkward. She
was troubled.
She raised her eyes and peeked.
She peered into the face of her
husband to be. He had no idea
she was staring at him. His look
scared her. Amos wasn’t smiling
neither did he look happy. He
kept his eyes firmly on the priest
with a straight face. This wasn’t
his usual look. What was
happening? On a day like this? If
she’d known, she’d have followed
her instincts and have not shown
up. But how could she not? It was
her wedding for Chrissakes! She
dare not miss it! The day she’d
dreamt for all her life. To finally
be in white to be given to the
man she loved the most – Amos.
Still, she had an odd feeling. Amos
too loved her, they’d been
together for a year. They were not
forced into getting married. They
had agreed on it and made
preparations. Why was she feeling
uneasy? She was suspicious at
something but did not know what.
Her hands were beginning to
tremble. The flowers were still
there.
“Honey?” She heard Amos call,
dragging her out of her thoughts.
“Huh?” She stared back at him
through the veil that covered her
beautiful face. She wore a
confused look.
Amos bent slightly over her. “He’s
talking to you.” he pointed at the
priest.
She shifted her gaze from Amos to
the priest.
“You have to take your vows,” he
whispered.
Why on earth was he whispering?
Hee confusion grew. “He hasn’t
taken his,” she whispered in a
husky voice.
“Its the way he wants it,” the
priest replied.
Alicia’s anxiety grew. Were things
beginning to go wrong?
“Its my surprise.” Amos winked.
It melted her hear for a while.
He’s full of surprises. She smiled
at both the priest and Amos
nervously. She took a deep breath.
“Alright.”
The priest continued.
Alicia’s gaze was on Amos. He still
had that look on. She was unable
to get all that was happening
right before her. She refused to
think that he was playing her. Oh,
how she wished she could read
minds. She desired to know what
was going on in Amos’s head in
order to save herself from the
disaster looming.
Unfortunately, she could not.
“……….till death do you part?”
She quickly composed herself.
“Yes, I do.”
After that answer, she felt joy all
of a sudden. She smiled to herself.
Maybe things were not so bad
after all. It was normal to feel that
way. Its just the pressure she
thought, cmforting herself.
The priest went on and on. She
was not listening. She anxiously
waited for Amos to take his vow.
She kept staring at him, her heart
beat getting slower as each
second flew by. He did not say
anything.
Alicia was worried. Her heartbeat
increased rapidly. She gripped the
flowers tightly, placing them close
to her heart. For a fleeting
moment she offered a brief prayer
to God.
Then, the answer she dreaded
finally came.
“No,” Amos said into the
microphone. “I cannot take Alicia
as my wife.”
For a moment, her heart skipped a
beat. It was as if the blood
flowing in her veins had dried. A
terrible trembling came upon her,
filling her bones with dread. Alicia
was so shocked that all hairs on
her body stood still. Her mouth
dropped.
Amos turned to face her. He
looked sorry. “i’m sorry, Alicia. I
tried to convince myself, but I
couldn’t.”
That was all he uttred; he walked
away, leaving her standing before
the priest.
There was commotion among the
audience.
Alicia was thoughtless. She stood
there pondering over what had
just happened. She did not even
know when the tears fell.
+++++++++++
Alicia winced as the memory of
her supposed wedding day crossed
her mind. She closed her eyes and
tried to shake off those thoughts.
For the umpteenth time, she felt
embarrassed again. It’d not been
easy dealing with all those
feelings. Right now, she felt she
was ready to face Amos and
question him for making a fool
out of her.
She turned the door knob, it
creaked open. She would have
knocked but decided against that.
It was to be her home – if not
that he chose to do what he did.
Inhaling deeply, Alicia pushed the
door and stepped in, she’d been
there a thousand times.
Amos turned to the door as he
heard it make a sound. He was
not surprised when he saw the
beautiful figure of Alicia walk in.
He’d been expecting her since that
day’s event. He knew she’d
definitely pay him a visit. Only
that she’d taken longer than he
expected.
“Alicia,” he breathed out.
“Welcome.”
She stood at the door way,
watching him icily. She tried to
sound cold, to be d--n rude to
him. He deserved a lot more than
that.
“You don’t need to treat me like
you do care.”
“I do-” he tried defending himself.
She cut him off. “Don’t try your
schemes on me. It won’t work.”
“Why are you here?”
“What happened on the day we
were to get married?” She
demanded softly.
.
TO BE CONTINUED
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