text: The wretched creak of that fucking rope was gonna drive me insane. The wind had been pushing the ancient thing back and forth for the past fifteen minutes, it was the only thing to break the silence between me and the love of my life. It was a shame that our love was not meant to be, just like Romeo and Juliette, our relationship intertwined with the prickly vines of death. “Coralynn, you don’t have to cry sweetheart.” I soothed her. Grazing my thumb along her soft tearstained cheek, I drank in the rolling shades of shining blue that made up her eyes. Tears coursed down my girl’s rosy cheeks gliding into the tumultuous river below us. I tried to reassure her again, “We won’t be apart for very long my love.” That didn’t seem to calm her down though as a new bout of tears rose up. At that, I took her into my arms, soaking in her warmth for the last time. With a heavy sigh I consoled her, “Everything’s gonna be okay. This is just the way the cards fall hon.” Her shivering form leaned into my grasp. The luxurious Summer breeze pushed past me and I shifted my focus to the mass of water below us. The roar of the river was steady, no matter what happened the land around it obeyed and made way for the unending currents. Me and the waterway weren’t too different. People did what I say, they stayed out of my way because they knew what would happen if they didn’t. I gazed at the rope securely tied just behind Cora. “J-J-Jacob. P-Please,” she stammered, “you d-don’t have to do this.” Her words were marked by sharp inhales and whimpers. I looked back down at her, the sherbet colored sky reflected a golden glow off of her gorgeous, auburn hair. I took a final look at my sweet, sweet Coralynn, Taking in the the way the light accented her hips, her soft sunkissed skin, her fuchsia lips that concealed such an enchanting voice, and the silver shine portraying the wedding ring on her finger. I offered her a kind smile gazing into the perfect woman that I had loved for so many years. I took her left hand in mine and gently raised it into her view so she could see that monumental piece of steel and diamond that I desperately loathed, the tiny ornament that had sealed in her fate. “Yes, baby. I do.” I gazed into the azul oceans staring back at me. I watched the gears turn. I could see the scenarios playing out in her head, ‘What if I kicked out his knees?’ ‘What if I told him I still loved him?’. I could see the rope around her neck expanding at each frantic breath. I could see her hands trembling, as if they were trying to wave away her anxiety. And I could see the fear and panic swelling up behind the barrier of tears, tantamount to the intemperate waters just 10 meters below us. Her emotions threatened to consume her. It was clear that in this moment, all she knew was terror. I loved it.