Chapter 11: Stained Glass Memories.
968 Words
Chapter 11: Stained Glass Memories
It was Good Friday, and the solemnity of the day hung heavy over the town. The afternoon sun was dimming as Elena got ready to leave the house for the Stations of the Cross at St. Ann’s. This year, the moving devotion was being acted out in a live dramatization by the lectors and the Catholic Boys Movement.
Before stepping out of her front door, Elena held her phone to her ear, listening to Julian’s voice. They spoke for just a few minutes—he wished her a prayerful service, his voice carrying the quiet reverence demanded by the holy day, before they both hung up so she could walk to church.
The walk was quiet, but the peace didn't last.
As Elena neared the church gates, she caught sight of a familiar figure standing near the entrance. It was Mirabel. The moment their eyes met, Mirabel’s gaze turned into a cold, heavy stare. Elena didn't shrink back; she knew exactly why that bitterness was there. It was because of the videos. Mirabel was still reeling from the fact that Julian had guarded Elena's clips on his phone while refusing to keep any of hers. Elena kept her head high and walked past, a small, quiet sense of triumph overriding the discomfort of the stare.
Once she settled inside the church grounds, the atmosphere shifted back to devotion. The actors were dressed in robes, preparing to recreate the painful journey of Christ to Calvary. Wanting Julian to be a part of it, Elena pulled out her phone, snapped a few clear photos of the crowd and the opening stations, and sent them off to him.
A few minutes later, she typed out another message:
The parish priest just announced that they will be showing the real Passion of the Christ movie on the big screen right after the evening Mass today.
She stared at the blinking cursor for a moment before typing the words that were heavy on her heart:
I really wish you were around so we could watch it together. The last time we watched it was when we were still kids.
A soft, nostalgic smile touched her lips as she remembered those days. They had been so young, completely innocent to the complicated emotions that would tangle them up years later. Back then, Julian was just the dedicated altar server in his white surplice, and she was the little chorister singing her heart out in the pews. They had watched the story of the Passion side-by-side in the parish hall, sharing snacks and whispering in the dark.
Now, he was thousands of miles away training to become the priest who would lead those very masses, and she was sitting in the pews alone, watching the shadows lengthen across the altar.
Later that evening, Elena got ready to head back to the church for the Veneration of the Cross. Before leaving the house, she called Julian to check in. To her surprise, Julian told her that their own Good Friday service at the seminary was already over and he was currently resting in his room.
"You guys finished early?" Elena asked, her voice laced with surprise. "I thought it was normally supposed to extend into the night."
Julian chuckled softly through the receiver. "No, we actually finished ours by 5:00 PM today, so I’m all done for the evening."
With that thought in her mind, Elena finished up and headed to St. Ann's for the service. But even as she sat in the pews surrounded by the solemn atmosphere of the sanctuary, her mind kept drifting away from the altar. She found herself longing to talk to Julian, the distance between them only making her crave his presence more. Unable to resist, she pulled out her phone, and they texted back and forth for a while from across the states.
But Julian, ever mindful of the sanctity of the day, finally put a stop to it. Drop your phone and focus on the service, El, his text read.
Elena swallowed her reluctance, slipped her phone into her bag, and did exactly as he said, forcing her attention back to the prayers.
When the solemn service finally ended that night, the congregation began to disperse. As Elena walked out of the church gates into the cool night air, her phone buzzed. It was Marco.
"Hey," she said, picking up. "I just came out of the church and I’m heading home right now."
"Alright, let me know when you get back," Marco replied.
"I'll text you when I get home," she told him, keeping the conversation brief before hanging up.
The moment she ended the call with Marco, her fingers instinctively scrolled to Julian's name, and she dialed his number. Julian picked up almost immediately. As they spoke about how the evening had gone, he remembered her earlier message.
"Why didn’t you stay to watch The Passion of the Christ movie?" Julian asked, his voice curious.
Elena sighed heavily, the sound carrying all the quiet loneliness she had been harboring. "I never wanted to watch it alone, Julian... so I decided to just go home."
There was a tender, understanding pause on the line before they continued talking, his voice escorting her through the dark streets. The moment she stepped through her front door and reached home, she kept her promise to Marco and called him. They spoke for a little while, but as soon as that call ended, Elena turned right back to her phone. She spent the entire remaining part of the night tucked into her bed, happily chatting away with Julian until sleep finally took over.
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