Chapter 13: The Unreachable Light.
880 Words
Chapter 13: The Unreachable Light
The brief respite of the holiday vanished as quickly as it had come. By Easter Sunday evening, Elena was back at school, the familiar walls of her dorm room closing in on her. The transition from the warmth of home back to the routine of campus life always left a quiet ache in her chest, but tonight, the loneliness didn’t last long.
The moment she dropped her bags, her phone rang. It was Julian.
Hearing his voice after a long day of travel shattered whatever emotional walls Elena had built up. Overwhelmed by the comfort of his presence, her words softened, and she began acting romantic on the call, letting her guard slip completely. The affection she had been bottling up for weeks started pouring out in the way she laughed, the gentle tones she used, and the whispered words of longing.
Then, mid-sentence, reality hit her like a splash of ice water.
A sharp gasp caught in her throat as she abruptly pulled herself back. What am I doing? she thought, panic tightening in her chest. It hit her with agonizing clarity that she was talking to a seminarian—a man who belonged entirely to Christ and the Church. He wasn't a regular guy she could win over; his life was already promised to an altar she couldn't reach.
At the same time, a desperate wonder washed over her. Why had her feelings for him grown so much deeper and stronger over these past few weeks? Why, despite all her efforts to focus on Marco, did every road in her heart lead straight back to Julian?
After they ended the call, Elena sat frozen on the edge of her bed. The room was dead silent, save for the quiet hum of the campus outside. Slowly, she lifted her phone, her thumb hovering over her gallery before opening his picture.
She stared at his face on the screen, her eyes tracing the familiar smile she had known since childhood.
Julian, what have you done to me? she thought, a tear finally slipping down her cheek. What have you done to me that I can't stop loving you, even knowing you are going to be a priest?
Days passed, and the heavy weight of that Easter Sunday realization lingered in the back of Elena's mind. Yet, as always, the pull of Julian's presence was impossible to resist.
One evening, Elena and Julian were on a w******p audio call, sharing a quiet conversation, when Julian suddenly decided to add someone else to the line. It was Clement—the same cheerful seminarian from before, whom the other students at the seminary affectionately called Julian’s "twin" because they were completely inseparable.
The moment Clement joined, Elena felt a sudden, sharp spike of anger and jealousy flare up inside her. She was tired of sharing Julian with the world, tired of the walls of the seminary, and tired of feeling like she was always waiting on the sidelines.
Seizing the opportunity, Elena immediately reported Julian to Clement. "Clement, you need to talk to your twin," she said, her voice laced with genuine irritation. "We’ll be on the phone talking, and the moment he hears my roommate's voice in the background, he completely shifts focus and says he wants to talk to her instead! Julian no longer has my time at all."
Hearing the genuine hurt and frustration in her voice, Clement took her side. He turned on his friend, playfully but firmly scolding him over the speaker. "Julian, what is wrong with you? Why don't you have time for her? You can't be ignoring Elena like that!"
As the boys were bantering, Elena's other roommate, Belinda, walked into the room. Hearing the lively commotion on the speaker, Belinda chimed in, and before Elena could stop it, she was pulled into the conversation too.
Suddenly, the call transformed into a four-way conversation. The four of them spoke, throwing jokes back and forth, and the speaker filled with loud laughter. But Elena wasn't laughing. As she sat on her bed, watching Belinda talk and listening to the way Julian responded to her roommate, a hot, suffocating wave of anger washed over her. She couldn't stand hearing Julian give his attention to another girl right in front of her.
Unable to take it for another second, Elena snapped. Without warning, she tapped the red button and ended the call, plunging her room into sudden silence. Belinda looked up, surprised, but Elena just stared at her phone, her chest heaving.
She spent the rest of the evening in a tense, quiet mood, refusing to explain her sudden exit. But Julian knew her too well.
Later that night, long after the campus had gone quiet and Belinda had fallen asleep, Elena’s phone buzzed in the dark. It was Julian. She picked up, her silence cold and punishing, but Julian didn't get defensive. His voice was low, gentle, and deeply sincere as he immediately apologized for carrying the joke too far and making her feel pushed aside. Hearing his soft words in the dark, the tight knot of anger in her chest finally began to loosen.
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