When The Church Bells Toll

The Departure

      Leoncio put the last item he needed for the trip, zipped the bag closed and placed the luggage outside the door of his bedroom. He went inside and sat at the edge of his bed and placed his passports and other documents inside another small bag. He stared outside the window and heard some teenage boys were shouting and playing football inside a fenced vacant lot, just a block farther away than Tia’s house. He stayed by the window for a little while and watched the boys below. His lips formed a big smile. He reminisced the past summers of his youth when he used to play football in his teenage years. He found out sports made his body stronger. He could smell the dust and dirt, the stench of the sunrays on his clothes. The sense of camaraderie. The joy of winning. The pain of losing. They were all etched in his memories forever.

   Tia Gertrudes used to tease Leoncio that he looked like a stray alley cat, in truth he was a very sickly boy since he was born. The scenes were so clear and vivid in his mind as if it was only yesterday. He was in the middle of retrospect when he heard Tia Gertrudes’ shouted at the top of her voice.

    L-E-O-N-C-I-O!!! Donde estas??! Rogelio is here ready to bring you to the port!

     “I’m still here in my room, Tia! I am going out now! I just finished packing my bag!

    The ship departed at 8 o’clock a.m at the Port of Tobera and sailed to the Port of Cartagena where the Jewel of the High Seas was docked. He arrived earlier for other pre-departure routines he accomplished before the embarkment of passengers. He already went to see Melanio yesterday to say goodbye. There was nothing much to talk about, just a little chat about his work and he left immediately. He didn’t want him to feel sad, besides, he was leaving and there was no use talking about me. He didn’t bother to see nor talk to me again. He never visited the library after the incident, which was fine with me. He pictured me as an evil woman after the no appearance scenario at Fuente de Agua and the incident at the bridge. Whatever sentiments he had, I still have the right to whether I want to see or talk to him or not at all. Why would I be guilty?

    Ana and I met during lunchbreak at Molina’s across the library.

    “Que tal, comadre?I greeted Ana while we kissed each other on the cheeks. “Hows my nina bonita Daniela?

    “Oh, she’s growing up fast, and becoming talkative too!” said Ana. “Just like her fairy godmother. You should see her new antics. Papa loves her so much,” she added.

    Ana had a great time talking about her daughter for the next thirty minutes, and she almost didn’t touch her food. My lunch breaks almost gone unnoticed when she remembered the real reason we met for lunch. 

    “Celina, you should have called and told him the reason why you can’t see him at the Fuente... it was the right thing to do,” said Ana.

     “Ah, yes dear comadre. You are right. I wondered why I can’t tell the truth to Ana about the email correspondence we had. I should have acted more reasonably. Okay, okay, I will call him tonight after work, and say my apologies. Yes, I promised, cross my heart.”

    “He already left this morning, the cruise ship was bound to London. It would be another year.”

    “Huh?... Did he leave already? I asked Ana, and I wondered why it surprised me, knowing that was what I really wanted to happen in the first place.

   It bothered me and felt sad after what I just heard from Ana, but I brushed it aside. Well, Celina, it was your idea, right? So why feel guilty at all? I thought. I remained silent for a while.

    “You know what? I may have looked bad in his eyes for all these things, but I also have the right to disagree. It was my decision. For me, it was the right thing to do. I wasn’t scared nor felt vulnerable, I just followed what my heart said, that’s all.” Was it a bad thing to listen to me?” I mused. Look what happened to Joan of Arc, she followed her heart and stayed true to what she believed in. She led the French Army and won the war against the British. She became a French hero. “

    “Oh, dear… Joan was already part of history, and this issue with Leoncio was not about the war nor leading a French Army. Wake up to reality. It’s 1998, not the 1400s.” Ana retorted.

    “I know what you were trying to say. Don’t make me look like I am an agnostic person living in a bubble. I am not saying Leoncio was a bad person, all I am saying is, as far as my intuition is concerned, he was not the right person for me,” Why can’t you understand that?” I rebutted.

    “Okay, let us not fight over this. I guess, I was being pushed over because his father was a close friend of papa, when we were still living in Tobera. Our families were very close. Leoncio was like a cousin to me, We grew up together. I did try to understand your view of this. Hey, your happiness is more important to me, of course.”

    “I can’t erase the past you had with his family. You were together before we even met in Frias. I understand that too. I was not trying to make you choose between us. It’s unfair for you.”

    After lunch, we said goodbye to each other and promised not to talk about the matter, for the time being. Only time can tell if things are meant to be. I guess, one year was enough for Leoncio and me to figure things out if we can, at least, be friends or not. Distance could give us a chance to get to know ourselves better. If it was meant to happen that way, so be it.

Let him be far away for now.