Stronger than the storm

Eternal Love

Alex

I get home ten minutes later. I step into the shower and let the water wash off my tiredness and the stale smell of blood.

I have set myself limits. I know if I had decided to go beyond my limits by now I would not be in bed, alone. The strong desire to kiss her always surfaces in the least opportune moments, and I have to counterbalance with all the resistance I have in order not to give in. I don't know what's happening to me, but when I'm with her I feel like a better person.

Jenny is asleep and I try not to wake her up. I don't want to go into her sentimental situation: tonight I have no lust to do it.

I fall asleep with the image of her smile, and those arms that have invigorated my ego, at least for a moment.

The next day I get up early, prepare my briefcase and walk towards the university. The sky is so gray, that melancholy gray that makes you thoughtful.

"Who knows if she will come today," I think.

Ten minutes later I enter the university, and I am surprised to see her already there.

"Here I can almost conceive how a love can last a lifetime: while until now I was absolutely convinced that no love could last a year"

I read aloud shortly after walking through the classroom.

"So guys, I would like to focus on this sentence for a moment. What does "eternal love" mean to you?

They all look at me with a startled expression. Silence reigns supreme.

I take my glasses out of my bag and resume looking at them.

"Come on, don't be shy.", I say, "I'm not going to eat you.", I add.

A boy raises his hand.

"Yes, you back there. I point to him with my finger giving him the floor. "

"Eternal love is big bullshit," he says, and a loud collective laugh erupts.

"Shh, silence, silence. Why are you convinced of this? ", I ask him curiously.

"Because eternal love could have existed once, today things have changed. Women put love in the background, men too. "

"What do you mean?", I urge him to continue.

"I mean that we no longer want to commit ourselves. Feelings have become utopian. "

"Yes, that's right.", A girl takes the floor.

"Feelings are totally distorted in today's era. You don't want to hurt each other, so you prefer to stay together for a while and experiment, try, never settle down. ", she continues.

"And in your opinion, after this instability, a person no longer feels alone?", I ask.

"It depends how you look at it. If I know that I am enough for myself and that I want nothing more than simple adventures, I can stay like this all my life ", says the girl.

"For me, however, it is different. I am torn, because there is a part of me that would like to take root, find love, and on the other hand I am afraid of still being sick. "

"Love is a risk", I remark.

"You're right, but you can't always risk it. Then a person gets tired. ", He continues.

"So, resuming, eternal love does not exist for you."

"Not for me.", The boy exclaims.

"For me, yes", suddenly retorts Piper, who had been silent until then.

"Why would it exist for you?"

She thinks about it for a moment.

"Because when you know you have a strong bond with someone you can't help but love her forever. Giving to each other: this is the basic principle of true love. "

"Continue.", I urge her looking into her eyes.

"I'm not saying that eternal love has to be perfect, but to be called that one must support each other, be there in difficult times and happy times. Let's take Romeo and Juliet for example. "

"I don't think it's a good idea to take them as an example," I interrupt.

"No, but I think it's the perfect example. Their love was so pure, yet so contrasted. They could have lost themselves, indulged in others, resigned themselves to the idea of not being able to be together, yet they did not do it, they fought, risked, paid dearly so that they could be together. Isn't their love eternal? "

"And the sacrifice for the family? Where is it here? ", I ask her suddenly.

She looks at me and for the first time I catch a slight sense of insecurity in her eyes, like a bolt from the blue.

I take advantage of the opportunity.

"Yesterday you repeatedly stated that for the sake of the family you would be willing to sacrifice yourself, putting the happiness of others first before your own, right?", I approach her.

"Sure, I said it. But ... but here we are talking about a different topic. Eternal love remains even if two people cannot be together. "

"And what good is it if I have to be miserable? The value, the price of that pure love, as she defines it, is overwhelmed by the weight of unhappiness. "

I understand that I am going too far. I don't want it to end like yesterday, so I stop.

She's silent.

" I love him more than myself, Ellen; and I know from this: every night I pray that I can survive him, because I would rather be unhappy than know him unhappy. It's proof that I love her more than myself, "she reads aloud as I'm about to turn to the blackboard.

"Isn't this true love?", she begins.

I turn back to her, and for the first time I wonder who this girl really is who promptly day after day is screwing up all the theories and lies that I have built up in so many years.

This time I remain silent, I look at her and she smiles satisfied.