The Call of The Sea

Emilie: 28th May

I had been scared about meeting George in the park alone in truth. When I saw James and Caterina, I was relieved and perturbed in the same instant. I still do not understand what this man is doing to me.

When he was about to kiss me, I was glad of their distraction. In the heat of the moment, I wanted to kiss him, but the second I regained control of my senses, I knew that I would have been ruined if we had kissed.

So, when I found further distraction in solving the evident marital issues between James and Caterina, I was glad. Leaving George, I pursued Caterina, quickly catching up with the lady in question.

Caterina had paused by a nearby tree, resting her hand upon its rugged trunk. Looking up through the branches, it was clear that she was trying to supress tears. In fact, she had a look upon her face that suggested she held the weight of the worlds upon her dainty shoulders.

"Caterina?"

Summoned from her reverie, Caterina turned on me instantly with a less than convincing smile. "Ah, my dear." She walked towards me, her smile broadening. "I see you have found me."

"If you wish to be alone..." I began to wish I had not decided to interfere.

"No, nonsense. I could do with someone to talk to." Taking my arm, Caterina started walking along the path again. "I often find myself in a state of melancholy and I know it is futile to stay as such. A bright and breezy young lady such as yourself is just what I need as a distraction."

"It is too beautiful a day to think of things which make us sad." I agreed.

"I agree." Looking up at the sky, she closed her eyes and let the sunlight play across her eyelids as she sighed deeply. "It is days like today that remind me of my home and my family."

"You must miss them dreadfully."

"It comes and goes. When I am happy here, I do not think of them in truth. On days such as today, when I cannot escape sadness, the pain of leaving them behind haunts me." Caterina opened her eyes, and they were wet with unshed tears.

"It is not easy to leave everything you've ever known and loved. When I left home, I was so excited. I had the prospect of a new life, with the man who I had never known as a father, and it seemed as if my life was just beginning. Yet now, I fear that the best years of my life have gone, and I stand upon the edge of a decision that I cannot bear to make."

"What sort of decision?" Caterina looked at me with genuine interest.

I regretted my candid manner, wondering how to brush over the situation. "Whether to follow my head or my heart. For at the moment, they say completely opposing things."

"They often do. Perhaps telling me about it may help you decipher which choice to take." Caterina smiled gently like a mother.

I smiled, glad to have distracted her from her own woes, although I had no idea what to say. "Well, I fear I have a responsibility to a man, who although charming, I could never love. Then I realise that I am falling in love with a man who is my perfect match in every way that matters to me, but not the areas that anyone else cares for."

"A predicament indeed. And the man you are falling for is George?" Caterina guessed with a knowing smile.

"I suppose I must admit it. I do not wish to complicate things further, but denial will not prove anything. He is everything I ever wished for as a child. I remember life being so much simpler back at home, in Devon, at my cove, where nothing in the world mattered."

"You had your own cove?" Caterina was easily diverted to the easier topic.

I smiled. "Yes. Well, not really, but I considered it my own. When I was very young, I remember walking up on the cliffs one day and seeing the path down onto the beach below. I followed the trail and have been going there all the years since. It was my own piece of paradise where no one ever knew to disturb me."