Hidden Heart: A Saga Of Redemption

The Dream

[After a minute or two, Victor returned, he had something in his hand, a marker pen. His eyes were locked onto hers. There were an intensity in them that she hadn't seen before.]

[Her heart skipped a beat when he gently took her arm in his own, his touch was warm and slightly trembling. She felt a surge of electricity from that simple contact.]

[Without saying another word, Victor carefully turned her palm upward. Then, with the pen in his right hand, he began to write. Amelia's breath caught in her throat as she watched him, her eyes wide with curiosity as he was pouring every ounce of his bottled up feelings into those words.]

[When he finished, he stepped back, releasing her hand. Amelia raised her palm, staring at the words he had written in shaky letters.]

["I LOVE YOU AMY"]

[The silence that followed was deafening. Amelia's eyes widened, her heart was hammering in her chest as she stared at the words. She glanced up at Victor, her mouth slightly opened in shock. His face was flushed, his eyes were filled with a mixture of fear, vulnerability, and something else, something raw and powerful.]

Victor: (voice trembling) I... I didn't know how to say it. So... (continuously shivering) this... this is the only way I knew how.

[Amelia looked at him, her heart was swelling with emotion. In that moment, she saw something in him she hadn't noticed before; an innocence, an almost desperate need for connection. Victor, the man who always seemed so guarded, so introverted, was standing before her now, baring his soul in the simplest but most profound way.]

[He looked so unsure, so scared that he had made a mistake. But in his eyes, she saw something else too; an urge, a longing for companionship, for someone who could understand him. She thought that maybe he had been alone for so long, it seemed like he had forgotten how to express his feelings, how to communicate with his heart.]

[Amelia felt a lump form in her throat. She realized how much he had been holding back, how much he had suffered in silence, alone in his thoughts. He had built walls so high that even he didn't know how to tear them down anymore.]

Amelia: (softly) Victor...

[She took a step closer to him, her eyes softening with tenderness. She reached for his cheek, rested her right palm on it, caressing it with her gentleness that Victor flinched at first, as though unused to such affection. But he didn't pull himself away.]

Amelia: (whispering) You don't need to be scared. I'm here. I've always been here.

[Victor's eyes met hers. There were millions of unspoken words in his eyes. He didn't move as she stepped closer, her body now just inches from his. His pulse raced, but this time, he didn't step back. He didn't run. He let her in.]

[With her thumb, Amelia traced his jawline, her touch was light but reassuring. She glanced down at her palm again, the words he had written still vivid. Her heart swelled with emotion, and she felt tears prickling the corners of her eyes.]

Amelia: (choked voice) Do you know why I didn't answer your proposal on that day?

He looked at her and his eyes were filled with questions.

Amelia: That I really want you to speak, to say directly. (Shaking her hands) Without any hesitation an...and without any fear.

Victor: (whispering) But... I'm not... I'm not the man you deserve. I'm not... I'm not good with words... with feelings. I'm not...

Amelia: (gently) Why are you thinking like this.........

[Before she could finish, he cut her off. His voice was so firm and quick as he looked straight into her eyes.]