with every beat of my heart √ h.s.

save the date

could i have been irrevocably enamored of genevieve to the point where i could no longer remember otherwise? most definitely. i forgot what it felt like to not be in love with someone so sincere, tender, generous, and absolutely, irrefutably captivating.

at times, it was hard to believe she was real. i wondered what she saw in me and what made her stay with me since our first year of college. i wasn't anywhere near as charming as others, and i wasn't in the best shape. just a lanky body with a heart that didn't work properly. however, she didn't care about any of that. she loved me regardless of my lack of charisma, or interesting attributes. i was simply average, yet she loved me as if i was beyond.

we had graduated. four years of being at a university together were behind us, the future beckoning us and our endeavors. i couldn't think of a future without my evie, so two months after we had finished school i took her out to dinner. she ate a large plate of pasta and i smiled when she had ended up with a spot of sauce on her floral patterned dress. she hardly cared and just continued eating and making me feel like she had when we were teenagers. my palms were sweaty and my fingers were trembling.

there was a spot we had found. it was on the top of a street where you could overlook the entire city. the lights illuminated the streets below, and you could make out the faint red, and green lights of the traffic signals if you looked hard enough. the moon was almost full, and my heart was full of love. she held my hand as if it wasn't clammy, and she rested her head upon my shoulder as if i wasn't shaking.

i reached into my pocket and found the delicate band with a diamond resting upon it. her left hand was already in mine, so i squeezed it a little tighter and she responded by doing the same. when i said her name she hummed, awaiting me to continue what i was desperately trying to say. then it just slipped out like i was asking her how her day was. "will you marry me?"

she didn't seem surprised, but nonetheless she was beaming. her smile was brighter than the lights of the city, and suddenly it was just us. the soft music from the radio was tuned out, the cool air coming through the sunroof and windows weren't the cause of our goosebumps. we were harry and genevieve, till death do us part.

the white dress flowed off of her hips like ripples in a calm sea. there were all of our family and friends occupying a chair, but all i saw was an angel walking down the aisle in my direction.

she went through extreme measures to ensure i wouldn't catch even the slightest glimpse of the dress because she wanted to surprise me. i was surprised alright. it surprised me that someone could bring elegance to a dress, rather than the dress bringing the elegance. it surprised me that a piece of material could be sculpted just for the purpose of her wearing it our spring afternoon. i hadn't known that a dress could make me realize that my dreams were no longer in my sleep, but right before me with brown eyes that reflected everything and more i had wished for in the person i would fall in love with.

we were twenty-four, and saying, "i do," in front of everyone we cared for. that was it. she was it. getting to know her thought process and her soul was the greatest adventure i had ever known. we enjoyed a good night in over going out, but she made it exhilarating, like we were climbing the highest mountain and surfing the largest wave.

the strength she possessed was incredible. the death of her brother, theo, shattered her for months. i hadn't seen the same passion in her words, or the light in her beautiful brown eyes. she mourned for three months in seclusion and depression. after those three months, she made an attempt to reignite her own flame for life. it took a full six months for me to see her passion and radiance return. she built herself back up, and i admired her for that because i would never be able to do the same.

that woman, my wife, was it. there was nothing in the universe that could have lessened my love for her.