FAR BEYOND HERE(Francys Wagner) Rosalia was getting ready for bed. The same ritual as always, but that night, a little different. She took the last pill of the day and placed a glass of water beside her bed.

She donned her blue flower print cotton nightgown and sat at the dressing table. She imagined her husband lying on the bed, as he always did, admiring her brushing her long hair. Once brown, now whitened by the passage of time.

The room had some antique furniture from the time of her marriage, fifty years ago. The bed, the nightstands, the wardrobe, the dressing table. They were all well preserved. They reminded her of her husband, as they were quite expensive for him, but he had made a point of furnishing the house with the best that was available at the time.

That was the reason she never replaced the furniture, not even when he offered to, years later. She stood and went to the closet, opening the door on the side where Alonso's clothes still lay. She took the suit, tucked away in plastic, that he'd worn to their wedding, and a few times since. She had kept her wedding dress as well, which her daughter wore to her wedding. She'd lent it a few times. It was beautiful, though old. A long dress, with the skirt in light fabric, embroidered, and the bodice worked in lace with silver beads. A real charm. Romantic like her personality.

When she took the suit, she saw the cardboard box where some photo albums were, on top of the drawer inside the wardrobe. She laid the open suit on the right hand side of the bed, where her husband would lie, and then took one of the albums out of the box.

Rosalia arranged some pillows on the head of the bed, leaned back comfortably and began to look at the photographs of her wedding and honeymoon. Memories surfaced in her mind as her gaze wandered over the pictures. She remembered when they'd first met. She had recently moved with her family to the Latin neighbourhood of the city.

She was a student and had to walk to her new school. At first she didn't like the place very much, but she had no other choice. After a while, she noticed that a tall boy was watching her every day, from the door of a small department store, at the corner of the street along from her school. She was always walking with a classmate, and was embarrassed to look at him.

One day, her mother asked her to buy some fabric from that store, so she could make some winter clothes for her and her sister. Rosalia knew he would be there. She went nervously. When she entered, he saw her right away.

She remembered him smiling and coming quickly towards her. Now she could see him better. He had well-shaped facial features, dark eyes, and wore his dark hair slicked-back. She thought he was striking. As he cut the fabric for her, he was asking her questions. Which street did she live in, where was she from, who did she live with. She responded with few words. He introduced himself to her. Alonso.

The store, which was a two-story house, belonged to his father and the family lived upstairs, as she found out a short time later. After that day at the store, when she passed by, he greeted her by name. She no longer felt embarrassed. Days later, he asked her if he could go to her house to ask her parents' permission for them to date. She happily agreed, and was even happier when her parents agreed to his courtship. It was arranged for him to visit her every Saturday from six to nine at night.

The two would sit in the living room, while her mother or older sister, who had never married, would sit in the armchair opposite, knitting, while keeping an eye on the two of them. They could talk about trivial things and touch hands, but they couldn't use them for more daring affection. Rosalia's father was nowhere to be seen, usually being out in some bar, drinking.

Their few hours together passed so quickly. When he left, she would accompany him to the gate, her mother or sister always at the door watching, but when they were sometimes careless, Alonso would steal a kiss from Rosalia. She would shake all over, afraid they might have seen it. Her heart would race when she entered the house, waiting to hear some scolding, but that never happened.

After a few months of dating, they could go for a walk around the square, but always accompanied by Rosalia's sister. She was sometimes so distracted, eating ice cream Alonso had bought her, that they had a little more freedom for longer kisses.

As soon as she finished high school, almost a year later, they were married. He had been thrilled when he saw her enter the aisle of the church, and had tears in his eyes when her father handed her over to him. He told her that she was stunning.

That night he confessed to her that from the first time he saw her, in her uniform with her hair pulled back in a ponytail, highlighting her delicate face and big brown eyes, he had fallen in love. The day she went to the store, and they talked, he was sure she was the one for him. She was also sure that he was her soulmate.

Remembering those words now made her cry...

******

Rosalia flicked over the page to their honeymoon photos. She found her favourite. As she pulled the photo out of the album, she looked at the age-spotted hand. On her finger, the wedding ring. Just over two months ago they had completed their golden anniversary. Another memory of Alonso.

The photo had been taken at a hotel by the sea where they had stayed for five days. A wedding gift from his parents. Alonso was so handsome with his hair tousled by the wind, his broad shoulders distinctive. She was showing off the curves of her body in a gorgeous bathing suit.

Alonso had been such an affectionate man, they never had a fight.
When she became pregnant a year after they were married, he couldn't contain himself with joy. She could clearly remember the look of happiness on his face when she'd given birth to twins.

The most emotive thing however was, that despite being very happy for the babies, he saw her tired after a difficult birth, and apologised to her for the suffering she had gone through. She considered that to be so noble of him.

What made her most delighted was his idea to name the babies with the initials M and O, Martin and Olivia. Together with their initials, A and R, they formed the word AMOR, which in Spanish means love. The love that existed between them and the children. Later, the initials had been embroidered on bath and face towels, decorating the bathroom with love.

Alonso was a very responsible, caring father. After his father died, he worked hard expanding the family business to a bigger store and house, with room for the growing family. She was very proud of him.
Now the children were no longer babies, almost in their 50s. The AMOR family had expanded. Martin, a lawyer now with three children. Olivia, a teacher and mother of two.

******

Three weeks ago Alonso was very happy, everyone was together. He had so much fun with his grandchildren. He was excited. He told stories of the past, adventures. He reminisced with his children about his life story. He seemed to be saying goodbye.

The next morning he suffered a massive heart attack. Since then, Rosalia, usually a happy woman through anything, became silent, quiet, thoughtful. She talked little. She wouldn't say, but it was obvious she felt that a part of her had left along with Alonso.

The children worried about her, and said they would find someone to take care of her. She protested. She wasn't disabled, just sad. Everything would pass, it was just a matter of time. She would be fine, even though she didn't believe it herself...

Despite her refusal, they hired a caregiver. In the first days, Rosalia found it strange to have a person with her all the time, living in her house. But it didn't take long for her to get used to the girl. She helped with the housework, cooking, shopping...

She was fun, liked to talk, and even on the worst days, Rosalia couldn't help but wittily compare her to a much younger version of her now-deceased sister, who had watched over her in the time of her courtship with Alonso.

Rosalia lowered the pillows and pulled the blanket over her body, holding a photo in her hand. With her head down, she looked at the photo. She cried softly...
"Where are you now Alonso? Wherever you are, my soul will be with you. My love for you is forever. Our love is far beyond this life." She muttered, through tears...

******

The next morning, Rosalia didn't show for breakfast. The girl found it odd, as she usually woke up early. She had mentioned the day before that she was feeling unwell, but thought it must have been something she had eaten.

Before she went to sleep, the girl had asked her how she was feeling, and she replied that she was better.

The girl knocked on the door. Rosalia did not respond. She called out her name. Silence. The door was unlocked and she entered.

Rosalia was lying on the bed. On the floor, the photo album had fallen. Beside her on the bed, Alonso's suit spread out. The girl came closer. She looked asleep. Her serene face seemed to smile.

She touched her, and realised she was no longer breathing.
Rosalia had gone, exactly 21 days after Alonso's death.
She died with the picture of her and Alonso on the beach, under the palm of her hand, on her chest at the height of her heart...

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