SCATTERED HEARTS
The soft light of dawn accompanied the incessant chirping of the birds outside, waking Ayla from her fitful sleep for good. Today was Saturday so she didn’t have to be anywhere or anyone.
She slipped out of bed, the weight of the morning pulling her towards the kitchen. There was something almost unreal about moments like these, where she could feel every sensation tenfold. The sunray carefully angled to touch just below her left eye, the wobbly hardwood-floor beneath her feet signaling a long-awaited renovation, and faint music drifting from one of the rooms.
Twenty-two years ago, on a morning just like this, Ayla met Theodore. Her finals were over, and she was set to graduate in a week. Her friends convinced her to a weekend getaway to celebrate their newly acquired freedom from academia. She woke up from a fitful sleep then, just like now, before everyone else. She grabbed some bread and cheese to gnaw on and went outside, welcoming the fresh morning breeze.
The coastline was empty save for one man in the distance throwing stuff in the air, a squabble of seagulls twirling above his head. Did seagulls even eat birdseed? Ayla wasn’t sure, but they seemed content enough. She realised there was movement to her left and came eye-to-eye with a small stray cat smelling the bag that contained her makeshift cheese sandwich. She opened it up, ripped it into tiny pieces, and put them on the ground. The cat happily munched away as the mystery man watched the scene from afar.
Ayla was too focused on the kitten to notice the man was walking towards her, leaving birdseed that traced his path like the breadcrumbs from Hansel and Gretel.
“Ahem...”
The sound grabbed her attention.
“Seems like the whole world is hungry at six in the morning,” he laughed.
It was a characteristic laugh, one that radiated ease and caused crow’s feet around his eyes. She liked it immediately.
“Seems so,” she replied. “Although, I don’t see you eating anything.”
“Ah, I have a routine,” he checked his watch and continued, “every morning at 6:15.”
He opened a pack of tea biscuits and started eating them as he walked away, again, leaving a trail of crumbs in his path.
Ayla’s always been fascinated with fairytales. From swashbuckling adventures to cosy stories, she loved it all. Perhaps that was why she fell for Theodore. The crumbs reminding her so much of those characters that found home, freedom, and love following the trail. A trail not unlike the one that leads to the family-room right now.
Maybe she knew she could navigate her way through the darkest forest as long as Theo was with her. Looking at him on his wheelchair, muscles withered away from illness yet still dancing to the music, his packet of open tea biscuits leading her to him, she is sure once again. And she sweeps up the crumbs before joining him in his dance, so that no evil can find them.
