夏至 [15] / [17]
"What about you?"
he asked her.
"Where would you go if you could choose just one place?"
"Somewhere peaceful, somewhere nobody knows me, somewhere I can be a total stranger,”
Cynthia said in an ambivalent way, which was not like her. She sipped her mojito.
"You might get very tired of that routine,”
Alexander smiled and added.
"What I would do first is search for literature which is written during the war. You would be surprised how amazing the literature human beings write during the worst of times, like war, actually is. I don't know much about such works now, but I want to study."
"War?" Cynthia murmured and asked,
"Can I write about just anything?"
"Anybody can write anything, try."
Alexander was rather glad to hear Cynthia say this. If they shared opinions about the same things, which they both love, that must be fantastic.
"For example, letters . . . Letters handed down from generations, written for those whom love existed amidst devastation, were very touching to people, even nowadays. When you're in a situation where your survival in not assured, your love for people close to your heart emerges in a really authentic way."
Cynthia put on her sunglasses suddenly. Alexander was stunned. It was already dark around them.
"Hey, why did you put your sunglasses on?"
he noticed she was crying.
"What's wrong?"
"Actually, I haven't told you. I have an aunt, she is dying. She is my mom's oldest sister. She suffers from dementia and cancer."
He was stunned,
"Why didn't you tell me? Does she know that we're married?"
"She doesn't even know me. She is my close relative, the only one I have left. She had 1 daughter, but she died by car accident. Her other siblings live abroad. I am the only family who stayed in the country."
"We can go to her right now, or tomorrow,"
Alexander said firmly.
"You don't need to. You would understand me if you could see her. She is like a breathing corpse . . . Her kind neighbor who attended the same church with her is taking care of her."
Now tears flowed like rain from her eyes, covered by the sunglasses, down her cheeks. Alexander hugged her. He'd never heard her mentioning her aunt before, but he didn't care much about that now.
"The neighbor messaged me that my aunt is not good at all. She might . . . You know."
"We can advance our original departure time,"
Alexander said.