A Love Story

My life is bound to yours forever, my love.  Mine to yours, and yours to mine.

She smiled as she remembered the moment he had said those words as she stood with him at the very railing she sat on now, looking over this very river so many years ago.  Back then, there were far fewer padlocks attached to the railing that separated her from the flowing water so far below her.  This bridge had been here for many years, and over time, the number of locks had grown so much that the entire bridge, from one end to the other, was almost covered with locks.

Still, it had only taken her a few moments to find the old lock from years ago hanging near the top, exactly where her hand and his had clasped over it, snapping it shut forever on the iron link of the railing.  She gazed at it now, the inscription still as clear now as it had been then, both their names scraped youthfully into the metal.  The key to the lock lay somewhere at the bottom of the river below her.  That was the tradition, after all.

She looked up from the lock, and looked out over the river, feeling the warm breeze on her face, her thoughts very far away, sifting through and reliving all the memories she had shared with him.  Their time together had been a whirlwind of adventure.

She smiled as she remembered the first night they had made love.  It had been passionate, out in the open, under a moonless night, with the entire sky filled with stars and galaxies that seemed to fix all their attention on the two of them together, showering them with untold joy.  She had been his first, and he hers.

Mine to yours, and yours to mine.

She laughed to herself as she recalled their child, born to them at the most inconvenient time.  He had just lost his job, and her pregnancy had come to the point of hospitalization at the end.  They had never been so scared in their lives, but, of course, everything had worked out, and all the worry had been a waste of energy.  It was so easy to think back and believe that now.

Her thoughts turned to sadder times, but even then, she wistfully recalled his arms holding her close as she cried when that same child was lowered into the grave – taken from her by an infection that couldn't be stopped.  It had been so sudden, and she had been given no time to prepare, but as she collapsed, his strong arms had held her, and the two of them had wept together.

My life is bound to yours forever, my love.

Ups, downs, moments, memories, years and years, the two had always been together ever since that day on this very bridge.  Until now, neither of them had returned, since the covenant they had made that day had never left their hearts.

She looked down at the lock again, her eyes misting with tears that were somehow both very happy and content, while also sad and mournful.  Of course, she knew it would all end.  That was the way of things.  She had wished for more time, but death waited for no one.

She cast her gaze over the rest of the locks on the bridge.  So many commitments.  So many promises.  So many lives that were joined together.  So many covenants.  Would they all be honored?  Would they all have the same joyful, painful memories of love that were hers?  She wished it to be so, for their sakes.

Mine to yours, and yours to mine.

As the sun descended over the river, casting the flowing water below into a brilliant orange light, she pulled her ring out of her pocket.  The gold band shimmered in the fleeting light of day, and the diamond encrusted upon it reflected all the happiness and resigned sense of loss of her soul.  With a final kiss, she tenderly dropped it from the bridge and watched it fall to the water below.  After another moment's reflection, she retrieved his ring as well, again admired the golden band, and again, with a kiss, sent it turning over and over all the way down to the water below.

My love.

His voice seemed to call to her on the breeze, caressing her face as a final farewell, and she was sure she saw his smile in the setting sun.  She smiled back, her heart fluttering in his memory.

She remembered again the promises they had made to each other and the covenant they had sealed with this lock.  They would be together forever.  The key waited for her at the bottom of this river, and when one of them went, the other would follow.

Mine to yours, and yours to mine.

She smiled warmly, fully embracing the love they had shared, and with a final glance to the lock before she spread her arms forward, she closed her eyes and allowed herself to fall into what would become his embrace forever.