Unseen Messages

by Pepper Winters

And no matter what life path we choose, fate always has the final say.

I convinced myself I was reading into things, that disasters happened to other people; that life didn’t send messages to those about to die. I didn’t listen. I ignored the signs. I got on the plane.

Who is she? Pity fate couldn’t talk. If it could, I would’ve heard the reply: She’s your beginning. Your end. Your salvation.

Love doesn’t live in first glances. Life doesn’t dwell in second chances. Our path exists in unseen messages. Power to transform from unknown wreckages.

I was shattered pieces strung up with despair. The island was loneliness and terror. The sky my crying eyes. The drenched dirt my hopeless hope.

regret and guilt only hurt the living with no power to bring back the dead.

We’d walked right into death with so much blasé stupidity we didn’t deserve to be found. We’d done this.

She was sun and sin and safety all at once.

I was starving. For both food and him. I was confused. For both help and privacy. I was hurting. For both rescue and desire. Two extremes. Both as strong as the other.

Our lives had changed so much, but we’d found we could survive it.

Don’t fret when fate forbids you. Don’t cry when life doesn’t listen. Be brave and trust that you will survive. Be strong and never give in.

I loved the way he made me feel as if everything he ever needed dwelled right inside my soul.

I’m afraid that I want a man for all the wrong reasons. I’m afraid I’ll never get off this island. I’m afraid I don’t want to get off this island. I’m afraid I don’t know who I am. I’m afraid I don’t like who I’m becoming.

All rules were broken. She said it was returning the favour. I called it asking for trouble. She’d been the one to touch me. Now, I would be the one to touch her.

Soon, we wouldn’t recognise ourselves. Soon, we would be ruined for any rescue. Because as we adapted and evolved, we found more and more happiness in the simplest of things.

We. Will. Not. Die. Here.

We’d all become guilty of forgetfulness. And soon…who knew what the word home would mean. Would this island become home? Would this wild existence become preferential over the rat race of society?

It was more than just love. It was contentment. Satisfaction. Fulfilment. Who would’ve thought such things existed in the middle of nowhere.

For the longest second, she didn’t move. But then, heaven happened. She closed her eyes and let herself come alive. She transformed from the girl I’d fallen in love with to a goddess framed by fire and marked by ambrosia itself.

My world changed from notes and quavers to flesh and sinew. I’m no longer defined by music, but by the days I spend alive. I’m no longer afraid of stepping from the pages and living. Truly living. I’m no longer interwoven with fear but standing free with my pockets bursting with possibility. My heart is the drum, my feet are the chords, and my fate is my finest melody.

“If we were in a city, I would’ve tried too hard and probably turned you off by being a jerk. First date conversation would’ve included talk about the weather, travel, my architectural background, and anything I could pry from you. But that would be where my willingness to open up would end. I wouldn’t tell you how bloody gorgeous you are by firelight, moonlight, sunlight—hell, by any light. I wouldn’t tell you how much I wanted to talk to you even when we first met. And I definitely wouldn’t tell you that there’s something in my past that I’m not proud of, that I hate myself for, and that I’ll pay for the rest of my days. I’m not ready to tell you what that is, but I am ready to show you that it has shaped who I am. And who I am now is a lot different to the man you first saw on that plane.”

Some might say finding love in disaster was doomed for failure. I believed it only made us stronger.

Whatever doesn’t kill us makes us stronger.

Funny how things we thought we couldn’t live without suddenly become superficial when faced with the truth. The truth that we entered this world with nothing and left with the exact same sum.

As humans, we abhor death. We’re taught from birth to fear the unknown, cling to the known, and receive our limited time on earth. But what if that’s a lie? What if we should embrace death? Would we be at peace knowing those that’d left us existed in another dimension? That we weren’t nothing the moment we took our final breath? Death was my enemy. But could it ultimately be my friend?

Who do you thank when life gives you your deepest wishes? Who do you curse when it takes away your greatest triumphs? Who do you beg when nothing you want works out? Who do you pray to when the impossible comes true? I don’t have the answer. I doubt anyone does.

This was our new hell. But at least, we had directions back to heaven. One day. Someday. I wanted to go home.

I don’t know who you are but I adore you already.”

Being surprised doesn’t mean awe or wow or even shock. Being surprised doesn’t mean you’ll love it or hate it. Being surprised means the one person you love knows you better than you know yourself. And that is the ultimate sign of perfection.

You crashed with me. I fell for you. I love you.

Home is where the heart is. Home is where the soul is found. Home is where the good times laugh. Home is where the hard times heal. Home is home and there is no place I would rather be.

We’d not only survived, we’d excelled. We’d created life. We’d lost life. We’d learned about life. And life had almost killed us. But we’d won.

Seven people had arrived. One soul had been born. One son had died. Four people left. And three returned.

“I crash landed to find him. I fell from the sky to know him. I died a mortal death to be worthy of him. I am reborn because of him. “If rescue never comes, know I didn’t need it. If help never arrives, know I didn’t want it. If we die here together, be happy knowing this was our destiny. “Don’t find us. Don’t mourn us. Don’t weep for us. Because we were the lucky ones, the chosen ones, the only ones for each other.”

Seven Turtles.