All night long on my bed I looked for the one my heart loves; I looked for him but did not find him. I will get up now and go about the city, through its streets and squares; I will search for the one my heart loves. So I looked for him but did not find him. -Song of Solomon, 3:2
It is tough. It is a dangerous night. The full moon passed away a few nights ago, and she cannot stand to live without his presence. Without him, she’ll die from the inside out. Without him, nothing in her life has meaning. Her mind is set in his eyes and his olive skin. She’s thinking about it, processing and micromanaging her every move. It is a challenge-a challenge indeed.
On the other side, a man looks at a picture of his lady. He loves her; he really does. But the affairs of this world have tried to endanger and dismiss their love. But he holds tightly to that picture. She is his air, his destiny, his life. She is everything to him.
Returning to his hometown is a dangerous affair. He was never wanted in that place, after all! They said mean things about him and his family- that he was a cuerno, that her mother was a whore and a harlot and he would never amount to anything in his life, that his father left him and blah-blah-blah. But he only saw that beautiful, silky-smooth face that kissed his cheek in the first grade. She would take care of his hand when he was pointed at by parents and cruel children. He had to be there. He had to.
Now.
They rush gracefully like gazelles in the darkest night. No predator followed them; no, just loneliness. Every step she took led her closer to his heart. Every step he took led him closer to her heart. Closer. And closer. And even closer. They trip on rocks. Their heels follow a trace of blood.
She races through a store. He rushes through a flight of stairs.
She fidgets through carnival practice. He impatiently waits for a cab.
She tries to get a cab, but she has no money on her pockets. He begs, begs, begs Mahmoud to escape from the traffic and into the train station.
She fights. He fights. They arrive at a train station. They stop. They gaze each other.
As they run, a maze of people looks at them. Were they extremely late for a train? Did they have to go to the bathroom? What was the problem? No one understood their love but them…just them.
And in the midst of the crowd, they finally feel the touch of their hands. No head-butts, only hands. In their hands, they hug. And in their hug, they kiss. And the kiss was as eternal as their love could ever be.