Emily and her husband William returned from the funeral quiet and weary. They had just buried Williams mother, Margaret, Emilys mother-in-law.
«At least shes at peace now, laid to rest beside Father,» William murmured. «She spoke of nothing else in her final days.»
«Yes,» Emily agreed softly. «Though she knew wed never bury her anywhere else, it was all she could think about. Poor Mumthat illness was cruel and relentless.»
The evening passed in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Emilys mind drifted to her youth, before marriage. There had been little joy in it. She had lost both parents youngtragically, in her grandmothers house after Grandads funeral. A fire had broken out that night, and none of them escaped.
Emily had been home with her older brother, Nick, when the news came the next morning. Villagers helped bury their family, whispering that Grandad Thomas had taken his wife and their parents with him.
Nick was seventeen, Emily just thirteen. They clung to each other in the empty house. Nick worked on the farm while Emily studied. Fate had dealt her a harsh hand, and even now, she sometimes struggled to believe it.
Their village was smallonly forty-two cottages. The school had just the younger years, so from age ten, children walked three miles to the next village for lessons. In winter, they cut across the frozen stream to save time. Once, old Mr. Neville had ferried them by horse-cart on Mondays, and theyd stay in the boarding house until Saturday.
But the older boys, led by Jamesthe son of the village chairmanoften preferred to walk home in autumn and spring.
«Anyone heading back after lessons, meet by the benches,» James would say.
Three miles wasnt far, not when they walked together. Alone, the woods were daunting, but in a group, they laughed and teased. The boys had started noticing girls, slipping them notes, asking them to dances at the village hall on weekends.
By Monday, everyone knew who had walked whom home. Back then, the village thrivedfilms were rare, so even adults gathered at the hall for company.
Emily attended that school too. As she grew, the village couldnt help but notice her. She was lovely, angelic, with a voice like honey. Boys of all ages watched her, smitten if she so much as glanced their way.
She was clever, kind, perfect in every wayrare, but true. Her only flaw, if it could be called one, was being an orphan. She lived with Nick, now married to a local girl, Sarah, with a baby son.
Sarah resented Emily. No matter how hard Emily triedhelping with chores, minding the babyshe felt unwanted.
«Ill leave for town after school,» Emily vowed. «Train as a cook. Sarah will never accept me here.»
She never complained to Nick, not wanting to come between him and his wife.
The boys respected Emily, never speaking ill of her. They hoped one day shed choose one of them, though she kept her distance, sweet but reserved.
Then, whispers spreadJames, the chairmans son, and Emily were courting. They walked hand in hand, inseparable. James was tall, broad-shouldered, no longer boyish. He and Emily made a striking pair, deeply in love.
«Two turtledoves,» the village women murmured. «A wedding soon, mark my words.»
But not everyone approved. Jamess parents, Richard and Helen, were against it. Richard, the village chairman, was wealthyfirst to own a car, with a large farm and a motorcycle James now rode.
When Richard learned of his sons romance with an orphan, he was furious.
«Helen, that girls got nothing to her name,» he scoffed. «Living off her brothers charity. James deserves better.»
«I dont know, Richard. Hes smitten. Out with her till all hours. No parents to keep her in checkthough they say shes modest.»
«Ill marry him to the agronomists daughter from the next county. Good family, well-off. Hell come around.»
Richard tried reasoning with James first.
«Son, forget Emily. Ill find you a proper match.»
«I love her,» James said firmly. «Thats final.»
Richard, unused to defiance, grew cunning.
The next day, he visited Sarah.
«Sarah, isnt your auntyour mothers eldest sisterliving alone up north?»
She frowned. «Aunt Clara? Yes, but why?»
«Send Emily there. Ill pay you handsomely.»
Sarah, tempted by money, persuaded Nick.
Reluctantly, Nick put Emily on a train north with a letter and address.
James was heartbroken. He withdrew, barely speaking to his parents. Helen began to regret their meddling.
When James was drafted, he wrote stiff letters home. Near the end of his service, he sent news: hed found a girl and would bring her home.
Richard gloated. «See? First love fades. Well throw a grand wedding.»
The village buzzed with curiosity. When the taxi arrived, everyone gathered.
James stepped out in uniform, then helped a woman in a white dress from the car.
The crowd gasped.
It was Emilymore beautiful than ever, radiant in her finery.
James announced loudly, «Meet my wife.»
The villagers cheered. «True love wins!»
Richard and Helen had no choice but to welcome her.
The wedding was joyous. James and Emily built a happy life, raising two sons. Over time, even his parents adored her. She bore no grudgessome loves are meant to be, no matter the trials.
Years passed. Richard died first, then Helen, grief-stricken. Emily nursed her tenderly, for Helen had become a second mother.
Now, Emily and William sat quietly after the funeral. The house was still.
In time, the pain would ease. Life went on, proving that love, once destined, finds its way.
