Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 4567 | Page 286

A Forbidden Romance
St. Margaret's Co-Educational English Secondary and Primary School (Secondary Section), Ho, Kyra – 15
E
lliot Thompson. It's been almost 8 months since I've last seen him. I was starting to think he wasn't coming
back, but the long awaited day is finally here. Today is the day he said he is to return. I waited 6 long months
for his promised letter to be mailed to me. I was starting to lose faith in it ever making it here. I often wondered
if he had forgotten about his word to me, or if he had simply forgotten about me. But there in his letter in his very
own writing, it read he would be arriving here in Shanghai on the 20th of August, 1838. And after months and
months of waiting, here he comes, exiting the ship along with his colleagues. I limp up to him as he steps foot on
the harbor. He chuckles at my struggle to run around in my lotus shoes. He would always call them silly and say
they looked like shoes that belonged to elves. Whatever those were.
"I've missed you Liang Qiujin," Elliot says just as I come up to him.
"I've missed you." I reply. He leans in for a hug but I take a step back. "Not here." I shyly break a smile and look
into his blue grey eyes that I adore. He smiles back in acknowledgment. Elliot and his three friends all follow me
into town from a distance. He and his friends bought a big house near the port the last time they were here, as they
were told they would be starting to come more and more often in the months to come. This part of town isn't
necessarily the friendliest, or the safest. And although I told him not to buy the house here many times, he did
anyway. He told me they liked this location because it was near the coast, but I knew he was lying.
I try my best to go through alleys instead of open streets, and take some long routes instead of shortcuts just in case
any of my Baba's officers are patrolling those areas. Once we're at the street their house is on, I duck my head so
my Nainai's friends working in the food stalls won't see me. Elliot and his friends followed about 10 steps behind
me. I open the door with the key he gifted me the last time he was here and enter their house. They follow several
seconds after and begin to settle in. The house looks a lot less homely than I remember. There used to be a nicely
carved wooden table in the middle of their dining room, it's now replaced with a cheap wooden table struggling
to stand on its own. The walls used to hold bright white wallpaper and now it's ripped down in random places and
there's even a slight dent in the wall. I can still see the little red spots on the floor that I tried to clean up. At least
the beautiful hand crafted sofa is still intact.
"What are you thinking about?" Elliot startles me with his hands on my shoulders and his head rested on top of
mine, interrupting my thoughts.
"Nothing. You're going to mess up my hair." I laugh and break away from his grip. My Nainai just fixed it into a
sleek bun. She is going to question why my hair would’ve gotten messy. I turn around and these boys are already
starting to heat up the opium on the carpet in front of their sofa.
"Will you be joining us Liang?" Harry asked, one of Elliot's friends. His wound I sewed up for him on his right arm
is starting to look better; it’s healing well.
"Yes I will." I straighten out my dress as I sit on the floor, joining Elliot. Scott is rolling the opium while Eli heats
and softens them for him, the other two friends of Elliot's. Harry's lying down, holding their pipe as Elliot helps
heat the opium for him. Soon there's enough for everyone and the pipe gets passed around. We're all lying down
on the carpet and helping one another heat the bowl. Inhale. Exhale. The opium hisses and fizzes; until we've all
had a chance. There's five of us in the room but I feel as if I'm alone, relaxed and warm, lost in my own thoughts.
THUD. I'm awakened by a loud noise. "Sshhh." I hear someone shush. I flicker my eyes open and see a mess across
the floor near the table. I turn my head and see the dark night through the windows. Oh no. "What time is it?" I
panic and quickly stand up.