Death of Sappho

Aylin Louvel

by Aylin Louvel

Story

“Someone will remember us, I say, even in another time” ― Sappho 

Rain was running down her skin, her hair stuck to her face. He was watching her expectingly, a million thoughts whirled in his head. “I did it because I wanted to live. I wanted to live in the conversations of people, in the minds of poets and hearts of painters, and those are too many lives I yearned to live”. That was it. The reason she had done it. “I didn’t need solutions or therapists, I needed comfort”. Achilles realised she carried a longing so profound, it killed her. Sometimes one had to break their own heart to save their soul, but she carried too much and realised too late. He kept quiet, and she continued “We are all born to die, some of us choose when to go”. Could it really be as simple as accepting death without worrying about the consequences, the missed chances, and the experiences still to be had? When hopelessness sets in, everything else fades into the background. He understood her feelings of hopelessness and the yearning for an escape. Life often became overwhelming for people their age. She wrote how she truly felt about life. She wrote art with pieces of her mind and soul, and he got lost in translation, trying to figure out who Khali Drewitt was. In another universe they would be sitting in class together, not in front of her grave. Their stories crossed the sands of time, and she whispered her secrets into his heart like echoes. She found her purpose though it came with ache, she still found it. “I don’t know my purpose, I haven’t found it,” he said, his voice tinged with sadness, a gut crushing lonesome emotion that she was all too familiar with. He anticipated her to start crying, he could tell that she was holding back tears, but she smiled at him, she smiled so softly it filled him with warmth. “How exciting, to know that you are the author of your own journey. With each step and every decision, you carve out a destiny that you choose in that very moment”. As she gazed into the distance, the sun emerged more prominently in the evening sky, and the rain began to slow in intensity. He knew that she was trying to cheer him up, but he was too far into his demise. The mere act of being human is exhausting but having to live was even worse, and he held a sincere conviction in this belief. “What if no one remembers us?” a pause “Someone will remember us Achilles, even in another time”. It was Sappho that she was referencing, and then it hit him. She remembered. She remembered the first time they had met, at the gallery in front of Salvos’ “Death of Sappho”, and she remembered his name. They held eye contact and the world faded. “No matter where you are, Khali,” he whispered, “I’ll find you. I promise, I’ll find you stranger”. A tear ran down the skin on her face, tracing its way past her freckles towards her neck. She laughed “I’ll wait stranger”. In the blink of an eye she was gone. The wind was still gentle, the sun still shone, and the rain continued to feel cold. Achilles’ heart felt as light as a feather. It was as if Khali had borne away the pain and sorrow he had carried, leaving him with a sense of comfort. He stood gazing at the sky, and there she was. She became the sunset you’d take pictures of.



© Aylin Louvel 2023-08-26

Genres
Novels & Stories