The Fourth of July

What will happen when a love story goes bad? Read to find out!

I was dancing along the beach in a crowd of people, laughing. I didn't know why I was laughing but I knew I didn't care. My hands were out stretched towards the sky as I spun around, repeatedly. I felt as if it was just me, the sand and the ocean until I felt a hand grab my wrist and pull me to the person. I giggled as I opened my eyes and smiled, softly. "Ma Belle(My Beautiful)." "Mon Amour(My Love)." He cocked a half smile before gently planting a kiss on my lips. Then he spun me out and I began to twirl again. "Dance, Dance Ma Belle." I grabbed my skirt and spun even more until I clasped into the sand.

I looked at him and then fell back onto the ground as the crowd continued to dance around me as if nothing happened. "Ma Belle, Je t'aime(I love you)." "Je t'aime..." I whispered as I closed my eyes. Being on this beach with the love of my life was the most amazing moment of my life. "Ma Belle, the fireworks." He said in a thick french accent. My eyes shot open as I sat up and watched the fireworks explode in the midnight sky. It glimmered against the ocean as a reflection. "Mon Amour! Is it beautiful, no?" "It is but not as beautiful as you, Ma Belle." He lowered his self to the sand to sit next to me.

In that moment I knew I found my soul mate. "Tu es mon âme soeur(You are my soul mate)...." I whispered as I leaned into his ear. He closed his eyes and embraced the moment. "Et vous êtes pour moi(And you are to me)..." He said in a soft voice. He reached his hand over and caressed the side of my face and then cupped my chin in his palm. I nuzzled my chin against the palm of his hand. "Ma Belle may we stay this way forever and ever more." 

My eyes shot opened as my body jolted up from my bed. I placed my face into my hands and began crying. "Why," I yelled. "Why did this happen...." I sobbed into my hands a little while longer until I heard the knob of my door turn. "Mommy why are you yelling? You woke me up." The little girl rubbed her right eye as she moved closer to my bed. "Mommy just had a bad dream thats all." "Was it about daddy?" "It always about daddy." She crawled into my bed and laid her head on my lap. "Mommy I wish I could stop the bad dreams." "I know baby, I know." I ran my hands through her hair as I laid back down. We both began to fall asleep again.

"Ma Belle!" I heard him say from behind me. "Mon Amour!" I weeped in pure joy to see his face. "I thought you were dead." "No you've only dreamt it. I am here aren't I?" "No but I saw you get shot and, and there was so much blood." I stared at my hands as if the blood was still there. "No I was never shot, see?" He ran his hand over his shirt and began to pull it up. "No it can't be ... I thought... it ....no..." I broke down to the floor and he came to my side and held me. His masculine hand brushed against my hair. "Ma Belle I will never leave, You are my soul mate remember?" "Yes but ...The beach ...the guy ...and the blood it was every where and then you didn't breathe anymore." "It never happened..." I cried even harder knowing this must be another nightmare to remind of what I lost. I cried so hard I woke up crying.

My daughter was sound asleep in my lap, she looked like an angel, so peaceful and serene. I wiped the tears from my eyes as flashes of Mon Amour dying in my arms went through my mind. I remember him carassing my face as if it was a delicate rose that needed to be handed with care. Then all of a sudden bullets were being shot. I heard yelling. "Give us what we want and no one will get hurt!" The guy shot another bullet into the air. "Everyone to the ground and wallets and jewelry out." Everyone did as he said but I knew that my Mon Amour wouldn't stand for this. He was always the heroic type when I wish he was the type to sometimes give up. 

As the guys went through the crowd with their guns they took wallet after wallet, jewelry after jewelry until they came to us. "Where is your wallet and jewelry? Did you not listen? I said take it out!" He pointed the gun to him. "You are nothing but punks." Mon amour hissed in his thick french accent. "Punks eh?" The guy put the gun to his chest. "I would rather die then give into the whims of a criminal." "Well if you won't give it willing then I will just take it from you." When the guy leaned over to take what he wanted, Mon Amour tried to take the gun away from him. They had a struggle as the guy tried to use his puny strength against my muscular Mon Amour. The guy fell to the ground and Mon Amour had the gun in his hand. As he was about to take control the situation the guy from behind fired. His blood spewed over the robber and me.

I screeched and flung myself over his fallen body. "Mon Amour! No this can't be." His chest heaved. "Ma Belle be safe...." He pressed his hand against my cheek, weakly. "No, no you will be okay.." "Je vous aime âme soeur (I love you, soulmate)..." He smiled a little at me. "Mon Amour, Je t'aime trop..." I tried to smile but I guess it looked more like a worried face because he told me not to worry because he would see me again one day. "I want to be with you now!" I yelled. "It wasn't mea-.." He started to choke and cough before he could finish what he was saying. I saw him gasp for air and then his body went still. 

I laid my head on his chest and began to cry. The robbers fled the scene so they wouldn't be caught for murder. I blinked my eyes and I was back in my room without realizing it I was crying. I whispered to myself "I will never forget that 4th of July... He proposed to me that night..." I spoke it as if someone was listening but no one was because my daughter was still sleeping. I closed my eyes and I fell back to sleep.

The dream started all over again. I was dancing in the middle of the crowd, twirling around. I felt his hand again. "Ma Bella!" "David..." I whispered.