The maiden first met the stranger as the sun bid goodbye to the skies, dipping into the horizon with the promise to rise again when morning came.
The stranger stood out amongst the crowds of people on the beach– families gathered around picnic baskets, children squealed and jumped on the sand or played in the waves, yet the stranger merely stood at the edge of the beach with a pensive expression.
It had not crossed the maiden's mind to approach the stranger– after all, they do not know each other. Yet, when she decided she had enough of the beach for the day, the maiden couldn't help but compliment the stranger as she passed by.
“I love your dress. Where did you buy it from?”
The stranger turned to face the maiden with a small smile.
“My mother made it.”
We have the same nose. The maiden thought, watching the stranger talk with a calm, melodic voice.
The stranger was not overly beautiful– with large eyes that unsettled her, hair as dark as soot and limbs that were too lanky, the stranger seemed to be otherworldly.
An odd puzzle piece that didn't fit in the picture of her world.
But the maiden enjoyed the stranger's company, anyway.
They became fast friends over time. The stranger would always wait for the maiden on the seashore every sunset with the same mysterious smile.
“I'd like to be a fashion designer someday.”
The maiden passed her sketches to the stranger, who appraised the designs and gave suggestions after suggestions for improvement. After a long, stretched out moment of silence, the stranger finally spoke.
“What's stopping you? You have all the talent. It would be a waste if you do not chase your dreams.”
In every meeting, they would spend hours chatting, laughing over little anecdotes and enjoying each others’ presence until the stars and moon replaced the sun in the sky.
The stranger never lingered for long.
And as years passed and the maiden grew into a beautiful young woman, the stranger still looked the same– black hair, black lipstick, black dress, black eyes. As if in a perpetual state of mourning.
No matter what personal question I ask, you always prevaricate. The maiden huffed in annoyance as the stranger distracted her yet again with an entertaining tale of a misadventure that involved dumplings, an item called a smartphone, a run down car and a group of miscreants.
It annoyed her that the stranger was so good at dodging personal questions.
Too good at it, in fact.
On the maiden's birthday, the stranger appeared on her doorstep with a smile and a book.
“A present for you.” The stranger said, pushing the heavy book into the maiden's hands. “If you find yourself dwelling on a life changing decision, go on and flip it open. It will show your future, should you make or omit said decision.”
Before the maiden could protest, the stranger already walked away, staring warily as the maiden's lover approached her doorstep with an extravagant bouquet of flowers, red, red as blood.
He proposed. The maiden smiled as she laid on her bed, reminiscing about what had happened that day. Should I accept? I told him to give me three days to make a choice…
The maiden dwelled on many things– she was only in her second year of her fashion designing degree. Had she gotten married, she would need to be a housewife to focus on rearing children. That was expected of her, after all.
So why am I hesitant?
The maiden sighed and flipped the book the stranger had given to her with a frown etched on her face, mumbling: “What will happen if I said yes to my lover's proposal?”
To her surprise– and horror– the empty pages began to fill with pictures depicting a marriage, her marriage with her lover.
W-What? This is not how it was supposed to be!
She took in the pictures, and her heart broke into pieces.
I… gave up on my dream. I never became a fashion designer.
He never stayed loyal.
And reduced me to a servant, a maid, a slave and a breeding machine…
Everything is in shambles.
He gambled everything away.
Our children… faced a lot of abuse from both him and me.
By the time the maiden had closed the book, her face was wet with tears.
The maiden returned to the seashore.
The stranger was nowhere to be found.
The maiden chose to reject her lover's proposal.
At that moment, she finally saw him for the monster he was when he lashed out at her and accused her of being “an ungrateful, gold digging woman” who only “took advantage of him”.
She walked away.
The book was right.
And the stranger had just saved her from dooming herself.
The stranger stood on the seashore, admiring the waves lapping at her feet for the last time. The sunset sky, a dazzling tapestry of golds, reds and pinks, seemed like a jab to the melancholy inside her.
This is the last day I get to live. It is done. I changed destiny and saved her.
The stranger looked over her shoulder and watched the maiden approach, the ghost of a smile lingering on her lips.
“You did it.” The stranger nodded in approval, turning around to face the maiden for the last time.
“You knew he was no good to me.” The maiden remarked, eyeing the stranger up and down as if seeking an answer. “Who are you?”
The stranger chuckled and closed her eyes, and a faint glow engulfed her before disappearing.
The maiden gasped.
In the stranger's place, an adorable child now stood, no older than 6.
The same child depicted to be her own inside the wondrous book the stranger had given her, should she had made the decision to marry her ex-lover.
“Hello, Mommy.” The child waved a hand at the maiden, giving the maiden a strained, resigned smile. “In the future when you married that man, my father, you were unhappy. So I came back to the past to stop you from doing so.”
The maiden dropped to her knees, covering her mouth in shock as tears filled her eyes.
No wonder I felt an instant connection to you. In another life, you were my baby.
The child kept on smiling, hugging a bunny soft toy close as she kept her large eyes on the sun, already dipping in the horizon and about to fall into a slumber for the night. Light was rapidly leaving the world, and darkness lurked about. “Now that I've changed the past successfully, you'll be able to chase your dreams and become the fashion designer you've always wanted.”
“And… what will happen to you, little one?”
The maiden questioned, and the child returned her gaze to the maiden. The child took careful steps towards the maiden, leaving small imprints in the sand.
“Now that I've changed your destiny, Mommy, I will cease to exist. Once the sun fully sets, I will disappear.”
“No, no, no, my baby…” The maiden began sobbing, pulling the child into her embrace. “Why are you doing this? You're just a baby, why are you sacrificing yourself?”
“Because I want to see you happy.” The child hugged the maiden close, as if not wanting to let go. “In the future, you've sacrificed everything for me, especially your dreams and happiness. I can't let that happen.”
The maiden caressed the child's hair, a sense of deja vu washing over her.
I knew you in another life. You have the same look in your eyes.
“So, Mommy, please live and be happy. I know being a girl sucks, since we're expected to give away so much and sacrifice endlessly for the sake of men. But in this life, you are free. So fly high. You don't have to chain yourself to my father. He isn't a good man, anyway. You, too, deserve to chase and make your dreams come true. Promise me you will be happy.”
The maiden cupped the child's little face and kissed the pudgy cheeks all over, unable to stop the guilt seizing her heart like a vice.
“I promise. Thank you, little one. Thank you. Thank you for saving Mommy.”
The maiden pulled the child into her embrace one last time as the sun disappeared into the horizon.
“I love you, little one.”
“I love you too, Mommy.”
The child disappeared.
The maiden was now left alone, kneeling on the sand.
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