The Price of Love

Flight is a miraculous thing. The sun warms your back, and you can feel the wisps of clouds through your fingers. The landscape below is a simple wash of color, devoid of any distinctive features. There is only the lush green of land, and the calm blue of water. If you fly closer, you can feel the sea breeze kiss your cheek. The smell of saltwater will fill your lungs, and you can soar. In the sky, there is only beauty and freedom.

I still remember the day I saw her. I felt my heart beating furiously in my chest, and I realized that beauty also exists on the ground. I fell in love. I don’t think anything could have prevented it. In her face, I saw the same beauty I had seen in the air. But our love? Our love for each other carried with it a freedom I had never experienced.

I rushed to tell my father. I wanted to share with him the excitement, the joy, and the freedom of the love I had discovered. I was shocked by his response. He was furious. I had never seen him so angry. He threatened me, his own son, and told me I was never to see her again. I refused. How could I possibly forget her? I saw no reason to give up a person who only enriched my life. My father shook his head and looked at me; eyes filled with disgust and disappointment. He told me he was ashamed to be my father and cast me out.

They held me down by my wrists and my ankles. I saw the knife flash in the corner of my eye. It glinted in the sunlight. It was beautiful in its own way. One slice and then two. I felt nothing. Feathers pooled around me, and tears welled up in my eyes.

My wings are gone. It’s like they’ve taken my soul.