You made it to the end, my friend! Told you it wouldn't be too bad! Now I sit and await your final thoughts :)
This wasn't the last time he spent the night. They enjoyed their secret liaisons whenever he could sneak away from his living quarters. They taught each other many things and it was with each other that they nourished very healthy sexual appetites. Their visits continued, albeit quite sporadically, even after he left for the City to continue his education at King's College. He took advantage of school breaks whenever he could to return to the small shop where he first felt her gentle touch. When they were together, it was as if time stood still and no one else existed but them. It was within these stolen moments that they had fallen in love, but they knew that their affair was not meant to last.
As he moved on to pursue great things as a commanding general, esteemed lawyer, the country's first treasury secretary, and the founder of the Coast Guard, she went on to operate the sewing shop in which she worked as a young woman. She had inspired him to fight fervently against the evils of slavery, writing passionate essays urging for its abolishment, joining the New York Manumission Society, and eventually extending his law services to aid free Blacks in the City. She also wrote a number of essays in support of the abolishment of slavery and women's rights that went on to be published under a pseudonym. She had read just about everything he published while, unbeknownst to her, he had done the same. She watched and marveled at how he had achieved all that he had set out to. He was amazed, but not surprised, that her adeptness and pure acumen had catapulted her to the forefront of the small business, for she owned the first Black-owned business in her town.
As time passed, they drifted apart somewhat, as most teenaged lovers do. But they thought of each other quite often. Truth be told, they missed each other terribly. If only they were in another time, or in another place, it might've been ok for them to have made a life together. They both married at roughly the same time. The wife he had chosen was a decent and pure woman, possessing many of the same qualities that she had. And although they might've been married to other people, whom they cared for, they always believed deep down that they were made to love one another.
Their letters to each other were few and far between, but they made it a point to keep in touch nonetheless. It saddened her to hear his contemporaries drag his name through the mud. She knew that despite some of the messes he might have been involved in, he was still a good and honest man. And her heart was broken when he was killed. It had been over 30 years since their first time, and she couldn't imagine the once vibrant and energetic red-headed kid who had captivated her all those years ago lifeless. She garnered enough strength to attend his funeral, bringing along her eldest son, a young man of about 30. She waited for the crowds to dissipate and then slowly approached his coffin. Her son held her hand as she placed a single rose upon his it, dabbing the streaks from her tears with a handkerchief he'd given her years ago during their affair. He watched his mother bring her fingers to her lips and placed them gently a top his tomb. And as she started toward the exit of the Trinity Church graveyard, the young man continued to gaze upon the General's wooden casket, bearing the same eyes that had once stolen his mother's heart.
This concludes part 1 of a 3 part story illustrating Hannah and Alex. There's a bit more to come!