Christian got up eagerly jumped from his seat the moment Satine had left his view. He pushed himself past the crowd trying desperately to keep focus on the dance hall incase she came back out. Satie and the other bohos were so drunk that they didn't even bother to get up from their own seats to follow Christian.
Christian eventually got around to the front of the Moulin Rouge and crossed to enormous wooden floor to the opposite wall. He edged his way among all the can-can and tango dancers until he was able to reach the back hallway. Being careful not to be seen, for it was against the rules to go backstage, Christian crept against the wall, through the door, and into another hallway.
Christian kept himself quiet until he reached the end of this hallway and was out of sight from the guards. The hallway was pitch black except for the speck of light that came from the end of the Hallway, letting Christian know that that was were he needed to go, and it appeared to becoming from someone's dressing room. What if that's her dressing room?? Christian thought to himself as he deviously slipped down the hall.
When he had finally reached the end, he pulled away from the wall and peeked down the hallway to his right to make sure that not a single soul was approaching him. When he was sure that no one was coming he quietly came up the dressing room door that lay ajar. He heard a tiny voice coming from inside the room, it was a women and she was crying. Christian, feeling horrible for this poor soul, knocked on her door. He could tell by the upcoming silence that the women was trying to hide her tears. Christian opened the door slightly, letting more light hit the dark hallway. The women turned to face him and Christian backed against the door.
"What do you want?" The women asked with a slight snuffle in her voice. Christian studied the women over and realized that was her, it was Satine…..the girl of his dreams. She was there, right in front of him and how he wanted to hold her and comfort her for she looked so forlorn.
"I….I am sorry mam, I, uh, heard you crying and wanted to see what was the matter," Christian grabbed the top hat off his head and held it in his hands as he looked down at the floor. Satine turned back to the mirror and wiped away her remaining tears. Christian slowly came closer to her. "If you want me to leave then I will," Christian assured her in a gentle voice.
"No, it's….it's alright. Just….sit down, uh, here," Satine dabbed her handkerchief at her face as she patted on the bed and motioned for him to sit.
"Do you mind if I ask you what is wrong?" Christian asked, sitting on the bed and staring right at Satine. Satine quickly perked up and sat up straight. She played with the handkerchief as she spoke to him in reply.
"No one could possibly help me," Satine once again took the handkerchief to her eye and wiped more tears away. "You see, I……I….I'm just so…" Satine took a deep breath. She wasn't ready to reveal her biggest secret to some one she had just met but who else would she tell? "Lonely," Satine heaved out and looked deep down into the rug. Christian tried with all his might to comfort her and even attempted to put his arm around her but Satine, instead, got up from her seat and walked to the mirror on her vanity.
"Everyone's lonely sometimes…" Christian alleged, with a slight chuckle in his words. Satine turned to look at him as if he had just offended her, which, according to her, he had.
"Look, if your going to make fun of me for my problems then you can just leave!" Satine shout but it had turned to a small whisper as she folded her right arm under her left. Christian looked down at the floor.
"I am sorry, Your right," Christian apologized. "So please, tell me more," Christian looked back up at her. Satine smiled at herself in the mirror and turned back to Christian on the bed.
"I once thought I was in love, his name was Geurin, but he left me, for….for….Violette and you see I have never really been in love." Satine took a deep breath and looked at the floor. " No one has ever loved me before, and now I am left hurt from Geurin and Harold wants me to seduce an evil man named Harbin….." Satine trailed off in sadness. Christian looked at her dumbfounded.
"Harbin, Harbin the warrior? Why, he is not at all evil!" Christian exclaimed. Satine looked at him with horror.
"Well you obviously don't know him! He is evil and will do anything to have me but I won't have him….that's….that's not the love I want," Satine shouted once again as it turned into a slight whisper. Christian studied the top of hat and looked back up at her. "I just need something, someone, anything in my life that is not horrible," satine wiped away some stray tears. Christian walked up to her and looked her in the eyes. He pulled out a folded piece of paper and began to softly read it to her.
The Lovers
The lovers say nothing.
Love is the finest of the silences,
the one that trembles most and is hardest to bear.
The lovers are looking for something.
The lovers are the ones who abandon,
the ones who change, who forget.
Their hearts tell them that they will never find.
They don't find, they're looking.
The lovers wander around like crazy people
because they're alone, alone,
surrendering, giving themselves to each moment,
crying because they don't save love.
They worry about love. The lovers
live for the day, it's the best they can do, it's all they know.
They're going away all the time,
all the time, going somewhere else.
They hope,
not for anything in particular, they just hope.
They know that whatever it is they will not find it.
Love is the perpetual deferment,
always the next step, the other, the other.
The lovers are the insatiable ones,
the ones who must always, fortunately, be alone.
The lovers are the serpent in the story.
They have snakes instead of arms.
The veins in their necks swell
like snakes too, suffocating them.
The lovers can't sleep
because if they do the worms ear them.
They open their eyes in the dark
and terror falls into them.
They find scorpions under the sheet
and their bed floats as though on a lake.
The lovers are crazy, only crazy
with no God and no devil.
The lovers come out of their caves
trembling, starving,
chasing phantoms.
They laugh at those who know all about it,
who love forever, truly,
at those who believe in love as an inexhaustible lamp.
The lovers play at picking up water,
tattooing smoke, at staying where they are.
They play the long sad game of love.
None of them will give up.
The lovers are ashamed to reach any agreement.
Empty, but empty from one rib to another,
death ferments them behind the eyes,
and on they go, they weep toward morning
in the trains, and the roosters wake into sorrow.
Sometimes a scent of newborn earth reaches them,
of women sleeping with a hand on their sex, contented,
of gentle streams, and kitchens.
The lovers start singing between their lips
a song that is not learned.
And they go on crying, crying
for beautiful life.
Satine smiled at him and turned back o the mirror.
"Look at this, we have just met and you are already reading me love poems," Satine smiled, laughing slightly. "I don't even know your name," Satine looked back at Christian who smiled in return.
"Christian," Satine smiled and turned back to the mirror.
"Well, Christian, I suggest you leave before Harold comes….and do me a favor, never mention us talking," Christian's smiled faded from his face as he looked at her in disbelief. "No one is to ever figure out my problem and if they found out I had talked to you well then, Harbin might have you killed and I don't want that," Satine looked at him lovingly. Christian walked over to the doorway. Satine watched him through the mirror and saw that he was heartbroken and it hurt her, but what was she to do??
Christian took a deep breath and was about to walk out when something popped in his mind. He had no idea where it came from but when he tried ignoring it, it wouldn't leave his head. My gift is my song! played over in his head. He turned back to face Satine. Satine turned around to face him and was beginning to get annoyed.
"Please, Just leave," She went after him, but Christian just stared at her making her stop.
My Gift is my song
And this one is for you
And you can tell everybody
That this is your song
An it may be quite simple but now that it's done
Hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is now you're in the world
Sat on the roof and I kicked off the moss
Some of these verses, well they got me quite cross
But the suns been kind while I wrote this song
It's for people like you that keep it turned on
So excuse forgetting but these things I do
You seen I've forgotten if they are green or they're blue
Anyway the thing is what I really mean
Yours are the sweetest eyes I ever seen!
And you can tell everybody
This is your song
And it may be quite simple but now that it's done
I hope you don't mind
I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is now your in the world!
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Please review guys so that I will post more!!
The Poem: The Lovers was written by: Jaime Sabines and Translated By: W.S. Merwin