Vigil

By Gimpy

Anxious eyes drink in the slow ragged movements of the second hand as it takes its sweet time. Each lap around the massive grandfather clock equaled another wasted minute of her time. It was never her custom to simply sit around and wait for life to take hold. Her body wasn't used to simply sitting, her legs cramping at the thought let alone the action. Yet here she was, perched vicariously in her favorite chair adjacent to the fireplace.

Why? She didn't have the courage or the gull to explain it. The reasoning seemed almost trivial to her, more so embarrassing actually. A proud woman in every sense, she would never admit to the frivolity of her actions. The superficial world wasn't hers to delve in, a contradiction in and of itself considering her age. That was her legacy in the throws of the grapevine, a girl far older then her years. Life has this nagging, frustrating way of doing that to people and she was no exception.

She was on her fourth hour now and the thought of leaving had crossed her mind several times. Once again she lacked the conviction, afraid she'd missed the moment those four hours had been spent waiting for. The sun had faltered in its trek across the sky long ago, dipping into the horizon. What little light the newly born moon had left fell victim to a blanket of sour clouds, blocking the soft rays of light it had left.

With a tempered sigh she came to the humbled conclusion that her quest would never come. A groan flowed from her lips echoing her numbed limbs. Every movement was met with agonizing pricks, as her muscles were forced awake. Stretching as best she could in the oversized chair, she attempted to stand. Grinning in the wake of success she moved to kill the last embers before she headed off to bed.

Her small gloved hand grasped the metallic poker gently and she angled it into the large opening. Entranced by the simple beauty of the light slowly dying off, she dragged out the procedure basking in its hues. Why did the life outside of this moment have to be so cruel? Something so simplistic gave her more pleasure then every proceeding moment before it and she found herself praying that she wasn't the only one to experience it.

Sighing contently she grasped her shimmering afghan off the back of the chair and pulled its corners tightly around her shoulders. The need to sleep still eluded the lithe girl. She opted instead to linger down the halls, allowing herself to simply lounge as best she could. It was freeing to move to at her own pace with out repose. There was no hurry to curl up under the warmth of her covers, she'd still wake up before her alarm even thought of letting go it's shrill cry. She'd always lacked the ability to sleep in, a curse or a blessing, depending on the days.

Tonight would be no different then the others she'd spent wandering the hallowed halls deep into the oblivion of night. Taking one last fleeting glance at the large double doors she allowed the softest smile to grace her tender lips. However bittersweet her time spent before the fire tended to be she would never lose hope. It seemed ingrained in her very soul to wait for the man who'd claimed her very soul. Not even the persistent hands on the clock could detour her.