I climb up to the thickest part of the tree and rest between the crook of the branch and the trunk. Ella situates herself across from me on a parallel branch, bringing us knee to knee.
“There, no one will find us up here,” she whispers.
“You mean, me?” I remind her.
“I mean us,” she says. “I’m by your side, Luka.”
The synchronized march of boots grows in volume in the distance, clacking horseshoes, and motorized vehicles, just asshe’d warned. I stare through a small window of leaves, out to the street to see if I can sneak a glance at what they’re doing.
“Men are exiting their buildings with a suitcase in hand like Father and Grandfather.” The thought of why I hadn’t been pulled for labor keeps me up at night, fearing that the longer I go, the worse it will be when I am called. “They’ve come to take away more men…”
Ella understands my concern for where they’ve gone, how they are, if they are surviving, and the guilt I live with. I hate to remind her, but it’s a reality I can’t ignore. “It’s still only a matter of time before they come for me.”
Ella stares at me with grief swelling through her blue eyes. I don’t want her to pity me. I don’t want that to be the reason she wants to spend time with me. “But you haven’t gotten a letter, so it’s not today,” she snaps, before taking in a shuddered breath. She tries to conceal her worry, but I see it.
Ella tugs at my arm, pulling my attention away from the awful sight in the distance. “Tell me how you find the energy to sing every night with what’s happening around us? Your voice is always filled with such hope and happiness, contrasting the despair within everyone who watches you. You give them—us—so much more than you realize.”
“When I sing, I forget about the pain and worry. I block out the suffering and hunger and imagine the world I paint in my dreams at night. It’s hard to explain.”
“You just did,” she says. “That’s what your songs do to me, too.”
The marching soldiers are so close, the branches rattle around us. A shouting slew of insults rips through the air toward a Jewish person, following a demand to turn around. Hardly a second passes before a gunshot pierces the air.
Ella startles and clutches her chest, and fear appears in her eyes, one I haven’t seen before. I take her hands and hold themin mine, both of us staring at one another as the freight train of evil passes us by. Her hands are warm and trembling. Mine might be, too. My heart’s racing so hard it’s stealing my breath.
Ella’s branch crackles and makes her jump, releasing my hands to hold onto the tree trunk. I grab her arm and swing her over to my side, knowing the branch I’m on can hold us both. I wrap my arm around her and hold on tightly. She’s breathing so hard as she presses her cheek to my chest. I close my eyes and sing softly into her ear:
Whenever you smile
It’s no real surprise
I could stare for a while
When souls collide
Like yours and mine
It’s a sign, can’t be denied
I think this must be love
What else could it be…
Only the sky sings from above
So, darling, the answer’s clear to me
The commotion has moved past us by the time I finish singing the short verses, but she’s still holding on to me with all her might.
“Did you write that one?” she utters.
A rush of heat envelops my neck and crawls up my cheeks. “I did. You see…I’m quite taken with you.”
She touches her fingers to her chest, and her glimmering eyes question if it’s truly her I was singing to.
A thunder cloud rumbles above us and the air thickens with moisture seconds before rain trickles through the leaves. I yankmy coat open around her to shield her from the rain, but she lifts her head above the collar, staring up into my eyes. My gaze is helplessly drawn to her lips, desperate to close the space between us.
I shouldn’t pull her into my world. It’s wrong. It’s unfair to her.
