Chapter 79
Cajabamba, Peru. One Month Later.
Fernando Aguilar and his wife Teresa de Torres sat opposite Esme and Aurelia on the balcony the afternoon they arrived Cajabamba.
The couple were friends of her parents. And they had agreed to provide Esme and Aurelia an accommodation in their estate for as long as they were willing to stay.
When they arrived in the morning at few minutes after nine, their hosts had showed them to the flat they were to stay. The chauffeur who brought them from the airport at Cajamarca wheeled their boxes away into the flat that appeared to be a bedroom, a sitting room, a bathroom and toilet, and a kitchen.
“Rest up,” Teresa said to them, a genial smile on her rosy lips. “Meet us for lunch so we can catch up, no?”
“There’s no rush. After taking two consecutive flights in two days, you’re bound to feel so tired.” Fernando gave them a boyish grin.
Esme and Aurelia thanked them profusely before getting into the flat.
The past one month felt like an eternity. So much had transpired.
At the family meeting the day after they liberated Aurelia from the convent, Don Alonzo and Doña Beatriz had apologised to their children for all the lies. Don Alonzo went on to assure Carlos he would always see him as a son.
Don Alonzo stated that although Carlos was as much of a de la Cruz as Esme was, she was the true heir. It had to be someone with the “de la Cruz blood.” And any children she had would be the ones who got the hacienda.
Carlos did not seem to mind this. “You’re the only father I have ever known. And I’m grateful for all the opportunities you gave me all my life. Thank you so much, Father.”
Doña Beatriz explained why she never connected with Esme. This seemed like a huge thing, and she felt she needed to clarify things in order to dispel any form of animosity. To end her explanation, she said, “You’re not interested in the shallow things I like,” Doña Beatriz had said. This caused the other three to laugh.
All was forgiven, and they promised to be stronger as a family. Esme said, “It’s not necessarily blood that makes family. It is people who love and accept themselves. And you all have been supportive of my choice to be with a woman I’m in love with. This is all the family I need.”
Despite being cheesy, they all shared a group hug.
Esme then went on to tell them about her plans to leave Puerto Cruz and live in some country in South America.
Right there and then, Don Alonzo started making moves to process Esme and Aurelia’s travel documents.
The next day, Doña Beatriz, Esme, and Aurelia got talking. Aurelia asked that she phoned her mother, so she could tell her she was safe at the hacienda.
Her mother was overjoyed at the news. Later that afternoon, she drove down to the hacienda to see Aurelia.
Their reunion was so beautiful to watch. Natalia apologised to her daughter for being passive, and seeming as though she did not support her. “I should have stood up to your father more,” she said.
That was when Aurelia told her of her plans to leave the country with Esme.
Her mother was shocked at first, but Aurelia told her it was for the best. That way, they would be far away from people who knew them. The news of the cancelled wedding was already rife, and there were several rumors attached to it. Staying in Puerto Cruz would only make them feel uneasy.
Natalia promised to bring Aurelia’s passport to her the next day.
And by the end of the week, Doña Beatriz and Natalia had become friends.
Emboldened by her subsequent conversations about gender equality with Doña Beatriz, Natalia decided it was time to quit her abusive marriage. There was no point staying any longer, she told her new gal pal.
With the help of a lawyer Doña Beatriz hired, Natalia’s divorce journey was set in motion within two weeks.
Villalobos was irate! He disowned Aurelia. This happened through a phone call Aurelia put across to him. Before he hung up, Aurelia told him, “Better to be free of you! You are not my father, Emiliano Villalobos!”
Don Alonzo had advised Aurelia not to leave the hacienda for her own safety. He was not certain what Villalobos could do.
The Saturday before their trip, Simona and Maria-Luisa came over to the hacienda to see Esme. They shared laughter just like they did in the past. Esme insisted that they met Aurelia.
With the four of them seated in the patio, they talked about so many different things. Aurelia confessed to them how Esme had always fascinated her. She went on to tell them there were times she was close to talking with them, so they could tell her about Esme, but she had thought against it because she did not want to ruin her reputation.
“We were teenagers back then,” Maria-Luisa chuckled gently. “I guess we all did not know better.”
“And about Lucia,” Aurelia said even when they had not asked. This got piqued their interest. “She and I had something like a thing that holiday before that term where she you know.” She went on to tell them the truth about Lucia threatening to out her. Telling that lie about her was in a bid to protect herself. That way, if Lucia said anything about Aurelia kissing her, everyone would dismiss it as Lucia’s bid to tell a desperate lie about Aurelia.
“So we were not wrong to hate you. You could have taken back the rumor,” Simona said.
“I could have acted differently. I felt bad about it for the longest time. I still do feel bad when I think about it.”
“Lucia was not so innocent herself,” Maria-Luisa quipped. “I might have done the same thing you did, Aurelia. It wasn’t your fault that the girls loved salacious rumor.”
“Babe, you didn’t know better.” Esme linked their fingers together.
“You two look so cute together. You’re going to make me want to find a woman for myself.” Maria-Luisa beamed at them.
Simona turned to look at her. “Are you gay, too? Am I the only straight one here?”
“I like who I like.” Maria-Luisa smirked at her.
They all smiled at that.
Few of Aurelia’s close friends came to pay her a visit at the hacienda on Sunday. Simona and Maria-Luisa were still around. They had a little party – just for Aurelia and Esme’s friends.
Their flight was meant for Wednesday night, and after the sad hugs and goodbyes from her parents, Almudena, some members of the staff at about 5:30 PM., Esme, Aurelia, and Carlos were headed to the airport.
Before Carlos left them at the airport in Almeria, he expressed to Aurelia how sorry he was for the umpteenth time.
“It’s fine, Carlos.” She smiled at him before giving him a hug. “Everything has happened as it should happen.”
When they broke apart, Esme stepped closer to hug her brother, and said, “I can’t imagine saying this, but I love you.”
“I love you, sis.”
Esme managed to hold off her tears as she watched him walk away.
She consoled herself with the knowledge that they could always talk on the phone, and they would not be away for too long. Surely, they were going to return to the hacienda in the future.
They were to take two flights.
The first was from Almeria to Lima.
Then the second was from Lima to Cajamarca.
Fernando had sent a chauffeur to meet them at the airport.
While Aurelia slept through the ride, Esme was awake. She took in the scenery leading down to the countryside where their hosts’ estate was located.
Soon, the car drove in through the large gate of a large compound. In the distance, she could see a big house painted in grey and beige. It was not as big as the home she grew up in, anyway.
“Hey, babe, we’re here.” Esme nudged Aurelia.
Aurelia gently moved away from Esme’s shoulder. “Was I asleep for long?”
“Yes, babe.”
Aurelia chuckled. “I must have missed the scenery.”
“There’ll be time for that later on.”
Fernando and his wife, Teresa, welcomed them as though they were relatives.
Esme and Aurelia were to stay in one of the many guesthouses in the estate.
After freshening up, Aurelia and Esme met up with the Aguilars as they agreed.
The day went by swiftly as they traded stories that helped them in being better acquainted with themselves.
Teresa said she thought it was brave of them to be honest about their love.
As they talked, Aurelia pitched him a business idea she and Esme would love to engage in. “A bookstore that doubles as a cafe,” she said.
Esme reached out to squeeze Aurelia’s hands. The Aguilars smiled at them fondly.
At night, after saying their goodnights, Esme and Aurelia took a stroll to their apartment.
“So, this is us,” Aurelia said, stepping into Esme’s arms the moment they shut the door behind them.
They soon made their way to the bedroom.
There, Esme pulled Aurelia close to her, and nuzzled her ear. “I’m glad to be here with you.”
“I’m happy I chose you.”
“And I’ll keep choosing you in all our lifetimes, all through eternity.”
Aurelia leaned in to kiss Esme. The kiss was gentle and laid back.
When they broke apart, Aurelia said, “I’ll always be in love with you. Nothing can change that.”
“I’ll always be in love with you.”
“You’ll do this life thing with me, yes?”
“Are you asking what I think you’re asking?” Tears pooled about Esme’s eyes.
Aurelia nodded. She stepped away from Esme’s embrace, and went to her purse that was on the table. She took something out of it.
Esme figured what was happening and took hasty steps to her own box. She opened the side zip and fished out a blue box.
They were standing before each other with huge smiles on their faces.
“This belonged to my abuela Carmen.” She fished out a diamond ring and held it up for Aurelia to see. It caught light from the florescent bulb in the room.
Aurelia held a gold ring up towards Esme. “This belonged to my mother. It was passed down to her from her own abuela. She was meant to give it to Martin, my brother, but she thought I should get it instead. That ‘C’ you see engraved on it is the initial of her family name, Calderón.”
“Okay, I don’t mind being Esmeralda Rosaria Calderón y de la Cruz.”
“I think Aurelia Estefanía Calderón de la Cruz would not be a bad idea, either.”
Giggling like two schoolgirls, they wore the rings on each other’s fingers.
“I love you,” Esme said. “Come what may, through the good and the bad. I am yours for all of eternity. And in other lives, promise me we will find each other.”
“I promise you that.” Aurelia’s eyes shone with unshed happy tears.
“I love you,” Esme said once more.
When Aurelia opened her mouth to reply, Esme leaned in to kiss her gently.
This kiss was Esme’s way of sealing the deal with Aurelia.
This would be the first kiss they would share to mark the beginning of their lives together as the Calderón y de la Cruz couple. The story of their love would inspire many others, making them understand that love happens, and when it comes calling, we must not turn back, we must just go with it when every part of us tells us it feels right.