She heard the chuckle, unsure which part of what she said he was chuckling at, but the sound regardless was music to her ears. She wanted to hear his full laughter. She wanted to see him smile from ear to ear. And she wanted to be the reason he did. Marta felt him raise her head and before anything else could happen, she felt his lips against hers. Their second kiss. This one lasted a few seconds longer, and Marta’s hands found their way to his chest again, where under the thin fabric of his clean shirt, she could feel the scars on his chest. She knew she couldn’t make that scar disappear, but she hoped she could help him forget about it.

Marta listened intently as Ezra compared them to Romeo and Juliet. It was definitely an accurate representation of their relationship thus far. Forbidden lovers faced with obstacles from every person, place and thing around them. Yet they fought hard and did whatever they could to be together, even if that meant being together in the afterlife. Marta didn’t know what laid ahead of her after she left this life;  it could be a wonderful thing, it could be hell or it could be blank. Everything about her erased from the world. And that thought made Marta live this life to the fullest.

When Ezra said that he thinks she’ll never love her, Marta couldn’t help it. She blurted out, “But I am already starting to fall in love with you...”

After those words left her lips, her eyes widened to the size of tennis balls. The statement was one the most true things she has ever said, but she just couldn’t believe she actually said it. It is one thing to feel these emotions to herself, but it had to be too soon to let others, including the man she was falling for, know. If Marta’s social standings and religion didn’t scare Ezra, she was sure what she just said must have. 

But she wouldn’t deny and she wouldn’t take it back. Marta doesn’t like to lie, so it is rare thing for her to do it. People will call her crazy, say you can’t love someone after knowing them for only a few hours. Everyone would think she lost her mind, except her father. His father knew the minute he met her mother, he would marry her. Henry had just gotten his first job in the big city. He was a mail boy in a big law attorney office. On his first day, he was delivering the mail and he saw her mother sitting at a desk. She was a receptionist in the office. He knew right away he would love her. And he started courting her the next day and they were married two months later. They were both only 18 years old. They waited for about another five years before they had Marta because her father moved up the job ladder very quickly. 

Was she going to marry Ezra? Better question, would she even be allowed to? She wasn’t Jewish and she was sure Ezra already has an arranged marriage planned. But Marta wanted something real, and Ezra was the most real thing in her life.