The princess in the window
Celestine had just woken up and noticed the day on the almanac hanging on the wall. She crawled into the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. Later, she crawled back to the lounge chair in her room near her bed and changed her clothes.
Then, she climbed into the chair next to the window and sat on the wall ledge to look out onto the street.
All her movements are stealthy. She has been in the same practice for several years.
At the age of ten, she fell from a window on the second floor. She had multiple fractures. Then, still not properly healed and because of her extreme agitation, she rolled down the stairs. In that fall she became paraplegic.
Her parents were devastated. Celestine spent over two years in physical therapy but never walked again. But, her willpower was unwavering. She learned to crawl unnoticed. She did not like the wheelchair which remained on the first floor of the house.
Celestine's room is on the second floor and that is her living space. After the physical therapies, she never left her house again. Her bedroom window is her gateway to a different reality, or fantasy.
Today is Wednesday, half of the week, half of tomorrow, the day for comics. Celestine is waiting impatiently for Peter, the mailman.
Celestine's father knocks on the door of the room and opens it. He enters with a wide smile and tells her that he brought her comics. The strange thing is that she didn't see Peter riding his bike to deliver the new science fiction comics.
She looks at her daddy and doesn't know what to say. When Peter arrived, she wondered in her head?
-I didn't see Peter bringing the comics. She babbled as she came down from the window and sat down with great agility in the chair.
-The mailman? He will come next week. Celestine's father answered.
He handed her the comics and stirred her hair in a loving gesture. Then, he left the room.
Celestine was left alone and bewildered. Heaviness invaded her body and she did not feel emotion, as she had always felt, for the new superhero adventures she was about to read.
Celestine went back up to the window ledge. Her face became cloudy and did not combine with the sunny landscape of the environment.
That's how she spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon. That day she didn't even go down to lunch or start reading the comics.
Suddenly it was Wednesday again. Celestine was very animated. She performed her morning routine very quickly and climbed up to the window to wait for Peter. But he never arrived.
Another young man came to the mailbox and placed the packages and envelopes.
She greeted him from her window.
-Hello, what's your name? -Who are you? Where's Peter? My name is Celestine.
The young man raised his head and looked at the window.
"Good morning. I'm Frank, the new mailman on this route," he answered.
Celestine was fascinated by Frank's friendly tone of voice and without thinking twice she said, "Would you like to be my friend?
It was the same question she asked Peter three years ago.
Frank smiled. He bowed in a gesture of reverence and said "Sure, princess!" Then he said goodbye with a wave of his hand.
That afternoon, Frank went to visit Celestine. Neither she nor her parents expected his visit, much less that he would show up as Celestine's friend.
She was agitated. She changed her clothes quickly and crawled down the stairs as she had always done.
Frank was eighteen years old, one more than she was. He was surprised to see her crawl into a chair near him.
"I didn't know you were disabled", Frank spoke in the same tone as in the morning.
"I'm not disabled! I can't walk but I can move", Celestine replied.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to offend you. You're the prettiest princess I've ever seen in a window".
Celestine's face blushed as she said, "You look like a muscle-less superhero".
"I prefer that you see me as a Knight of the Round Table".
They both laughed spontaneously. They chatted for over two hours about chivalry novels and science fiction comics, while eating cookies and drinking soda.
Celestine occasionally thought that Peter, the former mailman, always said "good morning" and left. But these were fleeting thoughts that didn't distance her from the pleasant conversation she had with Frank.
Celestine's parents were amazed at the empathy of the two young’s. Frank was Celestine's first teenage friend.
Before he left, Frank invited Celestine to visit the food fair the following Sunday. There was a brief silence.
Celestine felt a strange thrill because after the physical therapies she had never left her house. Her parents were also uncomfortable but took the initiative to respond.
"Guy thanks for the invitation. We will all be at the fair at 4 pm", said Celestine's mother.
Frank, who had not perceived the strange situation, responded “well see you there!"
Celestine was more excited than ever. She looked at everyone and even at herself.
"It's time to get out of the window. Thanks, Frank for being my friend and for the invitation. I will be there in my wheelchair so you can take me all over the fair, hahaha. By the way, lend me two chivalry novels and I'll lend you some comics", said Celestine.
-Done! Frank answered.
That was the last Wednesday Celestine waited for the mailman from her window. Every day she went down to the garden, without her wheelchair, crawled to the grass, and from there looked out her bedroom window, while writing the story of a girl who lived thousands of adventures and never gave up on any obstacle of reality, or fantasy.
Thanks for reading.
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Infinite greetings
© Nov 2020, Marcy Betancourt. All rights reserved
