Timeless

by This_Owl_Writes_Past_Midnight

Summary:

A timeless love that is heaven on Earth, an age-old classic.

Notes:

Music inspo (aside from Timeless) will be put in notes before each chapter. I hope you like this :)

Chapter 1: Antique Shop

Summary:

Down the block, there's an antique shop
And something in my head said, "Stop," so I walked in

Notes:

Music Inspo
#Timeless (Taylor Swift)
#Every Other Love Song (MALINDA)
#it’s time to go (Taylor Swift)
#evermore (Taylor Swift)
#invisible string (Taylor Swift)

As I passed by the antique shop down the block, which itself looked like an antique, a little voice in my head told me to stop. Little trinkets from different time periods lined up on the other side of the display window: a compass, a brooch, yellow-tinted letters, a pocket watch… My mind wandered inside and my body followed. On the counter sat a cardboard box with a sign that said ‘photos 25 cents each’. Each black-and-white photo in the box told a story of romance that I could only speculate about, yet felt so intimately familiar with. Instead of strange, anonymous faces, I saw us in the photos, dancing on our wedding day, laughing on the porch of our first home, kissing in the kitchen, walking down the street…

My hand found the phone in my pocket and, unknowingly, I called your number. Somehow, I knew that, even in another life, we would have found each other, you still would have turned my head, and you still would have been mine. We would have been timeless. It was a peculiar feeling of time standing still, freezing me in it like these precious things that time forgot, as if I, too, were an antique frozen behind glass in this old shop, because we were supposed to find this love, tied together by an invisible string.

When you picked up my call, I could only tell you that, it was so hard to explain, but I saw us written in the stars, that we were a timeless age-old classic, and I would’ve been yours even in a different life.

Don’t you let time touch your soul, even as it breaks down your mind and body, because, one day, when our hair is gray, you will say, ‘oh my, we really were timeless.’

Chapter 2: 1944

Summary:

On a crowded street in 1944
And you were headed off to fight in the war
You still would've been mine
We would have been timeless

Notes:

I don’t normally write poetry but my brain is fuzzy with no logic today so I decided not to weave imagery into prose but leave them as is. I hope this makes sense and I hope you like it
(Apologies for the lack of rhyme schemes whatsoever)
(I almost killed the guy but that goes against the song so I turned that into a dream and let him live.)
The soup and colours part is inspired by the Book Thief.
Music inspo:
#Between Us and Them (MALINDA)
***
Time breaks down your mind and body
Don't you let it touch your soul
***
How do you think this line works in wartime?

1941,
The first time I saw you
On a crowded street
1944,
The last time I saw you
On a crowded street
You were heading off to the trenches

Cries of the mail boy
Hurried footsteps
Trembling hands
Slice of letter opener
Dirt-rimmed paper
Your handwriting from the trenches
A smile accompanied by a tear

Your injured wrist
Scribbled words
Candle in the dark
Explosions in the background
My picture in your uncle’s compass
Different trenches
Different time
I pray that you will return to me
Soul untouched by time
That the compass will remain yours

Fretful sleep
Letter clutched, memorised
Damp pillow
A love that you find only
Once in a lifetime
A love I can never put down
Like your letter

The radio in the rations office
Trying to make sense of it all
But all I could think of
Is you
And the sea between us

The sky is crimson like
The pot of too-watery soup I’m stirring
Traces of greyish white bobbing
A red so different from the red you would be seeing
But the black is the same
As sirens wail

Red of blood
Black of smoke
White of snow
Colours of the enemy flag

Long overdue letters
Dreams
Your compass finds its way home
Without you

But I pray
And I know
You will come home alright
Because we are timeless
In another life,
I still would’ve been yours
Because we are supposed to find this love

Notes:

I hope you liked this. If you did, please comment/ leave kudos <3 <3
You can also check out my other works or visit my instagram @owl_writes :))

Chapter 3: Emma's Letters

Summary:

Summary:
He read her letters for the last time.
~~~~~
That’s when I came across a book covered in cobwebs
Story of a romance torn apart by fate
Hundred of years ago, they fell in love like we did
And I’d die for you in the same way
If I first saw your face
In the 1500s up in a foreign land
And I was forced to marry another man
You still would’ve been mine
We would’ve been timeless

Notes:

A longer chapter.
~~~~~
Music inspo:
#the lakes (Taylor Swift)
#Timeless (Taylor Swift)
#Last Kiss (Taylor Swift)
#Enchanted (Taylor Swift)
#When Emma Falls in Love (Taylor Swift)
#Wildest Dreams (Taylor Swift)
#Think of Me (Andrew Lloyd Webber)

My Dearest,

For you I shall abandon my duties to my father’s kingdom. Please take me away.

I have been promised to a man I’d never met before. Take me to the lakes you spoke of, the lakes where all the poets went to die. I don’t belong here. Neither do you. We shall live far away, with auroras and sad prose. We will watch wisteria and red roses grow. We can sit by cliffside pools with our calamitous love. We will stand together under the pouring rain. And you will be right next to me. I shall be your muse, love.

I will never let go of you. This is the kind of love you don’t put down. Not even if it meant displeasing our neighbouring kingdom. Not even if it meant certain chaos. You told me I deserve my own life. You are the life I choose. We are meant to be. I don’t need proof to know that you’re always going to be mine.

So, please take me to the lakes, and we shall share our timeless love.

Yours,
Emma

***

My Dearest,

I miss you so. I am to be a bride when the Sun rises. It shall be a beautiful day. But I shall never be a bride. I shall never be anyone’s bride but yours.

Hundreds of years later, we will be a classic immortalised in a book covered in cobwebs, a story of a romance torn apart by fate, because we are meant to be. We are timeless. Hundreds of years later, someone will find our love letters, and they will fall in love like we did. They will find the brooch you gave me. They will envy us for sharing the kind of love that you only find once in a lifetime. We will be the kind of book that they can’t put down.

I know that, in another life, we would’ve found each other, and you still would’ve turned my head. I’d die for you the same way I’m about to, your last kiss forever sweet on my lips, the smell of the rain drowning my senses, the look on your face seared into my memory. I will never marry him. I am yours.

It seems so long ago, but I remember when I first met you that flawless night, in that crowded ballroom, eyes sparkling. That was the first time you saw me. The story started when we said ‘hello’. I was wonderstruck, enchanted. We were young and innocent. I danced around all night in my room, wondering if you knew, wondering if you felt the same, wondering if you loved someone else. I prayed that it was the very first page, not where the story ended. My thoughts echoed your name all night as I lay wide awake. How that first night had sparkled. How the magic had hung in the air like stars. This is the last page, my love. There is no next chapter. How did we end like this?

The Sun shall rise soon. It is a beautiful day to go. I have but one last request:
Promise me you’ll remember me, standing in that pink ball gown, staring at the Moon, lips red and cheeks rosy. Promise me you’ll see me again in your dreams. Promise me you will keep the brooch close to you. Please promise me, if you ever find a moment, you will spare a thought for me. Think of me fondly when we’ve said goodbye. Think of all the things we’ve shared and seen, not the things that might have been.

Time breaks down your mind and body. Don’t you let it touch your soul, the soul I love so. And I promise, yours will be the name on my lips as I go.

Goodbye.

Forever yours,
Emma

***

I read your letters every single night. I never thought this would be the last. Worry not, my love. I shall join you shortly. Indeed, in a different life, you still would’ve been mine. And I would die for you in every life. We were supposed to find this love. We’d be a timeless, dusty classic. And they’d envy us for the love we shared. They can never put down our story, just as I can never put down my love for you.

This is not our last chapter. We shall never say goodbye. You shall be my bride in another world. Our souls will be entwined, forever untouched by time.

Notes:

Yes, they both died. What? I was gonna have them elope but Taylor says ‘I’d die for you in the same way’.
Don’t worry. They will be wedded in another world, and other lives.

Chapter 4: Enchanted

Summary:

I was enchanted to meet you.
This night is sparkling; don't you let it go; I'm wonderstruck, blushing all the way home. I'll spend forever wondering if you knew I was enchanted to meet you.

Notes:

Hi! I’m back. Not dead! (And I got a cat who was having zoomies as I wrote this!)

Music inspo:
#Enchanted
#You are In Love
#Lover
#Paris
#Dress

I was enchanted to meet you.

That night at the ball will forever remain in my memory. As your silhouette made its way to me, your eyes whispered, ‘have we met?’ With glances in secrecy, we decided to steal a moment in the garden.

Your look, meant just for me, made me blush the moment I saw you under the cover of darkness. Moonlight reflected on the chain hanging out of your pocket. The night sparkled. Our shoulders brushed. The single touch had my heart fluttering. We made playful conversation and light-hearted jokes with such ease I wondered if I’d known you for twenty seconds or twenty years. We walked side by side in the silence, my fears of being caught without a chaperone melting away. You were all I wanted. Nothing else mattered in that moment when I looked into your eyes and my breath caught.

I could hear it in the silence. I didn’t know love could be so loud.

Back in the crowded room, you held my hand when no one was looking. People came and went in a blur. I noticed nothing but your presence. Your touch was the one thing that stood out. I was wonderstruck. My head spun and all I could think of was your perfect lips.

Time moved too fast. Your pocket watch raced my heartbeat. The moon crossed the sky in a rush. The night ended too soon. I prayed that this was the very first page of the story, that many more chapters were yet to come. You caught my lingering gaze. Your eyes passed another secret note, a promise that the story had not ended.

On the way home, I could hear it in the silence. Love was loud. My thoughts echoed your name as I prayed that you would keep your promise, that you weren’t in love with someone else, that you didn’t have someone else waiting for you. All night, I danced around my room, blushing, wonderstruck, remembering the flawless night, wishing you would never let me go. I was enchanted to meet you.

With the lights out when I slipped under my covers, I could hear my heart beating your enchanting melody in the silence. I was in love.

***

Your eyes were fixed on me as I walked down the aisle in a dress white as fresh clean snow. I lost myself in your gaze and your voice as we said our vows. I sunk into your scent and your presence as I signed my name in swooping, sloping cursive letters. We knew we would remain by each other’s side until our hair turned grey. We were meant to find this. This love was timeless. The way you held my hand took me back to the first time I saw you. I was enchanted and wonderstruck once again, blushing and smiling while my head spun. You wrapped me in your arms and I whispered into your shoulder that I would stay until time broke down our minds and bodies. Time could never break our entwined souls apart. I would go where you go. You promised to save me a seat at every table. We would share many more summers. We would always be this close, forever and evermore. I had never been so sure of anything. But I was sure that I would have found you in a different life.

We sat in the quiet shade to watch the celebrations. But like the very first night, I felt no one but you. I was so in love that I might stop breathing. I knew that we would always be so in love. All the silence and anticipation between us had me pining and desperate. My hands shook. One stolen glance at you told me that you saw right through my patience. You knew I was waiting for you to tattoo yourself on me in golden ink.

Notes:

I was looking for songs as romance inspo and since I usually listen to albums as a whole or just my writing inspo playlists, this was the first time I listened to Speak Now (TV) and Midnights side by side and noticed how differently love was portrayed. SNTV is innocent and head over heels and Midnights is so nuanced. Yes I just fell in love with Midnights and Taylor’s songwriting again. The Enchanted sort of falling in love.

In the process of writing chapter 5. Will try to post soon :)

Chapter 5: 2019

Summary:

2019,
The first time I saw you
On a crowded street
In an orange vest
2021,
The last time I saw you
In an empty airport
With a suitcase
That you packed your life into

Notes:

No explanation.

You might want to read Chapter Two again before this.

Music inspo:
#Timeless
#This Love
#The Great War
#Paper Rings
#Paris
#You are in love
#Between Us and Them (MALINDA)

Also,
The Book Thief (I waved. No one waved back.)

2019,
The first time I saw you
On a crowded street
In an orange vest
2021,
The last time I saw you
In an empty airport
With a suitcase
That you packed your life into

The pearl with its lights
That we once thought could never dim
The harbour, my namesake
Clear blue water
High tide came and brought you in
On the streets
Currents of people and waves of chants
Swept you out again

Skies grew darker
Nightfall
The beginning of the end
Chaos ensued
Smoke choked and strangled the atmosphere
And stung our eyes
Couldn’t breathe
Couldn’t see
The odour, a collective memory
Of our generation

Your hand,
Ever the one I reached for
All throughout the Great War
Amongst the screams
That we had no way of winning
Both heard, and
Silent in our hearts
Love in unfortunate times
That I hoped I’d never lose
I’d vowed
I’d always be yours

Best of times
I met you
We met everyone
Worst of times
The smell lingered
We lost the fight

Tossing, turning
We barely slept anymore
Haunted by dreams
We went to the same places
Read the same books
Fought the same battles
Dreamt the same wretched dreams
When I woke,
I’d watch you breathe
In and out,
In and out
And I’d follow your rhythm

Tossing, turning
In our wildest dreams
Dates on once peaceful streets
In bustling malls
Without the pungent reek
Of the unforgiving gas
A ferry cradling our hearts
Rocking us to sleep
You’d kiss me once,
We’d had a long fight
You’d kiss me twice,
It’d be alright
You’d kiss me thrice,
We’d waited our whole lives.
We could pretend
We were somewhere else

You could see it in the flashlights
Streets and hills lit up
A chain of light
Nine dragons awoken
You could see it in the darkness
We ran
But in the crowd
I swore
Never to let go
Of your hand

The train left the station
Shrieking
Faces frozen in horror
Phones held up on the platform
Gut wrenching cries on our screens
Forums tried to make sense of it all
Because the TVs didn’t try

The last time I saw you
In an empty airport
With a suitcase
Your passport
And your life
Too many farewells
Too many adieus
The place might flood with tears

I wished you all the best
You kissed my cheek
I watched you leave
I knew it was for the best
I couldn’t say goodbye
You waved
I didn’t wave back

Tossing, turning
Alone
Your smile
Printed on my eyelids
In my wildest dreams
You’d kiss me
We’d be somewhere else
We’d never be apart

Ghosts in the streets
Forgetting
Trying to forget
Pretending to have forgotten
The scenes
The smells
The cries
Fresh on our minds
Eggs
On their knees
Before the tall brick wall
Helpless, hopeless, hopeful

But I know
I was meant to find you
And I will find you
Again
This life
And the next
And thereafter
We are timeless
The story
Did not end here
We’re gonna be
Timeless

Notes:

Chapter Six coming next week.

Chapter 6: Photos of the Life We Made

Summary:

Oh my, we really were timeless.

Notes:

Music inspo
#Timeless
#This Love
#Wonderland
#You Are In Love
#cardigan
#seven

‘Do you remember when I called you at the antique shop?’

We were in different countries, but we knew that we’d see each other again, because we were supposed to find this, this love, with all the tears and smiles, and messages and video calls. I waited for the day when I could be in your arms again, the day when the fated tide of eternity would bring us together once more. I dreamt of you, whether I was awake or asleep. I saw you in Wonderland, where life was never better, but never worse. I pretended it could last forever. But when I reached for you, behind the Hatter, around corners, in the grocery line, on the cobblestone path, you were never there.

Time moved too slowly. The moon was trapped in the clouds most nights. The shadows wouldn’t budge. But eventually, the tide did sweep you into my life again. This time, there were no ghosts, no cries, no suffocating smoke, and no farewells. We could see with the lights out, and feel on the way home, that we were meant for each other. All these years, your kiss, your cheeks, your hands, your eyes, your mind, and your love have become familiar. This love left a permanent mark on my soul, a mark that glowed in the dark. This love was the kind that you don’t put down, the kind you find in an age-old classic.

Our hair has turned gray. You are still mine. In every life, every universe, we would be timeless. Whether we met in 1944, in the 1500s, in the Regency Era, or in 2019, we would’ve found each other. We have a cardboard box of photos of the life we made: white dress and a tuxedo, holding hands in the kitchen of our first home, sipping wine on the sand, your arms around me on a trip… Time never took our souls even if our minds and bodies aren’t what they once were. I am yours and will always be yours. Just like a folk song, our love will last for evermore. These photos will find their way to an antique shop one day, and our love will be passed on.

‘Oh my, we really were timeless.’

Notes:

Just like a folk song, our love will be passed on

Thanks for sticking round till the end!!
Now might be a good time to reveal the easter eggs.
(You could go back and look for them before reading this note lol)
*********************************************************************

In chapter 1, I mentioned a few things in the antique shop:
"Little trinkets from different time periods lined up on the other side of the display window: a compass, a brooch, yellow-tinted letters, a pocket watch… On the counter sat a cardboard box with a sign that said ‘photos 25 cents each’. Each black-and-white photo in the box told a story of romance that I could only speculate about, yet felt so intimately familiar with."
The compass is in 1944, the brooch in Emma's Letters, the pocket watch in Enchanted, and the photos... here! And the letters are everywhere!

This has been a lot of fun to write. I hope you enjoyed reading the story as much as I enjoyed writing it!

(Manifesting Rep TV on New Year's Day)

-- Owl

Notes:

If you enjoyed this, please leave kudos/ comment :)
You can check out my other works or my insta @owl_writes

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of Tales and Feels | Inspired by Taylor Swift songs