Seven Steps to Heaven

Chapter One - The tragedy in a Lover's Fantasy

Who said it’s romantic to die with the one you love? Who said it’s romantic to die in the arms of the one you love? In reality it is perhaps the most tragic feeling of all. Confronted with death with nothing to shield the one you love with except yourself, and sometimes not even that. The helplessness of it, the madness of the moment, the unbearable sorrow…you have but only one prayer, one mantra that you can repeat over and over in a litany, ‘Take me Lord, but spare the other…’ but death is inevitable. A cruel reality which comes with the passage of time. And sooner or later, one comes to realize, it is a tragedy written down in every lover’s fantasy…

 It started with that phone call.

The one phone call that changed my entire life. The distant sound of thunder grumbling rings in my ears to this day… I was in my car speeding down the London Bridge on my way home from work after a long day, when the shrill ringing of the phone distracted me from my grim thoughts. I frowned. It was my private phone and not many had the number to it. I answered it.

“Hello?”

“Viktor?” a soft feminine voice answered my voice.

“Yes?” I asked confused, the voice was at first unfamiliar but I had the vague impression that I had heard before somewhere. “Who is this?”

“It’s Mahako.” She answered with a pronounced hesitancy in her voice.

At first I wondered who on earth it was, it took more than a moment to place her name and a vague memory of a shy timid Asian girl from my days in the university came to mind.

“Mahako?” I asked confused. She had never spoken to me even in our days in the university let alone now, when four years had passed since we’d been graduated.

“Yes…Can we meet?” she asked tentatively.

“Meet?” I asked, curiosity sparking for a moment. I was used to women trying to chase after me, but for some reason I felt it right to assume that this wasn't the average proposition. As I recalled she was a timid looking brunette, who mostly kept to herself and was rarely seen with company.

Anti social.

That is what I had labeled her in university in my mind before I had dismissed the thought of her. I wondered why in heavens she would want to meet me out of the blue now. “Might I ask where?”

“I’m-I’m waiting outside in St. James Park for you.” she said.

I looked out of my windshield upon which the vipers were moving at full capacity to keep my vision clear from the rain that seemed to be pouring down in icy sheets. It was warm inside my customized car but the cold outside bit at anyone insane enough to be outdoors.

“In the park?” I said incredulously. “It’s freezing outside, might I suggest some café?”

“No!” She answered sounding almost panicked before she calmed her voice, “Park- Park is fine.”

‘What on earth…?’ I wondered. “Miss Mahako, what is this about?” I asked.

“I’ll tell you when you come.” she said hesitantly.

I tried to reason with her. “Miss Mahako, perhaps we should consider somewhere indoors it’s raining buckets outside.”

“Can you come?” She repeated.

My first thought was to dismiss her, “I’m afraid it’s rather late, perhaps another-“

“I’m waiting for you.” she interrupted and closed the call.