Sapphire Moonlight

Chapter 39

Chapter 39

It was Saturday afternoon and they had met at half past two in Church Square. Joao Caio had parked his car in Marechal Clemente Street beside the pavement opposite the Town Hall, with the right front wheel some ten centimetres from the kerb, the right back wheel a little further, so that the metallic dark blue saloon car was at a slight angle to the pavement. He and Juliana walked over to the inner part of the square. She was wearing jeans, a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up above the elbows, white trainers and light blue socks that were lighter than the blue in the sky.  

'Come, let's sit on that bench,' she said cheerfully. She held his hand. Lightly, she drew him to a bench facing Marechal Clemente Street.  

As they approached the bench, they came close. When he turned towards her her gaze lingered on the ground for an instant before she lifted her face and stared at him earnestly.  

They kissed and he held her. He had the intuition of her shape, and of her weight, as if he would lift her or draw her some inches away, although they did not move and she stood on the ground and she was very beautiful.  

They sat down. The special concavity and inclination of the dark grey bench, built in a unique cement piece in which the seat and the back had been shaped as one, causing the body to slump deep down inside the bench, made it feel really comfortable so that even the contact of the smooth yet hard cement block - cool, because it had been in the shade - against the body was comfortable. Courtesy of Moreira & Sons, Wine Merchants was written on the back part of the bench. It meant the firm had contributed the bench to the municipality. Joao Caio put his right arm around Juliana's shoulders and held her left hand with his left one.  

'What are you thinking about?' she asked him. There was a gleam in her eyes. 

'Nothing. I was just feeling the moment. Being here with you. With the mind in a blank, without any words.' He held her tighter. 

She smiled up at him. 

'You're very new in my life,' he said. 

'So are you. It's all so different.' 

'I like it,' he said. 

'So do I,' she said. 

'It's good to be together. And to do things together.' 

'It is,' she said. 

He had a look at the trees around. 

'Would you like to come to Ernestino Dias later as we said yesterday?' he said. 

'Do you want to go now?' 

'No, let's stay more.'  

'Yes, it is nice here, isn't it?' she said. 'Oh,' she went on, 'I suddenly thought. When we get there I'll buy some more of that icecream we ate yesterday, it was so delicious.' 

'We'll do so.' He took a look around. 'Later, there are some places and things I want to show you.' 

She pressed his right hand.  

He got a thrill out of being with her and it was easy to be with her. She had remarkable poise and he was in love with that poise. It looked like she almost never quarreled, or never. Her assertiveness was a natural thing. 

'I like your form,' he said in a low voice. 'Your shape, you know.' 

'You'll make me shy,' she said. 

'No.' 

'Do you?' She leaned against him. 'About the form. Is that true?' 

'In the jeans, and in this white shirt. You're cute. You're very attractive. Of course it's true.'