by Carl Johnson
Chapter Five
SO JULIO REMEMBERED that she took the small path and he frowned.
No one ever went there.
That side of the mountain angled down and stretched towards the fields of tall grass which gave the field the appearance of endlessness, if not for the row of trees in the horizon.
As far as he could remember, nobody lived there except insects and snakes. Julio remembered that had she made a hard right. If she continued, she might actually end up in San Juan -- after half a day of travel.
But that wasn't the shortest way towards San Juan. Strange.
His eyes had started protesting and he was tired and sleepy, so he finally decided to find out where she was from.
Tomorrow, he would head out there and see if he could retrace her steps. He planned his entire day. He would arrive at the deep well earlier just to be sure he got there first, so he would see where she came from.
He would then follow her when she left, maintaining a respectable distance so as not to be discovered.
Smiling to himself to what seemed like a busy and exciting day, he fell asleep underneath the blinking stars.
JULIO WOKE UP late. It was close to 10 in the morning.
He hurriedly headed home and was thankful to know that his father, had come home past midnight, expectedly drunk, and was still sound asleep.
His mother just gave him a look that spoke of what chaos there might have been if his father had woken up to find that Julio was not there to be bossed around, and chastisement because he was supposed to be the one to cook. His mother had already taken care of that, though.
So without wasting time, he headed out to the well with the large bucket. The water he had brought home the previous day had already been emptied into one of the big earthen jars that they owned.
Julio knew that even if he would not go to the well today, they would have at least two days stock of water. But he went to the well daily to get away, as his father would not leave the house until a few hours past noon.
But this wasn't the only reason now. He was filled with excitement at the possibility of seeing the beautiful fair lady in the well. He wasn't sure if he would have the strength to talk to her. But he could just follow her to where she lived to get a feel of who she was, of how she treated other people. If his wits could not give him the strength to walk up to her to talk, he could at least watch her until he could be brave enough to get to know her.
He was definitely smitten. There was no one like her, she was beautiful beyond words. She was unlike any other woman he had seen in all his years living in the small town.
Just thinking of her was enough to get him excited; and the notion of just seeing her again was enough to make him happy. When worse come to worst, he would be content just to be able to see her everyday.
Today might just be the start of those days, but it didn't faze Julio.
As long as he saw her again.
THE PLAN WAS to arrive there early, and hide, so he could watch her as she came.
He had already calculated the amount of time it would take for her to fill her bucket. With the measly amount of water coming out of the deep well on summer days, she would be there at least a quarter of an hour before filling the big bucket that she had with her-and a quarter of an hour for him to behold her beauty before revealing himself.
Due to his excitement, Julio brushed aside the possibility that she might not even show up in the beginning of his furious planning.
Then he began to worry. She might come at a later time, she might come at an earlier time, or she might not come at all.
That thought did not sit well with him. Every time he thought of it, he felt like having a fit.
In the end, he decided that he just had to believe that she would be there.
He held onto this until he got there.
He saw someone at the pump and immediately knew it was the woman even when he was still far away. Aww! There was no way for him to find a place to hide so that he could spy on her beauty, unless he cared just to watch her from behind.
Julio did not know what to do. He had arrived considerably earlier than the previous day and he knew he made good time getting there.
There was only one way to go about it. He had to approach and engage her in small talk until she was done. That way he would be able to delay her leaving.
His stomach knotted at the prospect of talking to her. But he had a need to do something, even if it was the scariest prospect he had ever had in his life.
It seemed like ages before he was able to approach her. His mind started working on opening lines.
She was still wearing a house gown but this one had a different pattern. The plain white of the fabric was covered in intricate designs of gold and green. Julio found it odd that she was wearing clothing that not only looked new but looked expensive as well.
Back in the village, new clothing was synonymous with expensive, as there was very little trade available for that sort. Buying new clothes was considered only for gifts and special occasions. Almost everyone in town was clothed in hand-me-downs.
And yet, there she was. The clothing she was wearing could easily have cost Julio three harvests' worth of pay! This did not help ease his worry, and the water on the lady's bucket was almost full!
Julio's heart sank. Barely there and already he was faced with the prospect of not gaining more time to be with her. All his planning the previous night was worthless.
Then she turned around.
Awkwardness, happiness, embarrassment and panic hit him all at once. He fought hard not to shake.
He felt stupid standing there, rooted to the spot, staring at her.
Thankfully, it did not last that long.
"Good morning," she started off with that voice that enchanted him. "Would you do me the favor of lifting this bucket to my shoulders so I can be on my way?"
Again, Julio noted the peculiarity of the way she said her words -- very formal, very old. Like the wording in an old song. But her eyes seem to be twinkling, even if her rosy lips were not showing the mirth he suspected she was feeling.
"Of course," he managed to reply without stuttering.
She did not laugh.
She smiled as her lovely pale blue eyes held his.
His eyes were glued to her face - he just could not help it. In her was a calmness and peacefulness that Julio had never seen in anyone. Julio carefully lifted the bucket, big and being full of water, without making it splash.
He placed it on her, whose shoulders gave no indication of any hardiness or enough muscle to support it.
"Gratitude, again," the woman spoke and again, so formal the word, but with a graceful nod of her head.
She began her walk without much ado, turning away in a move that seemed like a dance as soon as she thanked him and headed the same way she went the previous day.
Julio grabbed his bucket and placed it under the pump. He began pumping slowly, making sure that the sounds that the pump made were kept at a minimum.
This was no accident. It was a last minute attempt at deception. He wanted her to think he was pumping and when she was at a farther distance, she would hopefully not hear the sound.
He saw her begin her descent on the side of the mountain where she disappeared yesterday and slowly stopped what he was doing.
When her head was the only thing that he could see in the distance, he immediately stopped and ran excitedly towards the slope that the girl disappeared to. He saw her already at a considerable distance from where he was. He saw her heading for a stretch of land that was covered in knee high grass ending in a gully probably 10 or 12 feet wide.
She walked in an almost regular cadence, and Julio mentally calculated the distance he could cover if he moved quickly. He decided to wait until she had reached the grassy part of the small clearing.
The lady reached it in less time than he anticipated, and Julio compensated by almost sliding down the slope litt
ered with grass and shrub patches in an unpredictable pattern. He reached the bottom of the slope in no time, worried he had been heard. But glancing in the direction of the lady assured him that she didn't.
He started to follow her at an angle that would bring him closer to the grassy ground while not losing sight of her. He was right; she was going to the gully. Crouching or even lying low on his stomach on the grass would be a good strategy if she ever wheeled around.
Once he reached the grassy area, he saw her weaving her way across the small rocks that dotted the entrance. It bended ahead so Julio moved faster to get closer before she rounded the bend. He had never been to these parts before and was unsure if there were any crossings or side paths where the woman was heading.
Then a few things struck him as odd.
First was that in all his years, he could not remember anyone coming from any area in that general direction. There probably were people living there somewhere, but there should be easier routes to the village.
The next was that it must have been 10 minutes already since he had placed the bucket on that lady's shoulders, and even he needed to put down his bucket before replacing it on the other shoulder.
Unless the lady only went there for the water on the deep well regardless of where she lived, and unless she was possessed of strength that was not evident in her frame, Julio knew nothing made sense - precisely the reason why he had to find out.