Mere foot soldier (standard:romance, 1493 words)
Author: Khujo	Added: Feb 01 2003	Views/Reads: 3403/2209	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Lost in a tropical paradise, a rebel finds himself in more ways than one with the help of an oppresed royal.

People say a walk in the rain is therapeutic. Who knows? I have been
walking through it for far longer than doctors have been researching 
and all it does is dampen my clothes. But hey, that's life isn't it? 
Expectations often end up being just that, hope that never really 
materializes. Well, maybe it would have been different if I had a 
dream, an aspiration if you would. I have no desire to do anything. I'm 
lost. Too bad I'm down with being blissfully ignorant. 

Apathetic I may be but being opportunistic was certainly my forte. I
have never ceased to take advantage of anything that would seem profit 
me in any way whatsoever. As such, impulsiveness is a serious defect in 
me. Now I find myself alone on the train to some desolate part of 
Thailand for a transaction of sorts. 

The journey was as picturesque as it was calm, refreshing padi fields
and smoky hills surrounded with either lush greenery or clear blue sea. 
It took me three days before the train stopped on the much fabled 
Bridge on the River Kwai station. The atmosphere was just magical. The 
magnificently majestic river's constant flowing of water filled the air 
with a cool misty stillness, the kind where time halts and a strong 
sense of déjà vu overtakes you. The old folks' smiles emanate warmth 
while the carefree children run around spreading joy wherever they 
happen to be in an earshot off. I was supposed to check into a local 
hotel to wait for some mob leader to exchange his supplies for cash. 

I had some time before the deal was to be done and being naturally
restless, I wandered around the neighborhood which was filled with 
old-world charm. Never have I felt so much absorbed into something that 
I forget my aims. Skipping around, I fooled around with the Thai 
children while mingling with basic sign language and smiles. Suddenly, 
I caught a glimpse of a rather peculiar looking butterfly. Large red, 
white and yellow wing patterns with a seemingly golden body which shone 
in the sunlight. Yearning for a closer look, I trailed the fluttering 
miracle deep through the forest and dense bushes until I lost it. It 
suddenly dawned on me that I lost my way too. 

Suddenly, I heard a strange muttering. It didn't sound too hostile and I
decided to try my luck by finding the source. As I got closer, I 
realized that the edge of the river coming closer. I perked up my ears 
and the mumbles became clearer. What! Can it be? I shook my head and 
attempted to clear my hearing, but the result was the same. What I had 
been hearing sounds like someone reading something, in English! I drew 
closer and my eyes seemed to be bedazzled by what I saw next. 

The most beautiful looking girl was sitting underneath a tree beside the
River Kwai decked in a brilliant red traditional Thai dress reading a 
book. My sudden intrusion may have startled her as she looked quite 
distraught. 

“It's okay. I'm a friend. I wont hurt you.” I assured her slowly. 

Her initial apprehension was from that point onwards, diminished as her
eyes gleamed and a smile radiating with joy crept on her face. 

“You speak English! Do you read? Glenna Mcreynolds?” she exclaimed in
perfect queen's tongue. 

“Yes, yes and yes. English is a medium for communication where I'm from,
reading is a pastime I enjoy and her works are just to my liking.” I 
answered quite amazed. Am I dreaming? Here I am a few hundred miles 
away from home and yet in the most unthinkable of places I meet a Thai 
girl who speaks better than me and reads the same novels I do. 

“Then you wouldn't mind me debating with you some of her works do you?”
She asked, hopeful. 

“No, not at all.” I replied. From that point onwards we discussed about
several situations in the most of her books including a recent, The 
Prince of Time, where a princess is shocked to find that her lover is a 
lowly thief. 

Sooner than I thought, the sun began to set and the girl hastily tidied
up. 

“I'v got to go now,” she shot. 


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