UNTITLED

UNEDITED SAMPLE LITERARY ARTICLE
By Karenina Isabel Apilado Lampa
IV - Michael Faraday

As a child, I’ve always dreamed of having my own prince sweep me off my feet. I would spend hours on end looking out of my window, staring hopelessly into space as I let the gentle breeze of the wind caress my face. I was willing to wait, knowing that one day, as I look out of my purple-curtained windows, my own knight in shining armour would come around.

I’ve envisioned it already in my mind. He would be the kindest man to ever walk the planet, and as soon as he sees me, his eyes would light up and there would be a spark that would run between us. Then and there, it would have been destiny. He would smile a breathtaking smile and I would approach him without hesitation. And the moment that I’d be a few inches away from him, he would hold my hand. As the electricity between us ignited, we would both know. We were born to be together.

As time passed, I was lucky enough to meet my very own prince. But as I looked at my older visions of what would have been, I mentally laughed at the irony of it all. I met my prince, all right...though he was not quite Prince Charming.


The first time we set our eyes upon each other, we already knew. We would never get along.

Our first meeting was not pleasant. It was during a masquerade ball, and I had donned a lovely evening gown, which was able to complement me well.

We shared the Midnight Dance together. I had been resting near the fountain, unconsciously fiddling with my heart-shaped locket, when the host of the party spoke over the microphone.
“We would like to ask all of you to accompany someone you haven’t danced with yet, for the Midnight Dance.”

It was a dance that was shared between two people a few minutes before midnight. And as the clock would strike twelve, legend has it that the two people who shared it would end up together.

I believed it. I was a sucker for anything related to magic, fairy tales, destiny or all of the same kind. But before I was able to contemplate my thoughts more, a guy held out his hand to me. I looked up and saw a guy sporting a silver mask. It went out nicely with his outfit, and I took his hand without really thinking.

I thought it would have been a romantic moment. But as soon as we started waltzing to the slow tune, he looked into my eyes and smiled at me. I fell in love with his smile the first time. However, his next words dropped me out of my trance.

“Your hair looks funny. It makes you look like a pineapple.”

Then and there, I hated the idea of destiny and legends. I would never end up with a guy like him.

I thought that I would never cross his path once again. He was simply a guy who asked me to dance at the wrong place and at the wrong time, so I had nothing to think about. So you absolutely cannot imagine my surprise, when I found myself irresistibly falling for the guy who called me a pineapple. The only thing is, I didn’t actually know it was him.

It was raining that day, and I forgot to bring an umbrella, or anything that could have prevented me from getting wet head to toe. All I had was my hoodless jacket, and it was absolutely useless. I was waiting for my father, who was supposed to fetch me from school. Unfortunately, he chose to be late at the perfectly worst moment.

I didn’t have the option to go back to the school building. They had already locked the gates, and were strictly implementing rules and regulations. A little rain would not faze them, and I know that begging them to take me inside would have been a worthless effort. So I stood there, under the pouring rain, with my hair sticking to my face and my clothes soaking wet.

Soon, I started shivering in the cold rain. It wasn’t until I realized that my shivers had stopped, did I notice that something was already shielding me from the rain. I turned to look at my hero and momentarily forgot to stop breathing. Holding an umbrella for me was a guy who possessed such a face that I could have stared at him all day and not get tired of it.

I smiled to myself as I thanked him. He had to be my prince. He just had to be.

The days that went by after this incident seemed like bliss for me. I had found him. Sure, he still doesn’t know that he’s in love with me, but it would only be a matter of time, wouldn’t it?
I couldn’t help but just feel elated towards the feeling that I’ve found my destiny. Suddenly, I started believing in those magical things, and nothing could absolutely put me down.

The second time we crossed each other’s paths, it was inside the school library. I had been attempting to retrieve a book which was out of my reach, so I stepped up on a chair. I was never really graceful and my balance was always off, so it was not a surprise that I slipped on the chair. What had been a surprise though, was when two strong arms caught me just before I hit the ground.

I felt secured and comfortable in the arms of my saviour, and I felt like never letting go. It felt like I was meant to be there, in those arms, until the end of time. So as I looked up to see who it was, my heart went fluttering as I stared into the beautiful face of the guy who had once shielded me from the rain.

Despite this, I felt an angry bubble burst inside me. How could he not know that he was meant for me? Was he really that blind? I got up, a little annoyed, and brushed the dirt off myself. He was watching me as I straightened my locket and ran a hand through my hair. As I turned to thank him, I realized that he was half-frowning and half-smiling. I idly wondered why, only to be distracted from my thoughts as I heard his voice.

“That’s twice I’ve saved your neck. I must be destined to take care of you.” He chuckled.

For a moment, it seemed to me like I’ve heard his voice before. But I pushed it away as I fully comprehended what he had just said. If only he knew how much I wish that were true...

And that was how it started. We crossed each other more and more, accidentally of course. But when the time came that his company did not happen because of crossing each other’s path accidentally, but because he wanted it to be that way, I knew that somehow, my own fairy tale is coming to life.

At first, it had only been his breathtaking looks that caught me. Shallow, I know. But that was actually the truth.

But as I got to know him more, I realized that what he was on the outside, it was not even a tenth of what he was inside.

He had a caring heart. He had his own ways of showing how much he cared, no matter how irritating it would get at times. He would always remind me of how I always seem to bring bad-luck, and it would annoy me endlessly.

“Good thing you attract trouble anywhere. If not, what else would I be for?”

He hated it when I got hurt. Be it physically or emotionally, he would always want to be assured that I didn’t feel a single pain bothering me. The one time I accidentally cut myself with a pair of scissors he got all worked up that it was actually a funny sight to see.

“How stupid can you get to not know how to use a pair of scissors?”

And most of all, he had his own ways of showing me how much he loved me. He never said it once, nor do I ever dream of hearing it. I’ve always believed that actions speak louder than words. His actions are more than enough to keep me alive and breathing for a lifetime.

“If you ever shed a tear for me, I’d kill myself for you.”

As we were together one day, he was watching me as I read a book. Out of habit, I was twirling my locket in my fingers. He smiled and let out a soft chuckle. I looked up from my book and gave him a questioning look.

“It’s nothing. Say, would you care for a slice of pineapple?”

It was only then that I realized who he was. The voice of the guy who had offended me, such a long, long time ago, kept resounding in my head. And it struck me, how I never thought of ending up with him. He was mean and foolish, he was sarcastic and arrogant. He was full of himself and he had an ego as big as the size of his head.

“Your locket. I noticed it during the night of the masquerade ball. The moment I saw your locket when you nearly fell inside the library, I knew.”

Most of all, he was my prince. Not quite Prince Charming, but he was mine. And I would not have it any other way.

“Don’t ever let me hurt you. You’re worth so much more than that.”