S H E L L E Y H R D L I T S C H K A
4
The sound of the rushing river drowns out Celeste’s voice,
but the taste of her lips on mine is still fresh, as is the full-
body rush brought on by those kisses.
The Prophet always told us boys to stay away from girls,
to treat them as though they were poisonous snakes. If we’re
ever worthy of being assigned a first wife, well then, those
snakes miraculously turn into girls. But now that I know
what a girl’s kisses taste like, what she feels like in my arms,
there’s no going back. It’s no wonder he worked so hard to
keep boys and girls apart. I’d gladly have taken Celeste to be
my wife for “time and all eternity,” but that is not how the
Prophet does things. He’s the one to choose.
The stones have graduated to boulders. It’s becoming
more difficult to trek downstream, but there’s only one
unpaved road out of Unity, and it would create suspicion if
anyone saw me walking there. I’ll stick to the river until it
winds under the main road to Springdale.
I’ve known for months that I’d eventually leave Unity. My
struggles with the rules of our faith have made it impossible
to stay. I just didn’t know that today would be the day.
I finally reach the bridge that spans the river. Over my
head, traffic whooshes past. I scramble up the bank, ignoring
the stabs of pain in my ankle, and step onto the paved road
that leads to Springdale.
I could still be spotted by someone from Unity, but it’s
unlikely. While Celeste and I met at the beach this morning,
the rest of the community was at a memorial service.
Everyone should still be at the church.
