Walking The Rope

Here's another one to slot into The Circus file. Warning: tear jerker (but only a mild one - not too much) Read Percy The Great if you like Walking The Rope. Catch old chapters of The Builder too!

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Jenna was day dreaming again. Ring Master Perkins was an awful person. She loathed him but there was not a thing she could about it. He had caught the two of them, after all. Paul loved her, she knew that much. They had grown up together, laughed and played, cried and fought, learned and competed. Being born into the circus was not something one hoped for, it was never an ambition – to be a trapeze walker.


Paul was her partner and with Jude and Layla they made the most thrilling act called The Walkers. Jude and Layla were long since married. It was not fair, as far as she figured, that they were allowed to marry and remain together while Paul and Jenna had to hide their affair. What did age have to do with anything? So what if she was just sixteen? So what if he was just seventeen? True love knew no boundaries, especially asinine ones like age and adulthood.

If there was any semblance of normalcy growing up in the circus, she would have agreed that they were too young to be wed but how could one assume that their lives were ‘normal’? How could walking 30 feet above ground on a thin rope be considered normal? By the age of twelve, Jenna no longer needed the safety harness and she was so accurate and skilled that she could do away with the safety net. Who needed a safety net when Paul was around?

She dreamed of being in his arms, his strong hands holding her, the two of them balancing in the air like two doves coming together. She thought he had the most beautiful body she had ever seen. Every muscle, long and sinewy, was made to catch her if she fell. The look on his face prompted thoughts of pleasure, of rapture, of pure carnal satisfaction. He loved her, had loved her since they were little children. Having never gone to school, they did not know what it meant to have cliqués and friends or even how it felt to date.

The love they felt was true, there was no space for puppy love in the circus ring. You love only once and if it did not happen, you end up like Madam Zorna, the crystal-ball, future-reading spinster. Jenna surely did not want to end up like that. Paul was perfect for her and she wanted nothing more but to be with him, forever.

As they prepped and stretched, Paul shot her a wink and blew a kiss at her. Ring Master Perkins was going to have him whipped for that, she knew, but he obviously thought it was worth it. That was what true love was; to stand brave in the face of punishment, to feel the pain of separation, to cherish each moment together and to find comfort in each other’s arms. They both knew the only time they could touch each with such affection would be when they were up in the air, with no one else to stop them from truly loving each other. They were one, they were meant to be.

Ring Master announced their act with extreme bravado, the crowd cheered and then, possibly to punish them or to put the fear of death into them, he announced that they would be performing without safety harnesses and the safety net would be removed. The crowd cheered, some were stunned, some were awed by the extreme situation. The four members of The Walkers climbed the ladder that was hoisted. The crowd was again reminded to stay calm at all times and that flash photography was prohibited.

Once they reached the top, they did their customary prayer and wished each other “life, luck and loose limbs”. Layla was a wonderful gymnast. She had balance, poise and most of all, she was stunningly beautiful. The crowd loved her. Jude was made by some divine power, for Layla – just as Paul had been made for Jenna. As they began their act by waving to the crowd, the boys prepped for the “first cross”. Paul would meet Jenna midway, as he had done at least a hundred times before.

Jenna would climb onto his back and stand on his shoulders as they balanced. She was never afraid. Not once had she doubted Paul. He was so strong, so well-balanced – perfect. He was perfect. As they met midway, Paul winked at her again. He bent his knees and she grappled to get on top of him. They were perfect, as usual. The crowd clapped and murmurs of impressed mothers and children could be heard.

Next, was the difficult part, she had to dismount and they would walk back to the “space station” together, hand in hand, since it was a lover’s act. As she bent her knees and placed her hands on his shoulders, she saw it. He was distracted by the flash of some idiot’s camera. He blinked, twisted and she began to fall. Still she was not afraid; she knew he would catch her and it would look like a great, big act to impress the audience.

As expected, he caught her by the forearm. He winked at her and whispered, “I love you, Jenna Perkins. I will love you forever, we are doves meeting in the sky.” He intentionally lost his balance and they were falling, arm in arm, eyes locked. It seemed to last forever. He smiled at her, loving her with his eyes and they knew it was fate for them to be together, forever. It really was true love.

They would never have to say goodbye to each other. They were meant to be. As their bodies crashed to the ground, their eyes filled with sheer joy and satisfaction, arm in arm, heart with heart, body with body and soul with soul, the circus crew rushed to the centre of the ring. The moment their physical beings crumpled and their souls were set free, they were happy. The dawning realization that they had passed hit the circus crew in waves of terror as the lights went off and screams began.