Talking rings and talking cradles
Life had been hectic lately, as it always did in the December, with a heavier routine where everything moves faster, people lining up in stores, family mending their mishaps, couples embracing love, and a few others in their own solitude, with no one´s embrace but their own, where the loneliness that never once bothered throughout the year seems to make an unwelcome appearance among the joy of the season.
The streets were filled with the hustle and bustle of the holiday cheer, decorated in warm lights and earthly tones that brought life in every sight, carols mixing up as background noises, melting in with the sound of hopeful children´s voices, creating a rather crowded but warm ambient.
As snow showered down, Rio was found embracing herself, hiding her face as much as she could under her coat, cursing herself for not wearing longer boots, cozier clothes, but her sight was startled as she saw her business across the street. The store´s facade adorned with twinkling lights, wreaths and garlands, that paired with the snow and the muffled sound of a Christmas carol instrumental created a rather picturesque scene. It warmed her heart, everything she´d built over the years, everything she had fought for along with its ups and downs. She smiled to herself as the sign lit up, “Vidal & Co”, even if it was not yet a major company, the satisfaction of having something that belonged solely to her was unmatched. She reached for the door greeting Mrs. Hart as she made her way to her studio.
“Vidal & Co” was a renowned jewelry store in Manhattan, celebrated for its exquisite collection of precious metals handcrafted into timeless designs, whether you were looking for the classic elegance of a diamond or any other bold statement pieces, everything was here. Cherishing classic designs, and introducing Rio´s ideas into the market, the store offered a vast variety for every occasion, every gift, for every person. The charm of a jewelry store like this was that true magic happened behind the curtains, where clients could share their ideas, their feelings and visions for Rio to bring them to life, she would carefully handcraft every piece, making sure everyone left with a unique statement jewel not found anywhere else.
Rio entered her studio, that was more a workshop than a studio, but it didn´t sound as fancy, it was Alice, her best friend, who had suggested to call it that. She repeats the routine she does every single morning, drinking her coffee while she looks around. Even if she was passionate about it, and loved it with everything of her, she couldn´t help but feel no motivation from time to time, feeling her solitude a little too strong. Even if her life had always been solitaire, it didn´t mean she enjoyed it at all, but it was the way life had treated her, and she could only learn to embrace it rather than to dwell on the well of loneliness she´s so fond of. Minutes later, she had her gloves and glasses on as she perfected the last details of a pair of wedding bands, it was a mesmerizing sight, the way she could skillfully move her hands with such care and precision, ensuring every engraved detail was perfectly aligned, and Mrs. Hart knew better as to just come in and bring her out of her trance, so she knocked slightly, almost imperceptible, waiting for her cue to come in.
“Come in”, she said a few seconds after ensuring the last carved detail was perfect, she took out her gloves and pulled up her glasses as she looked up to the woman. “What´s up?”
“Rio, sorry to bother you, dear, but there’s a woman outside, said she spoke to you through the phone.” Sharon said, carefully entering the studio, looking around kindly, more than an employee, she´d always been a fan of her work. “I also brought some cookies I made yesterday, I know how hectic the season can be.”
“Thank you so much, you know they´re always welcome” she smiled while standing up from her working station, making her way towards her desk. “Yes, send her in, please. And the cookies, you know I can´t resist them.” She wasn´t just being nice, she actually craved her baking goods every day, something so sweet about everything she makes, claiming that love was the real key of success.
The woman nodded, leaving the cookies in her desk before making her way outside to show the woman where to go to. Rio didn´t wait a second more to grab one of the cookies as she got everything set up for the meeting.
Rio was getting her portfolio ready, the gem shapes collection and the finishings book for her new client. Around these dates she never accepted new personalized orders, since there was no guarantee she´ll finish them on time, but there was something about the desperation on the woman´s voice along with her eulogies that made her say yes in an impulse.
A red headed woman came in, she was beautiful, hazel eyes and long hair, her gaze was strong, so was her presence, and it was weird, almost painful, how this woman´s energy somehow felt familiar, revolting feelings and memories that had been shoved deep down and never resurfaced.
“Hi, Wanda, is it?” She greeted her with a warm smile, shaking her hand firmly as she offered a seat across from her.
“Hi, yes! It’s so nice to meet you.” Wanda replied sincerely, her excitement evident. “I’m so sorry for being so insistent on our call yesterday, it´s just that I had never been more sure of anything in my life, and I´ve always been an admirer of your work.”
“It’s always great to hear that.” Rio’s gaze was grateful, she always was when someone praised her work. Even if she knew she never did less than the best, it felt good to know people could see that. She pressed her hands together in front of her desk. “You said over the phone you wanted to discuss an engagement ring, is that right?”
“Yes, yes, I plan on proposing to my girlfriend before Christmas, but she’s special…” Wanda's tone shifted, infusing the word with a deeper meaning. Rio´s eyes lingered in her, somehow silently trying to disclose what she meant. “I was probably looking for something with a ruby or maybe a blue sapphire. I love natural stones, but I’m not sure if a diamond would be the best fit for her.” She chuckled at the last bit. “She’s different.” That strange remark again, it made Rio wondered, she always did. One of her hobbies as a jeweler was creating scenarios in her head about her clients, making up stories with different meanings, probably way too far from reality, trying to make sense of her work, to imagine where it´s going, what meaning it has been given.
As Rio scribbled notes in her sketchbook, simple terms that would later become a sketch, trying to mix in the expected result and the personalities she´d been described, she encouraged Wanda to continue. “I can see where you’re going, keep it coming.”
“I was thinking something bold, different, I´m all in for natural gems, not too fond of the traditional diamond. She´s fit for something different, spikes, bold strokes, it just resembles her.” Rio’s eyes flicked slightly to the necklace Wanda was wearing—a red stone surrounded by spikes and bold strokes. “She has this strong presence surrounding her, some sort of magic that drowns you in her spell, this strength that can be perceived anywhere.” And she wondered, was she really describing something for her girlfriend?
“Something like the necklace your wearing?” She said nonchalantly, trying to hide the unease that these situations caused, how hard it is to really know your partner? It was easy to spot when someone was just trying too hard. Wanda shifted her head slightly, glancing down at her own necklace, offering a small smile in return.
“Right, I´d never really thought about that. What do you suggest, then?”
“Why don´t you tell me a little about your girlfriend, and then we´ll work from there.”
“Right, sure.” She hesitated for a moment, wondering where to start from. Her eyes lit up a few second later, her pupils dilating, it made Rio´s heart clench lightly, it had been a while since anyone´s eyes shined for her. “For starters, she´s gorgeous, big blue eyes with dark brown hair, it makes a beautiful contrast. The kind of beauty that makes you stop as she´s passing by.” Her breath hitched in her throat, her mind dwelling on that same nostalgic feeling since she saw her. It couldn´t be her, anyway, she left and never came back, but the resemblances were hard to let pass.
“What about her personality?”
“I mean, she´s something. Temper for days, stone cold looks along with her harsh sarcastic self. But she´s gentle, softer than she lets people see.”
“Where did you meet?”
“Coven Café, she has been going for years every Saturday morning, I just had to talk to her someday, you know? Worked for the better.”
“Coven Café.” She whispered, melancholy hitting her. “It´s been years since I´ve been there.” Her smile faltered, she scoffed, shaking her head. “Huh, that sounds like plenty to work with, you see, jewelry design is an intricate art where you can resemble all these things into a single unique piece that no one else will own. Even if these questions seem unnecessary, they create a large picture on what strokes, shapes, colors could resemble them. And now, finally, what´s her name?”
“Agatha Harkness.” She said as she pulled out a picture of her, the picture didn’t do justice enough for how gorgeous she looked in it, the slight freckles on her face and her vaguely perceptible wrinkles around ger eyes, so blue they could pierce right through her. Rio froze at the sight, memories playing like films without sounds, moments of silence and whispered promises, faint kisses lingering in her skin, she could even swear she had a sniff of her smell once more. The hurt surging through her veins, the tears threatening to fall again, even after she swore to never shed a tear for her. Her breath so irregular, she couldn´t be still, but she couldn´t break down, not here, not now, not even later. But it has been so long since they last saw each other, she just wanted to keep looking at the photo forever. She had avoided any trace of her for a reason, this particular reason, since she had this power over her that made her fall to her knees with the mere thought of her. But she couldn’t disclose it, not now, not when she had gotten so good at pretending she didn´t think of her anymore, that she didn´t love her anymore. Now, she just had to pretend she´d never met her at all.
“Are you okay?” She had been staring for a little too long, her gaze still flickering between the screen and the woman in front of her, not daring to look away for too long, as if she may forget what she looks like now.
“Yes, sorry, God, sorry.” She chuckled, her smile not really reaching her eyes. “She just looks like someone I used to know, but good news, I’m starting to think of the perfect fit for her, what about I send you some design proposals in the next few days so we can work from there? I may have to step away from the ruby and sapphire to make my vision work.”
“Of course, I trust you completely.”
“And by the way, I wish you both happiness and a great life together. It´s been a ritual of mine to make these declarations before I start any sort of work.” She blushes slightly. “It´s lame, I know, I just think that the energy you put since the beginning could have a greater impact than we actually realize.” She felt like a hypocrite, since the only actual feelings she had were jealousy, fear, anger, sadness.
“I actually think it makes your work even more special.” She stood up, looking kindly at her, grateful even. “Thank you so much for agreeing to see me, I know it is such short notice, and this time of the year. So, I really, really appreciate it.”
She stood up, not being able to stand still anymore, leaning in for a last handshake, praying for her solitude once more. “I´ll do my best. Count on it. Thank you for trusting me.”
A few last greetings, and holiday wishes, Wanda finally walked out the door closing the door on he way out, and that´s all it took for Rio´s eyes to fill with tears, letting them flow in her face as her breath caught up on her throat, her lips quivering as they did every time she muffled her cries. Her body reached the ground as she covered her face, even though she was alone, shame was getting the best of her. For a moment, composure and steadiness were the least of her worries.
She didn´t understand why she felt this way, how all the unresolved feelings rushed back to her full force after years of mending them within herself, of caging them so no one knew how pathetic she was for still loving the same woman that had screwed her over and over, even when she didn´t mean to. Her left hand started gently caressing her lower boob, where a simplified version of the three of swords painted her skin, the ink blurry and undefined from the time passed. Minutes passed and she finally dared to stand up, looking around her workshop once more, swiftly walking between the diverse workstations, making her way through them until she got to the storage room where she kept tools and materials scattered around, the most expensive ones laid behind locked glass doors. She reached for the dangling keys from her carabiner, glancing through them until she found the small one to open them. Her hand went in, pulling everything aside until she got to the scraps area, where she usually stored any metal leftovers or any broken stone. She pulled out a purple box she hadn´t touched in almost a decade, it was dusty, old, forgotten. It was a beautiful vintage box, a dark purple suede exterior with golden touches. As she placed it in front of herself, a few sneezes and coughs showed through, and just like that, her eyes spilled tears again.
Inside the box was a thick organic shaped 18k gold band, the colors clearly worn out for being stored for too long, with white gold details on the inside, details perfectly engraved creating romantic patterns on the sides, with a couple tiny emeralds along the band, a rather traditional design. In the center, still holding all it´s glory, a natural purple diamond in a perfect Asscher cut. Purple diamonds are known to be some of the rarest colors to ever be found, mined principally from the Argyle Diamond Mine in Australia, she laughed, bitterly, as she remembered all the trouble she went through to get it, to afford it. She had spent hours, days, weeks and months ensuring it was perfect, caring for every little detail and starting over as much as it was necessary. A great deal of her life was in it, yet it ended up stored and kept away for years.
She loved making the ring, she even loved more who it was supposed to be for. The ring never got to see daylight, neither did Rio´s hopes and desires.
What a curse it is to never forget, and Rio still remembered every meaning, what every stroke stood for, what every detail was trying to scream, how hard she tried to convey all her feelings into this piece.
A million unanswered questions of their fallout rushed through her mind, clouting her brain as she traced her fingers along the carved initials on the inside. “AH”.
This ring always meant to be hers, even if she was not the one giving it to her, even if her heart ached at the sole image of her wearing it while married to someone else. Agatha would soon be married to someone she was trying so hard to hate, but she seemed nice, loving, caring. And despite all, she meant it when she said she wanted her to be the happiest she ever could, even if it meant eternal unhappiness for her.
She held the ring close to her heart as she held her cellphone towards her ear, hearing the beeping sounds from the other line as her cries became stronger, no longer able to contain the feelings. The call started, complete silence besides Rio´s uneven breaths.
“Rio, are you okay?” She knew her so well, Alice knew her too damn well to just know as a fact, that nothing was okay.
“It´s her, Alice.” Her voice breaking between sobs.
“It´s her, who?” She already knew who.
“It´s her, it will always be her.”