Dame Martha's efforts to marry her son doubled after he almost confessed his love for Margaret. The lady saw that predisposition of her son as a dangerous inclination, at least until he was married. She liked the girl, but she wasn't fit to be her son's wife, her social status made her a concubine, rather. So she filled her son's time with dates, and Margaret knew well, as she was the one writing the invitations.
It was a hard time for Margaret, she had to witness James talking to pretty girls, and them laughing at something he had said, while she couldn't even talk to him. Her body longed for his, and her mind for his conversation. She missed him despite seeing him everyday. Furthermore, Dame Martha couldn't stop commenting on her son's suitors, oblivious of the fact that Margaret was in love with him.
James was going crazy, too. Even if he refused each and every one of the girls, his mother would always find more. He started to hate having been born in a rich family, although he knew there was no other way he would have met Margaret. He would spend his afternoons with the high society girls his mother found him thinking of a way out. Such was his stress that he fell sick with the flu. Dame Martha took pity of him and decided to give him a break, coinciding with a one week trip she had planned to the capital. She would have taken Margaret too, but she was staying at a friend's house and there wasn't any more space.
Dame Martha's departure was like a ray of sunshine. It meant no more interminable dates, and more time in the library. James and Margaret tried to catch up, but it was not enough, it was never enough, and there was always someone close to eavesdrop. Still, they were together, it was happiness, and Margaret wasn't sure she could live without it anymore.
The day before Dame Martha returned, Margaret took a decision, her only way out. If they wanted to be together they needed to be brave. She thought about it during the whole day, and, at night, she sneaked into James room. He was already asleep, still tired from his illness, so she shook him softly to wake him up. Before he was able to say anything she kissed him, took off her robe and got into his bed. They made love, silently, muffling each other's moans with their lips. It had been too long since they had shared a bed. Too long for their young thirst. As silently as she had entered, she left ignoring James' questions.
The following morning, she had left. James found a note on his desk, the same note he was holding at that moment, "If you love me, meet me at the train station". He remembered spending the whole morning considering it. He loved her more than anything, but he could not vanish into nothingness, or could he? People disappeared all the time. Still, he had responsibilities, but also the right to be happy. When he had finally made up his mind, and was about to head out to the station, Dame Martha arrived.
-James, son! I see you are fully recovered. How nice of you to come greet your mother.
In a second, all his opportunities of escape vanished. As he looked at the note, five years later, he wished he had taken the decision earlier. "If you love me, meet me at the train station". "I still love you Margaret, I still do", he muttered.
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