A year later
It took months to clean up the community and the temple and get rid of all the male memorabilia as well as the pervasive patriarchal systems that were in place. Not only because it was hard to bury all the bodies and lay them to rest but also because it took a long time for people to adjust to a new way of life. But we’re getting there slowly, and it’s worth the time it takes.
The temple has been repainted, the rooms redone, and all the furniture has been replaced with benches and chairs. The throne room has been turned into an actual auditorium, and the temple is now a community school for all genders and ages.
Girls and boys no longer learn about the archaic systems for marriage and conception, but about love and community, about living with each other and valuing one another as one big Family. Science and facts are now welcome at the school, and we’ve bought books from the outside world to give the children actual proper education.
In fact, the gates to the community have been opened and all the people living here are free to enter and leave whenever they please. Visitors are also allowed, though not a lot have discovered this place, nor do many people know it exists.
Celebrations are still held in the community but are no longer a fuck-fest for men. They’re now a celebration of women and their ability to raise and nurture, and rise above the pains of the past.
But we also remember the before and after, so no one ever forgets what took place.
In the middle of the community, we created a sort of shrine to honor those who died for the cause. Emmy’s candle is the biggest of all and burns the brightest. She was the first … the one who set the hearts of all the others ablaze.
And every month, we pray to God for justice and forgiveness, and we paint the walls of the temple with scenes from our revolution, to pay tribute to the women who fought and overcame their struggles, so we always remember what they did for this society.
Men and women are equal here, there is no submission, and no man can take anyone as their wife. Marriage only takes place when a woman wants a man and vice versa, and their love must be truthful, not based on lies and deception.
We screen every marriage before it takes place, asking them questions only they know the answers to before allowing it, to make sure everyone involved is safe.
The children adapted to this new way of life so quickly it’s almost as if nothing ever changed. They seem so happy to play around with each other while the men and women work equally hard, and they’ve adapted well to their new environment, despite having lost so many lives.
Many of the orphaned children were taken in by other families who couldn’t conceive, and while the women were blamed before, they are worshipped now for opening their hearts to children in need of a warm home.
There is no more need for a hierarchy, so everyone lives in the huts now. And no one is forced to shower when others are present, as we created small doors in the showers that serve to block anyone from entering. The dining hut is now open to all as well, with no one being disallowed from talking.
I’ve never seen this community more vibrant and the people happier than they are now, and we have ourselves to thank for it. I can honestly say that it’s a true Family now. There is only one thing left to take care of … And that is finding April.
There is no paper track, no records of her disappearance, but I know I will find her one day. Soon, we’ll go out into the world and start the search for the other communities.
And then we’ll set them all free.
I sigh and stare up at the clouds as I lie here in the grass in the middle of the tree orchard. Noah lies right beside me and holds my hand.
“We should get back, shouldn’t we?” he murmurs.
I shake my head. “Just a little while longer …”
“Your mother’s going to be mad at us, you know that, right?” he muses.
“She loves watching little Emmy. I doubt she’s keeping track of time,” I reply.
He suddenly rolls over and lies on top of me with half his body, caressing my cheek. “Well then, if you don’t care, neither do I.”
And he smashes his lips on top of mine, claiming me like he always does, but it feels so different now, so much better than it ever did before.
“Wait,” I say, inching back.
He pauses and looks at me. “For what?”
I smile broadly. “This.” And I grab his face and smother him with kisses.
When it’s time to breathe, he sucks in the air and says, “What was that for?”
“This time, it was my choice,” I reply.
A grin spreads on his face. “You know, I never asked you the question … but I will now.”
“What?” I ask frowning.
He picks up an apple lying on the ground mere inches away from us and holds it up. “I don’t have a ring, so this will have to do. But … will you stay married to me?”
I laugh, but my heart swells with love at the same time, and I grasp the apple, and say, “Yes, silly!”
He grabs my wrist and leans in to take a bite, chomping down. “Good, because I don’t think I’d survive if I had to go out there and look for another wife.”
I narrow my eyes. “You wouldn’t …”
“No, I don’t have time. Besides, I have you, and that’s more than enough for me to handle,” he says, raising his brows. “Plus, I intend to enjoy every minute I have with you.”
He leans in and presses another hungry kiss onto my lips, persuading me to kiss him back. The tension is rising. I can feel it in my body, which begs for him to touch it. He grasps my wrist and forces it down onto the grass, and the apple rolls away.
I don’t feel captured or subdued …
I feel free.
