An Untold Story

An Untold Story

In the beginning, sometimes I left messages in the street. Believe it or not, I used to be one of those who are too shy to simply talk to their crushes, so I had to find another way. She was the love of my life, I was sure of it. Everything about her was beautiful: her name, her face, her smile, the way she walked. Her laughter was music to my ears, and her voice sweet as honey.

I will never forget the day we first met. It was a chilly spring morning, and I was just sitting on the pavement. I watched as a removal van pulled over in front of the house next to my home. The apartment had been for sale since January, and I was excited to get new neighbours. I hoped it would be a family with at least one kid of my age, as none of my friends from school lived within walking distance.

As the family climbed out of their car that had been parked in front of the removal van, I noticed a red-haired girl, who seemed to be about my age. My heart leapt in joy. However, when I saw the other daughter of the family, I was convinced I had just seen an angel.

Her blonde hair shone even though the sun was hiding behind clouds. Her eyes were the colour of chocolate. Her neck was three times longer than mine, a feature I found adorable. She would be described as "horse-toothed" by those intending to mock her, but I saw nothing wrong about her teeth. They were white as fresh snow, and I would not have been surprised if I had seen her in one of those toothpaste adverts.

I watched as the family entered their new home, my thoughts never leaving the wonderful sight of the angel-like girl. I was completely and hopelessly in love. That was somewhat ironic, as I had always been one to sneer at those believing in "love at first sight".

Needless to say, I started to take every opportunity to lay my eyes on the beauty that was Petunia Evans. The day I learned her name is one that will never fade from my memory.

My parents decided to visit our new neighbours, as was their habit. For once in my life I willingly came along. I could hardly wait to get to meet my angel in disguise, as I had taken to calling her.
Mum insisted we take a basket of fresh-baked cookies with us, since she had heard it was a common way to welcome new neighbours. As much as Dad and I loved those chocolate chip cookies she had baked that very morning, we agreed with her. I had one condition, though: I wanted to be the one to carry the basket. It might, after all, provide me with a chance to give the cookies to Angel herself, something I fiercely hoped would happen. It would be a dream come true.

It seemed to be my lucky day. She did indeed open the door after Dad had rang the doorbell. Seeing her there, standing a few inches away almost caused me to faint from excitement. I barely managed to stay conscious and hand her the cookie basket.

"Welcome to Juniper Street," I said as she accepted the gift.

"We are the Dursleys, and we hope you will like it here, in this relatively quiet neighbourhood," Mum continued, smiling warmly.

"Thank you," the belle replied politely, "please, come on in."

Her father appeared then, and bid us welcome in their home. "We are the Evanses," he introduced his family, "and greatly appreciate your visit, dear neighbours. Please follow Petunia and me to the living room, to come and meet the rest of the members of our little family."

'Her name's Petunia, then?' I mused. 'Well, that name definitely suits her, because she's beautiful as a flower.'

The Evans family had a very cosy living room with its brown leather sofa and several potted plants. I had always been into gardening and loved being around plants.

"Good day to you," greeted Mrs. Evans after her husband and Dad had taken care of introductions, "we are glad to have you as our neighbours. Makes it much easier to settle down when we know we are welcome here."

The next forty-five minutes or so were filled with small talk, mostly among the adults. However, Petunia and her sister Lily soon started asking me questions, which quickly turned into an actual conversation. When it became obvious the girls we aiming to befriend me, I experienced one of the happiest moments in my life. I would finally have someone to play with, outside of school! It had been the one thing I had hoped would happen, as I had never been good at being alone.

Just as the situation was about to become awkward, due to my finding it harder and harder to stop staring at Petunia, the adults ended their conversation and rose.

"Thank you for your hospitality," said Mum, as she and Dad shook hands with Mr. and Mrs. Evans.

"Thank you for visiting, and the cookies," replied Mrs. Evans, her green eyes full of delight. "I am glad the children seem to come along so well," she added, "Lily and Petunia have never had too many friends, and I'm sure they're thrilled to get to know your Vernon."

"We sure are," exclaimed the girls, and I nodded as to say I, too, was happy to get to know other children. I had found out both Petunia and Lily were a year younger than me, but only because I had just turned twelve the previous week.

That night, when I was lying in bed, I could not stop thinking about Petunia Evans. When I finally did fall asleep, my dreams were sweeter than ever before.

Since that day I had become more and more convinced that Petunia and I were meant to be. However, being the shy boy I was, I could not find the words to express my feelings.

After several months had passed, I started to write those messages on the street. I always placed them right in front of the Evans' home, as to not arouse suspicion toward myself. Now that I think back to it, I find it rather dumb, seeing as I was trying to make Petunia see I loved her.

The messages were fairly cryptic, so to speak, for I would never have written something as frank as "I love you, Petunia".

When it became clear she would never get the meaning of the messages, I was forced to come up with another plan.

Two years (yes, I am not good with plans) after the visit to the Evans', I realized I would have to choose a rather direct course of action. I would simply ask her out.

It took me weeks to muster the courage, but when I finally managed to ask her...she said "Yes"! I was on cloud nine for the next three days.

We had agreed to meet on a Wednesday evening, at the nearby park. It turned out perfect. After that evening, nothing could have made me change my mind about Petunia being the One for me.

As year after year passed, our relationship became stronger and stronger.

Petunia had just turned 19 when we got married. In fact, we had a double wedding: Lily was married to a man called James Potter the very same day.

The next two years were the best time of my life, but it all was crushed when Lily and her husband were murdered on Halloween, in 1981. Petunia was absolutely devastated, but not for long. The event turned her world upside-down, and she began to despise magical people, such as her sister and the monster who had slaughtered the Potter family. I figured it was her way of getting over the grief, and whole-heartedly agreed with my dear wife.

The rest of our story is history...