One Moonlit Night

By Sharon Holtz

 It was a moonlit starry, starry night, and this Halloween held a little more excitement for young Catherine, than the Holiday had held in the past. And the  reason is, after Catherine goes Trick-or-Treating with her friends, she would be  going with her Mom and Dad, to a special concert in the park! Yes, on this night of  ghostly shadows, the orchestra would be playing music from her Mom's most  favorite composer “Grieg”, which was becoming Catherine's favorite too.

 Oh how her Mother loved going to the concerts in the park with her family. And little intuitive Catherine noticed her Mom seemed to be enjoying these times together, even more so lately, making these occasions extra special for her as well.

 So as they sat there this Halloween, Catherine's Mom lovingly held little Catherine's hand, as she swayed to the music...savoring the melodies that flowed through the night air. And as they shared a smile, they both realized what a wonderful night this was.

*****

Meanwhile…down below the city streets…young Devin was racing through the  tunnels, to find his little brother Vincent, and because there was a concert being  performed in the park, he knew right where to look!  Yes, Vincent had his own special spot for all the concerts performed in the park,  which was in the tunnel right below the bandstand. So whenever there was music  filtering through the vent, Vincent's love for music, would draw him there.

 And so as Vincent heard his brother calling for him, he quickly stood, and answered  back, “I am over here Devin."

 As Devin rounded the corner, and caught his breath, he eagerly asked, “Hey, do you  wanna go to the concert?"

 To which Vincent excitedly told him, “I already am Devin! And it is wonderful!"

 “No Vincent...” Devin answered mischievously,”...I mean really go…go up top! Since everyone is masquerading, we would blend right in!”    Thinking this sounded wonderful, Vincent’s eyes widened, and said, "Neat! So  Father said I could go?"

 With a wave of his hand, Devin replied, “Are you kidding? Father couldn’t know anything about it! He's an old stick in the mud, and would never approve!"

 And so to convince Vincent, Devin said, "Here's the situation...at this very minute,  Father is in his chamber, playing chess with Sebastian. They will be at it for hours!  And so Pascal, Winslow and I were thinking, since we did all the Halloween crafts  and junk Mary made us do, we could go on an adventure…like check out the  concert up top. So, wanna go for it? Come on Vincent say yes! We all know how  much you like this classical garbage!"

 As Devin picked up on Vincent's hesitancy, he urgently pleaded, "Ya gotta think  fast Vincent! Pascal and Winslow are waiting for us."

 And so without a word, Vincent instinctively put up his hood, and with a nod, he agreed.

 Meanwhile, as Pascal and Winslow stood guard, and saw Vincent walking with  Devin, they both did a high five, and then Winslow excitedly said, "All right! Looks  like “The Four Amigos" are going on an adventure, masquerading as Top-Siders!"

 And so the boys made their way up, into the park, Vincent stopped to linger under  the bleachers, while Devin, Winslow and Pascal continued onward, thinking Vincent  was right behind them!  As Vincent took it all in, he stood spellbound, entranced by the way the musicians  played together, creating this beautiful and wondrous sound.

 And as Vincent listened, his eyes sparkled with amazement, and danced with boundless joy!    Yes, Vincent couldn't believe it! He was actually there…watching and really feeling the music up close.

 And so as Vincent stood in the shadows under the bleachers, somehow...a beam of light magically sought him out. and reflected off of his beautiful crystal blue eyes, causing them to sparkle and dance even more than usual!  Meantime, as Catherine sat, also enthralled with the music, something caught her  attention! And so she looked down through the seats, and caught a glimpse of  Vincent! And what she could see of him, was so striking, that she thought, “Oh  My…that boy has the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen!"

 And because of seeing this awesome kid, little Catherine's attention was no longer  on the music…but rather on the cute boy beneath the bleachers! And she thought it  was pretty cool, that he was really enjoying the music too!  Catherine then realized,  she had never known a boy her age, who enjoyed classical music as much as she  did before! But there he was!  Meantime, at the same moment, Vincent sensed something, which caused him to  look up, and through the bleachers, he saw the most beautiful girl in the world!  And so upon realizing he had been spotted, Vincent quickly stepped back into the  shadows, until the realization struck him...that he did not have to hide...not on this  night anyway!  So once again, Vincent stepped forward so he could see the beautiful girl, the  beautiful girl who was looking right back at him!  And as Vincent came back into view, Catherine found she was relieved the boy was  still there, and so she instinctively smiled, as if to say "There you are!"

 And although Vincent was stunned and humbled this beautiful girl was smiling at  him, he managed to politely greet her in kind, with a tip of his head.

 But...as fate would have it, it was time for intermission, causing an interruption, to this “time-stood-still-moment” for little Catherine and young Vincent!  So as everyone rose from their seats, to either stretch or get refreshments, the crowd got in the way, and the two lost sight of each other!  And as Catherine's parents took her hand to get some refreshments too, her mind was actually not on the hot chocolate and cookies, but rather, she wanted to search for the cute boy with the crystal blue eyes.

 And Vincent was searching too, because he wanted to find the pretty girl with the  beautiful smile!  Meanwhile, Devin, Winslow and Pascal, were frantically looking for Vincent! And  when they found him, Devin scolded, "You scared the heck out of us, with your   disappearing act! Maybe this wasn't a good idea, cuz if you would have been really  lost; I don't know what I woulda done, and one things for sure, Father would have  killed me! Come on you guys...we're heading back home."

 And even though his comrades were tugging on him, Vincent stayed steadfast, and  dug in his heals, as he stubbornly decided, he was not going to budge…not until he  saw the beautiful girl, one last time.

 Meanwhile, Catherine too felt the same way, and so she lingered and looked….

because she had to see this cute boy one more time!  Finally, Catherine saw him, there he was! The fairy tale type boy, with the most beautiful eyes! Oh….and she thought he was really awesome, with his lion like  featured mask, and golden hair, falling way down below his shoulders.

 And it was then that Vincent saw her too…the girl, with the most beautiful smile! And she was so pretty, dressed as Alice in Wonderland, with her long hair pulled back, and tied with a wide blue satin ribbon.

 And again she smiled, that dazzling smile, right at Vincent!  Then suddenly she was gone. Tugged out of sight, and Vincent too was pulled and pushed in the opposite direction, in an effort to return to their safe refuge below.

*****

Well, it was many years later…when Vincent had extended an invitation to Catherine to listen to “Grieg” in his private box seat below the bandstand.

 And so, as they settled in to listen to the concert, Catherine thanked Vincent, for this perfect seat!  Vincent said she was most welcome, and then they together, sat entranced, listening  to the music.

 Oh how Vincent loved the music…and as he listened with such joy…it made his beautiful eyes sparkle and dance.

 And Catherine, from her excitement smiled up at Vincent, conveying she was enjoying the music too!  In just that moment…Vincent looked down at Catherine…who was smiling that beautiful smile, and she, looked up at him, with those dancing crystal blue eyes, and they both in the same moment…realized they had met once before, on that one moonlit night so long ago…