A carpet of bluebells heralded the spring, rebirth and growth surrounded them.
They lay among the flowers in the sunlight that blazed through the forest canopy, enjoying the intimate closeness of their bodies next to each other.
‘I’ve missed this,’ the girl murmured, her hands roaming across his chest and stomach.
‘Me too,’ the boy replied, stroking her hair and kissing her lightly.
They had been unable to touch while in lockdown. Three months stuck in their parental homes, banned from seeing or meeting anyone, reduced to webcam communication and phone calls.
The restrictions had been lifted the week before. It wasn’t over. The authorities warned everyone not to rush back into life as it had been before.
But they were young and passionate and their feelings had been kept in check for too long.
‘From now on we will never be apart again,’ the girl said.
‘Never,’ the boy sighed.
Overhead the birds sang.
A light breeze swept through the forest carpet, the blue flowers swayed, tolling their bells.
In the silence of the clearing, the boy coughed.

This is a response to the #writephoto Prompt: Bells curated over at Sue Vincent’s Daily Echo. Click on the link to read other stories inspired by the image.
33 responses to “THE LAST BELL TOLLS”
They’re young. Maybe they will be OK?
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It seems to help for sure.
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I hope he’s just allergic to the pollen.
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Let;s be optmistic and say that’s all it was 😉
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I am ever the optimist… 😉
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Reblogged this on Sue Vincent's Daily Echo and commented:
First in this week…
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Clever ending.
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Thank you
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Perfect.
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Thanks Tina
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A beautiful tale until the last word . . . Well done!
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Thank you
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I hope they are together and alive! 🙂
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Think positive 🙂
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I am always looking for a happy ending 🙂
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Makes you think Iain.
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Better to be safe is my motto at the moment.
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Ours too.
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Could have been a regular cough. Hope so 🙂
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50/50 chance…!
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Chilling. But that’s life now, in a nutshell. Or maybe the darkling lens to always has just been wiped clean…?
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It’s positive to think of this as a fresh start, everyone should try and think that way if they can.
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Wow, our daughter just had a brief meeting with her boyfriend yesterday! Scary thought.
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Better to be safe than sorry. Hope everyone is still safe and well Janet.
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Thank you for the great answer to the prompt, Iain. You are just faster as the BBC BreakingNews channel, using the actual lockdown too. 😉 Hope you are staying safe and well. Best wishes, Michael
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Thank you Michael, good to hear from you. Hope you are safe and well too.
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Thank you very much, Iain. All in normal shape here. There is so much rurality, the virus would have to walk a very great distance. 😉 Hope you are well and save too. Best wishes, enjoy the weekend. Michael
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Noooooooo 😦
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I’m looking forward to being able to write happier endings.
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Oh, what an ending line! Great way to punch our mood with a little reality.
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Thank you
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[…] Iain Kelly […]
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