Johanna Baartman inhaled her first breaths on the morning she was born in a labourer’s cottage, on the farm where her parents had lived and worked their entire lives. She was the second of five children. Her eldest brother, Karel, died on the farm during a harvesting accident when she was twelve, and she had three younger siblings. There were the two middle sisters, Sara and Jacoba, and the youngest was her baby brother, Hans.

The farm was owned by the Du Plessis family, who had cultivated this land for seven generations, starting with Jacques-Pierre Du Plessis who came to Southern Africa with the French Settlers in 1683. 

It was 1966 in South Africa, at the height of a near crumbling nationalist regime that ruled for more than two decades and implemented “apartheid” or racial segregation, lawfully enforcing the non-fraternisation of ‘white-’ and ‘non-white’ people.

On the Du Plessis farm, this separation was also evident, although having to live on the same land and working alongside each, their lives would be more entwined than elsewhere in the country. 

There was a large homestead with electricity, running water, and appliances versus the five small, white-chalk-painted cottages where the labourers lived. They were reliant on fire to heat water and cook their food, and their clothes were largely hand-downs from the Du Plessis family. They earned very little but were given rations from the farm's produce and had homes to live in at no cost.

Ben du Plessis was born on the farm, on a cold winter’s night, twenty-two years ago. He was the firstborn and had only one sibling, his sister, Maria, who was four years his junior. He attended the local village school until he was placed at a hostel in one of the bigger towns, about an hour’s drive from their farm, to complete his senior school education. Once he obtained his senior school certificate, he returned to the family farm and immediately commenced working alongside his father, Barend. They farmed with grapes, harvested from their vineyards planted nearly two hundred years ago. There were also some cattle and Barend added vegetable plantations in recent years, which they sold at the local co-op market.

Ben and Johanna were of a similar age and in effect grew up together. As far back as their earliest memories could recall, their lives would be entwined on the farm. Together they explored the vastness of the farm’s territory, shared many fun adventures, and discovered special places where they would spend time building forts or shelters. They learnt to swim in the cement feeding dams and rode on the animals, or chased the chickens when they got up to mischief. They were very close, unabated by the politics of the country. Until Ben left to attend high school.

Here he was taught that “skin colour was important, that white Christian folk were better than other races, and that mixing with them, eroded your God-given culture”.

Upon returning home at the start of his second-term school holiday, a fourteen-year-old Ben crushed his best friend’s soul.

A very excited Johanna ran up to greet him when he got out of the car. Ben brushed away her extended arms, pushed her to the side, and bluntly told her not to ever touch him again.

Johanna was shattered. She had been waiting for his return with great anticipation and to be so blatantly rejected by him, literally broke her teenage heart. She had missed him so much and felt utter loneliness without her best friend. She could not understand why Ben was so different from the last time they were together.

Ben swallowed the pain he felt when he saw her walking away from him, hearing her whimpering sobs as her shoulders shook in anguish.

Johanna did not attend school. She looked after her siblings until she was around fifteen or sixteen and then started working on the farm as a labourer. Her world was completely confined to the size of the farm. The first time she visited the nearby village, was when she turned thirteen, and her mother and father took her to a shop to buy her a pretty birthday dress. Other than the occasional village visit, the farm was her entire world.

She was also a late bloomer and only hit puberty when she was nearly seventeen. Her thin frame, which was as flat as an ironing board, suddenly pushed out two perky breasts, making her look rather awkward. By the time she was twenty, she had grown into her body and had a shapely backside to compliment her fully developed bust. Even though she was a naive farm girl, she had beautiful features, with distinctive mixed European and San characteristics. Her skin was a light, milky coffee tone and she had high cheekbones, dark brown eyes, and a broad smile.

When she was about eighteen, she started working in the main homestead. Mrs. Du Plessis took her to town to purchase three, button-up dresses which were to be her work attire in the house. Mrs. Du Plessis developed a soft spot for Johanna, especially so when her daughter, Maria, was sent to a school hostel too. Johanna filled the void left in her heart and home. She was very fond of Johanna and the two would often go into town together to shop for groceries, attend to the banking matters and see to chores that needed to be done.

Johanna and Ben did not interact much after he brushed her away, nearly six years ago. She would nod in his direction to greet him in the mornings and would respond to his questions when necessary. She did, however, still love Ben with all her heart. Boys from their- and adjacent farms, would make passes at her, wolf-whistle in her direction, and even tried to seduce her on several occasions. She was never enthused by their advances though, brashly telling them off and at times, had to physically defend herself from intoxicated men who would try to have their way with her.

On one such occasion, she hit an older man with a bottle against the head, slashing his head open with the broken glass and requiring Mr. Du Plessis to drive the drunk man to town for medical attention. When she was scolded by her parents and Mr du Plessis about her actions, she tried to explain that she was merely defending herself and that the man was at fault. She was very upset that she had to suffer when the man who tried to force himself on her, should have been the one in trouble.

After this incident, all the men were a little more aloof around her and certainly more careful about how they approached her. Most of the other girls she knew, had sexual experiences before their eighteenth birthday, but Johanna was not interested in any of it. Her heart was Ben’s. Whether he accepted her love or not, she knew no other would ever fill his place and if that meant she would die alone as a virgin, this would be her fate. And she had, in effect, accepted this already.

Ben, though, was the heir apparent and groomed by his father to take over the farm in years to come. He took this role seriously and lived for his family’s farm legacy. He already had ideas and plans on how to expand their fresh produce cultivation. He had a concrete vision of his purpose, one which drove him to be up at 4:30 am and return home when it became dark. His social life was confined to attending the church service in town on a Sunday, after which people would mill around the parking area and chat with one another. This was how and where current affair updates were shared. Ben would catch up with old school friend acquaintances, or, together with his dad, have farming conversations with other farmers. He would notice some of the younger women, of which there were not many, and sometimes nod in their direction. A courteous greeting, in his mind.

At the annual farmer's show, there would be a dance held at the showground’s hall and everyone from at least an hour’s drive-radius would be there. Here Ben would have the opportunity to request a dance partner from some of the women he knew. This would also be the closest he ever came to the opposite sex. Albeit a ruler length away from one another and only his one hand resting on his partner’s side, the other stretched out to hold her hand. ‘Gently’, as he was told by his mother when she taught him how to lead a lady during a dance. Ben noticed that their skin was soft and smooth when he would hold their hands. He admitted that much, but other than this, girls were not high on his agenda. He was not concerned about this either, as he believed that God’s will would provide him with a wife and children and that this should not concern him.

The unexpected death of his mother shattered Ben. She died during her sleep one night. Her body was cold by morning when Mr. Du Plessis brought her a cup of coffee, their forty-four-year morning wake-up ritual. The doctor suspected that she had a heart attack and that there was nothing they could do to have prevented this. Ben sobbed over his mother’s body, his head on her chest, and holding her hand, he cried like a little boy. His father had to physically remove him from the room so they could prepare her remains to be transported to town. Mr du Plessis cut a solemn figure on the porch of their home as he watched the ambulance drive away. He went to his room where he stayed until the next day.

The house was eerily quiet for the rest of the day. It was late afternoon, and Ben sat against the wall on the floor of his bedroom. His head hung down between his legs and only his shoulders shook in the silence. Johanna stood outside his door, slightly ajar but enough for her to peer at Ben. She wanted to rush inside, put her arms around him, and comfort him in his pain. She also yearned for his sympathy at her loss. Mrs du Plessis had become an important figure in her life and she felt like a piece of her soul had been ripped away from her.

She did not have time to express any emotions as yet, having to deal with the unfolding events of that morning. Tears started running down her cheeks. Johanna had not cried for as long as she could care to remember. She recalled the last time when she was fourteen and Ben pushed her away. She did not intend to cry and the tears streaming from her eyes released an emotional flood wave from deep inside her, initiating a weeping, near childlike wailing from her.

Ben’s attention was drawn to the sound coming from outside his door. It sounded like a girl but his sister was not home yet. He stood up and wiped his face clean before he walked up to the door to open it. When he saw Johanna's heartbroken face, he burst into tears again and they both embraced one another. They held onto each other for a long time. Both snickered and sniffed as they calmed each other. Johanna pulled away first, looked at Ben, and told him how sorry she was about his loss. She spoke to him about what his mother meant to her, how she cared about her, and that she too, will miss her. Ben’s body shook as he heard her words. It was the first to verbalise his loss.

“Thank you, Johanna,” he managed to say, “and I am sorry for your loss too,” and they hugged again.

“Let me make you some tea,” Johanna suggested after they managed to compose themselves.

“I’ll help you,” Ben answered and made their way to the kitchen.

Johanna filled the kettle and took a teacup and saucer from the cupboard. Ben took out the milk from the fridge and they stood there in silence, watching the kettle boil. Both were far off in their thoughts. When the water was ready, she filled the cup and dropped a tea bag in it. Ben took out another cup and dropped a tea bag into it.

“For you,” he said.

She filled her cup too and again, the two of them stood there, watching the tea draw a brown colour into the hot water. Ben pulled out a chair for Johanna and they both sat at the large wooden table, sipping their hot tea in silence. Neither said anything but once they were done, Johanna got up and bent forward to reach for Ben’s cup. As she lifted the saucer, Ben placed his hand on hers.

“Sit, please,” and motioned for her to sit.

“Johanna, I need to tell you something important,” he started, speaking softly, his voice craggy from all the crying.

“I am truly sorry about how I’ve treated you.”

“What for Master?” she replied and pulled her hand out from under his.

“You are my oldest friend Johanna. You know me better than anyone, even my mother. And I treated you with such disdain and contempt. Yet here you are, at my side, comforting me. I have come to realise, Johanna, you are the only person in the world whom I want with me right now. Not my father, not my sister, or a priest. It is only you. Just your presence makes me feel different, better. I just wanted to tell you how grateful I am to you. And how truly sorry I am about how I treated you. Could you ever forgive me?” Ben’s heartfelt words came as a surprise to Johanna.

Tears were running down her cheeks again. She tried to speak but she was overwhelmed by Ben’s words. He was sincere and spoke from his heart, something she had not seen him do since they were much younger. Ben reached out his hand, placing it open-face in front of her while he looked into her eyes. She lifted one hand from her lap and placed it in his, watching his fingers wrap around hers and his gentle squeeze. She looked up again to meet his gaze. Ben reach forward with his other hand and wiped the tears from her cheek. When he did the other side, her head dropped onto his hand, moving upward to feel his soft caress on her skin.

She closed her eyes as he kept stroking the side of her face, tracing his fingers down the jawline and to her neck. She did not resist when she felt his hand slide around to the back of her head and pull her forward. Her eyes were still closed when she felt Ben’s lips touch hers. Her lips parted slightly at the touch of his and they pressed their mouths against each other, both captured in the moment. Both experienced sensations they had never felt before. They opened their eyes when their lips parted.

“Ben, why did you do that?” she asked shyly.

“I wanted to kiss you,” he tried to smile at her, “I’m sorry if I offended you,” he added bashfully, looking out the window before his gaze returned to her.

“And it brought me joy,” he spoke in a soft, gentle manner, “It also made me feel, well, like a longing that needed to be fulfilled,” he added in earnest.

He was honestly confused about his current state, including his John Thomas which seemed to have gained a life of its own in his trousers. 

“Firstly, thank you for your kind words. I have needed to hear that, more than what I've realised,” Johanna replied, smiling at him as she looked up into his eyes.

“Secondly, I feel the same, Ben, very much,” she added, her head turning away coyly in her admission.

She experienced a warm sensation that was streaming through her, into her lower belly which made her feel a bit nauseous. Yet, as Ben stated, she too felt an unfamiliar craving that yearned to be filled.

“Ben, I have always loved you. And I will always love you. No other man could ever take your place in my heart,” she continued telling him, “I have never been with another man Ben, ever. Do you understand?” her eyes narrowed while she stared into his eyes. Ben nodded.

“I have never been with anyone either,” he replied softly and smiled at her again, leaning forward to kiss her again. They both got up from their chairs to meet the other’s lips, and they pressed against each other passionately, their arms wrapped around one another.

“Please come with me,” Ben asked Johanna to follow him and he motioned to the passage.

She held his hand and followed him down the passage to his bedroom. He led her in and closed the door behind them.

“Johanna, it has been an emotional day and I can’t say whether it is this or these feelings I have for you, but I do know that I want to be with you. Alone, privately.”

He embraced her before placing his lips against hers again. Johanna reached up on her toes and wrapped her arms around his neck. She was floating on air, and her body tingled when Ben’s muscular body pressed against her. For Ben, the engorgement in his trousers had become most uncomfortable and he was forced to adjust himself. When he reached down with his hand, Johanna looked down and pushed it away. She sat down onto her knees and undid his thick leather belt before undoing the buttons of his trousers, which she flapped open to pull his underwear down. The bent-over shaft sprung free from its confined space. Its sheer weight caused it to drop down in front of her and immediately recoiled straight back up due to its aroused state, pointed directly at Johanna’s face.

She had seen penises before, the boys running around naked by the river, her father when he bathed himself, but what she saw now produced sensations and thoughts she’d never, ever experienced before. Besides her ‘cookie’ (this was the word she grew up with) was throbbing, achingly, her heart was pounding in her chest and she detected the excess saliva in her mouth, like when she is really hungry. Ben stood motionless while he looked down at Johanna releasing his penis from its holding, and exhaled loudly as his discomfort was relieved. Ben was also surprised by the stiffness of his pole when it stood up to attention. 

Johanna marvelled at Ben’s erection, feeling it up with both hands while she took in every detail. There was a thick vein running up along the underside of the shaft, in which she could feel and see his blood pulsing with each heartbeat. She gently squeezed him with both hands, searching for an even more intimate sense of his pulses. Her tight embrace around his pole produced an unexpected groan from Ben, which startled her and made her look up at him. Ben’s gaze was like she had never seen before. His eyes looked different, slightly closed but not quite, and his face appeared to have a longing expression as if he desperately needed something.

She suddenly felt her own body react. That warm sensation spread through her once again. That ache pulsing between her legs. She realised her panty felt wet and immediately thought that her period had started, anxiously shoving one hand under her dress and touching her wet underwear with her fingers, which she held behind Ben’s legs to confirm her suspicions with bloody-finger evidence. But there was no redness whatsoever on her fingers, prompting her to dab again, this time running her finger under the knickers into herself to check for blood.

She gasped at the sensation when her finger effortlessly slid into her. It was slippery and wet and the sensation of the finger entering her created a tingly vibration that increased that throbbing pulse tenfold. She brought her hand out and they both looked at the clear, gooey liquid hanging from her finger. She looked up at him and smiled shyly.

“I thought my bleeding cycle started,” she said, embarrassed by the liquid that was suddenly leaking out of her, “But it is not. I’m not sure what this is, but it is very slippery, so maybe it is just my body’s way of making my cookie ready for you,” she tried to make sense of it.

Ben did not say anything but she still had her other hand holding his penis, which twitched in her grip, returning her attention to it. She squeezed around his girth again and noticed a bit of clear liquid come out of the little hole on top. She placed her thumb on it and rubbed it around to get a feel for it.

“It feels the same as mine,” she said glancing up at him, and sucked the remaining wetness from her finger, “Doesn’t taste bad,” she added and stroked up along the length of his shaft again.

Ben let out another groan. His jaw dropped open and growled from deep inside his chest. Johanna suddenly had an urge to taste Ben, to feel his thick manhood in her mouth instead of her hands, and moved her head closer. She inhaled the musky aroma from his privates and stuck out her tongue to taste Ben. She licked up along the glazed head once, lifting more sticky liquid that clung to the tip of her tongue and drawing it back into her mouth to taste it again. She was captivated by the quivering rod when her tongue lifted from him.

She looked up at Ben. His face was flushed, like when he had gone running, and his chest heaved heavily under his breath. She noticed his eyes again, which now shone like a nocturnal animal and nowhere near the usual soft blue eyes she was accustomed to. His lion-like gaze penetrated her and reduced the world to only him and her. Keeping his gaze, she moved forward and slipped her lips over his head. Ben’s facial expression at her touch ignited a hot, dancing flame-like sensation inside her. Her heart pounded frantically in her chest while she sucked and licked on his rod.

Ben’s eyes closed involuntarily and he was gasping for air due to the shortness of his breath. Johanna’s hot mouth on him created an ache that gushed through his entire body with every heartbeat. He could feel his balls moving, lifting, contracting, and aching more and more.

Johanna was relishing his penis, and she was now taking most of it into her mouth when she sucked him in. She had already learnt that when she used her tongue at certain places around the head, Ben would groan, or his body would shiver, or his pole would quiver in her mouth. She loved the intimacy of him inside her mouth It was as if she was joined to him. She noticed Ben had started moaning louder, and that he was now pushing his pole deeper into her mouth. Gentle Ben had become rough Ben, she thought, but this only increased her desire for him.

She used both hands and squeezed him tightly as she pumped his bulging hardness into her mouth. Suddenly she could feel her mouth filled with warm liquid which squirted against her tongue. It was thicker and tasted saltier than the clear liquid which she did not mind. However, a fraction of a second later, Ben’s loud cry startled her when more hot liquid shot out of him, hitting the back of her throat and causing her to choke. She had to swallow and keep swallowing as Ben kept filling her mouth with more and more of his hot cream. Her head was dizzy and only once she felt Ben had stopped pumping her mouth, and that there was no more liquid coming out of him, did she look up at him. His head was arched upwards, his neck exposing his blue veins pulsing with the fast beat of his heart. She kept him in her mouth until his eyes opened and he looked down at her. She slowly let him glide out between her lips, watching his eyes flinch as he popped out of her.

“Oh, Johanna! I don’t know what just happened, but I have never felt like this, ever!” he exclaimed excitedly, still breathing heavily as he pulled her back up to her feet and embraced her.

His lips pressed against hers like before, and this time Johanna’s tongue entered his mouth, prodding and swirling around his. His arms gripped her tighter and his hands groped at her body as they shared their passion-filled kiss.

Ben feverishly fumbled with Johanna’s dress, struggling with the white buttons on the front of the dress which ran from top to bottom. Once he had it all unbuttoned, he peeled the garment open and let it fall to the ground behind her. Johanna wore a thin white petticoat underneath and Ben lifted this over her head as he came up, kissing her as it fell to the floor behind her. Johanna did not own a bra and Ben revelled at the sight of her firm breasts which perked up when she lifted her head to him, smiling shyly in response to seeing Ben’s face staring at her heaving chest.

Johanna’s only remaining cover was her large, cream colour knickers which sat loosely around her waist. She stepped closer to Ben and started undressing him slowly. First, his waistcoat and then his shirt, undoing each button with pedantic attention while their eyes were locked on one another. Ben’s face lit up when Johanna slipped her hands below the undone shirt and her fingers traced over his chest, down over his chiselled stomach before pushing his attires off over his shoulders. Both hands slid down along the sides of his hips into his undone trousers and pushed them down to the floor. Rays from the late afternoon sun danced across their naked bodies, and Johanna and Ben savoured the intimate, uncovering moment before he wrapped his arms around her.

“Of all God’s creatures, you are my most precious,” Ben whispered to her, “and I’ve loved you for as long as I care to remember,” before they embraced in their unclothed kiss. Ben lifted her onto him and walked over to his single bed against the one wall. Johanna had her legs wrapped around his waist and the two kissed and giggled when he let her down gently on the bed. She kept her legs wrapped around him as if she feared he would leave her, and Ben rested on his elbows so he could look at her. He sincerely meant what he told Johanna, and his declaration of his love for her revealed her true beauty to him. He saw her, really saw her.

“I don’t know what to do,” he finally uttered, unsure about how he should proceed.

“Just kiss me,” Johanna replied lovingly and Ben pressed his lips against hers, his tongue discovering into her mouth as he did so. Their kissing rapidly evolved, inhibitions stripped away and their mutual desire grew increasingly higher. Ben’s hands caressed her breasts and explored her body while they kissed.

“Take off my panty,” Johanna whispered between their locked kiss. Ben sat up and pulled her underwear down. He was sitting at her feet gazing up at her bare body in front of him. He had never seen a woman’s privates and was intrigued by the dark curly bush between her legs.

“Can I kiss you there?” he asked, unsure about his question, but with a desperation in his voice that stirred Johanna’s insides.

“I am yours, Ben, kiss me everywhere,” she replied and watched Ben part her legs to get closer to her mound. Ben’s hand caressed her pubic hair and he observed the almost black vertical slit hidden beneath. He brought in his other hand to part the coarse curly hair and thumbed at her dark, fleshy skin folds which gave way under his finger’s attention. Ben brought his face closer. He was intrigued by the darker colour of the outside skin-folds and the bright, pinkish-purple as she opened up to him. The vibrancy of the colour was intensified by the shiny liquid of her inner walls. There was a small droplet that had formed at the base of her entrance, and he pressed his thumb down onto it and felt the digit slip easily into her. He looked up at her with a worried look when he heard Johanna gasp.

“Did I hurt you?” he asked concerned. But when he looked up at Johanna, he saw her arching her head back and soft moans coming from her open mouth. His thumb was still inside her and without taking his eyes off her, slowly explored her warm, lubricated hole as it wrapped around his finger. Johanna let out a lowly cry when he pulled his finger out, opening her eyes to see Ben stick it in his mouth, sucking the greasy coating clean as he pulled it out. Ben smacked his lips to taste Johanna’s extract. It was like nothing he had tasted before, slightly bitter but with a sweetish aftertaste. And the aroma was of her. He loved it immediately. It was as if he was tasting her essence and it filled him with a warm sensation. He looked back at Johanna who was watching him intently.

“Your essence will be my forever nectar,” he exhaled at her before he lowered his mouth onto her.

Parting her folds, he stuck his tongue into her and licked up against the smooth, slippery surface, very aware of another gasping moan which emanated from Johanna. The sound of which triggered a throbbing in his manhood, that only made him lick into her with more gusto. 

He became more familiar with her ‘cookie’ and noticed how Johanna’s body shuddered when his tongue hit the top of her slit, where the skin folds crowned together into a tight little nub. He felt it become larger, swelling with each lick of his tongue gliding against it. He used both thumbs to part her wet folds, and witnessed the little nub blossom like a rose, peeling open to expose the round-shaped dome tucked underneath. He stuck out his tongue and licked across the shiny bulb.

Johanna’s hips arched upward, her yearning for Ben’s tongue touching her there had become the single most burning desire she’s ever experienced. Ben’s strong arms gripped against her hips, holding her in the arched position, and feverishly licked her bulb. Johanna’s ardent cries gushed through his body, and his desire for her became more. More urgent. More intense.

Johanna suddenly let out a drawn high-pitched, throaty moan. He felt her body tense up and start to shudder while he forcefully ground his tongue against her. Johanna’s cry had become short bursts of exhales and her shoulders lifted from the bed to clutch Ben’s head by the hair, pulling him harder against her body. Ben kept licking and sucking at her until Johanna fell back into the mattress. 

“Stop, Ben, stop! I can’t anymore!” she finally cried out. Ben lifted himself from her and gawked up across her body to Johanna’s face. She looked more beautiful than he’d ever seen her. She had this glowing complexion and the most blissful appearance. She slowly opened her eyes and raised her head to look at him. Ben’s face glistened in the early evening light, his tongue licked alongside his bottom lip dripping with her nectar. 

“Oh my! Ben, my love! That was the most amazing feeling, ever,” she cried out, laughing uncontrollably and falling back into the bed. “Come here,” she called him, “come kiss me, my love.”

Ben slid up over her body, his wet kisses trailing over her stomach and breasts until he reached her mouth.

“I love you Johanna, and I always want to make you feel like this, and you for me,” he said lovingly before pressing his mouth onto hers again.

Johanna spread her legs for Ben’s body and his hips slid down along her inner thighs. She could feel the rigidness of his shaft pressing against her and shifted her body to align it with his. Ben lifted his head and they gazed into each other’s eyes, both closing simultaneously when he gently pushed into her. Ben gasped at the hot, enveloping sensation which gripped his manhood once he was inside her. Johanna could feel how she was stretched open and his hot pole filling her with a warmth she’d never experienced before. Ben withdrew slightly before he pushed into her again. With more thrust. With more passion on every stroke into her.

He could feel his body tensing as it did before when she had him in her mouth and kept ploughing into her, harder and faster. His head shot up, his eyes shut and his mouth opened wide as he let out a loud animalistic growl deep from within his bowls. Johanna held his head in her hands, spurring him on.

“Oh, yes, Ben, love me, love me,” she whimpered and felt her abdomen light up when his hot cream blasted into her. Ben’s body shook violently during the last thrusts of his hips into Johanna before he collapsed on top of her, panting and out of breath for a short while. He slid onto her side and rested his head on her breast, one arm across her stomach and one leg over hers. They lay there quietly in the last shimmers of dusk’s light. Their bodies clung to each other in the naked, loving embrace. The sadness in their hearts was there still, but its weight was lighter from their awakened love.

“Ben,” Johanna was the first to speak, “what are we going to do now?”

“What do you mean?” he replied, not sure if she wanted to do it again.

“How can we ever make this work?” her voice crackled at the sadness she felt about the future now. The man she loved, always loved and always will love, was not allowed to be with her and her mind reeled at what her parents, and Ben’s family, would say about their forbidden love.

“Will people ever accept our love, Ben?” she added, “I now know the depths of our love, my love for you, and I don’t know if I could carry on with this life without you.”

Ben sat up, Johanna’s words had burst his blissful bubble and his mind milled at the complex situation they found themselves in.

“Johanna, I don’t care about the laws, or what people think. This farm is our life, this is our home and we can live here without any interference from others. I will speak to my father in the morning, I will inform him of my decision to marry you,” he paused when he said this. “Will you marry me, Johanna? Would you be my wife and companion and build a future with me?” he suddenly uttered excitedly.

Johanna could not believe the words she just heard. All she could think about was the difficulties they would have to face, many of which they were not even aware of yet, but the thought of being Ben’s wife brought immense joy into her soul.

“I would rather die than live another day without you Ben,” she finally answered, and exclaimed in excitement, “Yes, my love, of course, I will marry you!”

Their kiss sealed their covenant, and elatedly clung to each other in the darkness of the night. 

They would never be apart again.