In the short Story The Love Of My Life, the author Boyle presents us to a couple, China and Jeremy, so young and so in love, that they are blinded by it. Boyle made me as if I felt the couples love through his words and the pain they felt along the ride, but the love never failed and it was that, that caught my attention the most; Besides the fact that I am a sucker for love stories and although it ended tragic, it made an interesting plot.
In the beginning, China and Jeremy were the perfect couple; Happy, in love, careless, grateful, good grades, a good life, no distraction.
The only thing they were missing was each other and once they met, or re-met in 6th grade, that’s all they needed. They became inseparable; best friends, first loves and high school sweethearts. I think their relationship was so strong because they had something most people don’t find until later on in life, if ever; They were best friends.
From the beginning they could talk about anything and they never ran out of things to say, even after years of being together.
I believe that a key ingredient to any relationship is communication and these two had mastered it. They knew each other so well that they could finish each others sentences which made for some pretty hilarious moments.
Although their relationship was great, they did have to face some obstacles along the way.
The first one being when Jeremy had to leave for college and they had to do long distance. Even though it was hard, they made it work by writing letters to each other and visiting whenever they could.
The second obstacle came when they found out that China was pregnant.
They were so young and they knew that their lives were going to change completely. But they decided to get married and face it together because they loved each other and they knew that they could make it work.
In the near future, China and Jeremy would wed. Both were bright, ambitious individuals with considerable prospects ahead of them. They were both expected to graduate in the top tenth of their class. Their only annoyance was themselves. A trip was planned for the two of them to the Great Wall before heading to Beijing for a few days before returning home. They had been waiting months for this time together, confident in their love for one another.
While on the trip they decided to get married and start a family as soon as they graduated. They were so much in love and everything just felt perfect. They were happy and content with each other and their future looked amazing.
A few months after they returned home, they found out that they were pregnant. They were overjoyed at the news and couldn’t wait to start their family. Everything seemed to be falling into place perfectly.
Their baby was born healthy and perfect, and they couldn’t have been happier. They named her Lily, after Jeremy’s grandmother who had passed away a few years earlier. She was the light of their lives and everything just felt perfect.
However, shortly after Lily was born, things started to unravel. Jeremy started drinking heavily and became abusive both verbally and physically. The once happy couple was now living in a nightmare.
Pregnancy can be a stressful time for couples, and sometimes the added stress can lead to problems that were not there before. If you are expecting a baby and things seem to be getting harder instead of easier, please don’t hesitate to reach out for help. There are many resources available to help you through this tough time.
They should have figured it out. The brilliant future, excellent grades, and top ten percent ranking in their class were meaningless because intellect does not teach you how to live well and that is something Jeremy and China were unaware of. I didn’t understand why she would go through the pregnancy or give birth if she didn’t want it, especially since he told her to “clear out” the kid.
Why not just get an abortion? That was the part that I never understood. The day started like any other day. They woke up, got dressed and went to their classes. They ate lunch together and then parted ways. He went to his job at the bookstore and she went to her job at the library. It was when they met back up later that evening that things took a turn for the worse. He was angry, she was crying and neither of them would tell me what was wrong. All I knew was that whatever it was, it was big.
The next day, I found out why. China was pregnant and Jeremy didn’t want anything to do with the baby. He wanted her to get rid of it. She refused and that’s when things really started to fall apart.
They stopped talking to each other, stopped eating together and stopped going to their classes. They both still went to work, but the tension between them was palpable. I tried to talk to Jeremy about it, but he wouldn’t listen. He said that it was none of my business and that I should stay out of it.
I tried to talk to China about it, but she was too wrapped up in her own head to really listen. All she would say is that she wanted to keep the baby and Jeremy didn’t want anything to do with it. I could see the pain in her eyes, but there was nothing I could do to help.
Eventually, they both dropped out of school and things only got worse from there. They fought all the time, about everything. The smallest thing would set them off and they would scream and yell at each other until they were both exhausted. I tried to talk to them, to reason with them, but it was like talking to a brick wall. They weren’t listening to anyone.
Then, one day, China came to my apartment and she was crying. She told me that she’d had enough, that she was going to get an abortion. I begged her not to, I pleaded with her, but she didn’t listen. She said that Jeremy had made it clear that he didn’t want anything to do with the baby and that she couldn’t do it by herself. I begged and pleaded, but in the end, she went through with it.
A few weeks later, Jeremy came to my apartment and he was crying. He told me that he’d made a mistake, that he wanted the baby, but it was too late. China had already had the abortion and there was nothing he could do about it. He was devastated.
