Work Text:
Cruz sighed as she read over the wording of her announcement again.
746 – Former marine, lives in Kansas, 27 years old, 5 feet 8 inches tall. Wants someone who will be true and sweet. Who stands up for their beliefs. Who is willing to build a happy home next to me. Objective, matrimony.
There was no way to change it now. Not when it had already been printed.
It just… it didn’t seem to say enough about who she was. How she loved the wide-open skies of Kansas. Or how she longed to feel the wind around her face as she rode past endless fields of corn that shined gold beneath the midday sun.
And yet… when she had been asked to write about herself by the nice secretary at The Matrimonial News office, she had drawn a blank.
The first 40 words were free to print.
Cruz could barely come up with one.
It took hours of agonizing over every word. Scratching out words. Replacing them with others that somehow sounded softer than she truly was.
Once she was done, Cruz felt silly for advertising herself on a newspaper like she was a pair of boots or a sack of grain.
Yet here it was, her dreams of the future summed up in 40 words.
//
//
Aaliyah remembers her wedding day.
She had worn black, as was Amrohi tradition, to symbolize the grief she had over parting from her relatives.
Except she had stayed in the same wide expanse of Kansas that was home to her family’s oil fields.
Ehsan’s family had been like hers, newly wealthy and self-made.
Their fortune was in bank notes and lending.
Hers was in black gold.
Aaliyah had not gone against tradition then because she was a dutiful daughter. No matter how hollow it had felt to marry someone her family had chosen for her. She had done what was best for the family and treated her marriage like the business transaction it was.
Attraction didn’t need to follow later.
Or ever.
Just heirs.
Almost a year after the wedding, Aaliyah had given birth to a baby boy with a thick head of hair and large brown eyes.
His rosy cheeks would often make him look younger than he was, and Aaliyah was beyond thrilled at how much she loved him.
It had been dreadful when he caught yellow fever along with the rest of the town.
When the disease took her son but spared them it was devastating.
They buried him in the family plot, behind their home.
Aaliyah remembers the tiny coffin that took her heart into the cold earth along with his small body.
After that, Ehsan was more desperate than ever to get his father’s approval. As if it was his fault their first and only grandson had died.
He spent more time away from home. Preferring to sleep in his old room, above the bank. Next to his brother. Seeking out the familiar comforts of his childhood home.
Ehsan claimed that the twenty-minute ride to the city was too long a commute to make daily when the family business depended so heavily upon him.
Aaliyah, too busy trying to mourn the loss of their son by herself, didn’t argue against it.
They had lived almost separate lives.
Her life had not been hard for the first years of her marriage, simply lonely.
Ehsan, being the trustworthy one of the brothers, started taking trips to the east to bring back thousands of dollars in gold that was meant to be deposited in his family’s bank.
Most of these trips were relatively uneventful as they happened mostly by train until they reached Great Bend. Then they would get in a wagon for the rest of the ride through the city. It was routine for him to leave and return without being overtaken by highwaymen. To bring Aaliyah the latest fashions from Europe, New York, and Chicago.
It was in one of these trips that Ehsan’s stagecoach had been robbed.
She had gone from being a young bride to a widow all due to highwaymen that didn’t believe her husband when he said he didn’t have the key to the strongbox.
The murder had not been part of the plan.
In fact, it was why the gold was left intact.
The would-be robbers had left in a hurry and soon the stagecoach had six passengers again. With one of them being a corpse.
They all made the last leg of their trip without further incidents.
Aaliyah got a visit from the sheriff, who had come to escort the body and reassure her that they had done everything in their power to bring the men to justice. Kyle McManus and his posse had hung from the gallows as soon as they were caught outside of town.
“What good was justice when she was without a husband?” Aaliyah thought.
She thanked him for his kindness and closed herself off from the rest of the world.
Content to have things pass her by, until a newspaper crossed her front door that would forever change her life.
//
Aaliyah thought she understood everything this country had to offer.
Her family was known to have more wealth than sense due to her brothers and their spendthrift attitude towards their father’s money.
She was still taken aback by the idea that they were living in such a modern era that you could order a husband through a newspaper.
The Matrimonial News had thousands of prospectives brides and husbands describing themselves in just a short couple of words.
Most advertised if they were educated, high class, refined, or other such words to denote how good of a prospect they were. Some wanted to meet widows like her, and others were trying to avoid spinsterhood at 22.
Aaliyah had chuckled at first.
Thinking it was an odd curiosity.
Then, as weeks passed by, she couldn’t stop thinking about how odd it was. The possibility of finding a husband through a newspaper.
The more she spun that thought in her head, like the wheel of a wagon, the more it seemed ridiculous.
“How can you meet someone only through the post and know that they’re the one for you?” Aaliyah wondered.
Her family had carefully selected Ehsan for her, and it had not turned into a love match at all.
He was kind but after their son’s death, a great sorrow ripped through them. Ehsan seemed to be more interested in the family business of playing with money than his new bride.
Aaliyah understood hard work and the need to do better for a future that would arrive soon enough. Even then, the only thing that found him was a bullet beneath the wide-open skies of Kansas.
She sighed as she looked at the paper again. The words “746 – Former marine, lives in Kansas” stood out to her.
Biting her lip, she thought about how easy it would be. To reach out to the newspaper and sate her curiosity. To understand what the newfangled personal advertisements were all about without feeling like she was fooling anyone. After all, this person, number 746 was from Kansas and wouldn’t even have to travel far to meet her.
“It’s not like I’m in California.” Aaliyah thought as she sent an inquiry to the paper.
//
//
It takes a while for a letter to find her.
Cruz was out beneath fields of stars, watching over the cattle. Dreaming of being part of a family again. Of being married, instead of trying to outrun the thunderstorms that roiled over the flat horizon during this time of year.
She knew those things took time. But it stung to know that some hearts were luckier than hers.
They had already left for California or Oregon. Exchanging a few letters over anywhere from a couple of weeks to months before taking the plunge and moving out west.
Sighing she turned over on her side and let the crackling fire lull her to sleep.
Cruz managed to outrun the storm.
The cattle were tucked safely away in the giant barns as the thunder and lightning came together in deafening, blinding claps that seemed to shake every structure in the ranch.
Thick raindrops slid down the brim of her hat and clung to her face. Running down a path that soaked up the top of her exposed collar.
Soon she was cold and shivering, even while remaining mostly dry.
It was then when the letter found her.
The service offered to forward the first five letters for free.
This had been the first and only so far.
Casting a glance out the front window, Cruz only caught her reflection encased in darkness. The thunder occasionally lit up the outside and she could see beyond the haze of the night.
Even the thunder seemed to dull when compared to the way her heart was doing summersaults in her chest.
Cruz slipped off her wet overcoat and hat, hanging them on the hooks near the door. She took her gloves off and placed them inside her back pocket. She drew out a breath and slicked her hair back off her face. Her braid long having come undone.
Dear Applicant Number 746,
As good fortune would have it, I live in our fair state of Kansas and would like an opportunity to extend an invitation to meet face to face. I understand that most of these adverts are for correspondence between interested parties. However, I am a bit old fashioned and prefer to meet with you in person before progressing further than this initial letter. If you are amenable, I would love to make your acquaintance in the fair city of Great Bend.
As a show of my good faith in meeting you, I am enclosing 60 dollars for first class train fare and any other things you may need.
I will be at the Morrison Hotel at noon, 1st of May, wearing a black hat with two goldenrods across the brim.
Hopeful Friend,
Aaliyah Amrohi
April 17, 1890
Cruz looked up from Aaliyah’s letter and smiled broadly.
It seemed like sweet April showers did spring May flowers after all.
//
//
Aaliyah had at least half an hour before noon, and she needed something to occupy her mind and rid her of these nerves she had.
She didn’t know if applicant 746 would show up.
She had read an article in the papers about a man who had sent money for his bride to join him on a longer trip. Right across the country. They had corresponded for months and instead of showing up, she had taken the money and disappeared.
Aaliyah bit her lip as she stared at her reflection in front of a shop window.
She knew she sent out a lot of money with her letter, but she found not being able to meet someone so overwhelming that she might have overcompensated.
She sighed and turned back just as someone was walking behind her.
Her shoulder bumped into them, and she heard a soft voice apologize to her.
“Sorry.” The person repeated again as Aaliyah turned around, she got lost in eyes as warm and sweet as morning coffee.
The stranger removed her hat and Aaliyah could fully appreciate the pleasing face and shy smile no longer hidden beneath the brim of the other woman’s hat.
Aaliyah smiled and extended her hand.
The woman seemed distracted by the flowers on the brim of her hat.
She had picked them from the fields behind her house just this morning for this special occasion.
Aaliyah was about to mention that she was on her way to meet a friend when she realized she didn’t know a thing about the mysterious marine.
This put a damper on her mood and the other woman seemed to notice.
She instantly took Aaliyah’s gloved hand and pressed her lips right on the top edge. Close to her wrist. Where fabric meets skin. And for a moment, Aaliyah felt like a bolt of lightning had struck her.
“Miss Aaliyah Amrohi. I believe we were destined to meet.” The stranger said, still holding onto her hand.
Aaliyah’s confusion flashed on her face for a second, until she realized why this woman had stared at her hat first before she said Aaliyah’s name. Knowing it before Aaliyah introduced herself.
“I apologize, you have me at a disadvantage, for I don’t know your name.” Aaliyah admitted. Keeping her hand between warm fingers.
“Cruz, Cruz Manuelos.” She said her name with the twang she often heard from outlaws and ranch hands that made their city a bit lawless.
It instantly made Aaliyah’s breath catch in her throat.
Cruz put her hat back on her head and in one smooth motion, she grabbed Aaliyah’s parasol from her loosened grip. An invitation that Aaliyah took by placing her hand on top of the woman’s firm bicep.
They walked in front of the shops. Aaliyah’s eyes taking in the way the other woman admired her while Aaliyah pretended to look at the displays behind the glass.
As they sat down for lunch at the Morrison Hotel, Aaliyah thought that Cruz was the type of woman that must be known in order to be properly appreciated.
She was tall and rather shy, but she made Aaliyah smile with the way she seemed to be just as lonely and kind as her.
Unlike Aaliyah, who had shut herself away from the world, Cruz had been willing to put herself out there. Willing to be a bit braver than she was.
Having the woman be so open to trying new things made Aaliyah feel like there could be a different kind of life still open to her.
Something new that she could explore next to someone like this. Someone who took genuine delight in trying new foods like the Jane Austen themed cucumber sandwiches that were part of the tea service at the hotel.
Or even displeasure in those things she was uncertain about but tried anyway. Just to experience something new next to Aaliyah. Like the cerealine blocks with jelly, which her face told Aaliyah she did not appreciate. Even when she was too polite to say it aloud for the other patrons to hear.
Time passed so quickly in Cruz’s company that soon they were asked to move to an adjourning room so that the place could be prepared for supper.
It had only seemed a minute ago when they stepped into this room as strangers. And now, they were the only two people left in the grand dining room. Too wrapped up in what the other was saying to notice that everyone else had left.
Aaliyah smiled, embarrassed at having lost track of time, and Cruz merely ran her fingers through the loosened bits of her hair that had come undone from her braid.
She said what was on both of their minds. “I wish I didn’t have to say goodbye.”
“Maybe you don’t have to.” Aaliyah quickly said as they headed towards the door.
Aaliyah started leading them towards the Sheriff’s office before she even asked Cruz Manuelos for an engagement that would last less than ten minutes.
“You did come all the way here with the intention of offering yourself to me, did you not, Miss Manuelos?” Aaliyah boldly declared.
The red from Cruz’s cheeks spread down her neck and up to the tips of her ears. But the taller woman didn’t deny it.
Her intention had been plainly written on the advertisement.
She wanted to get married.
Although many would question the wisdom of becoming engaged to what amounted to a mere stranger, she already felt she was closer to Cruz Manuelos than she had to Ehsan.
Perhaps a short engagement to someone with whom she could spend countless hours talking to. Someone Aaliyah could share her dreams and stories of the past. A person like Cruz, who she desperately wanted to kiss… maybe that was better than marrying someone she had known a lifetime.
It was foolish.
To marry without her family being present.
The Amrohis were close friends with anyone that was anyone in this city.
Justice of the Peace Roberts Jr. had not finished pulling the form out of his desk before Sheriff Griffith left the building in a big hurry.
The ink was drying beneath the justice of the peace’s signature, making their marriage official, when the door opened, and her father rushed in.
Aaliyah could tell he hurried because he was not wearing a hat.
“You’re Aaliyah’s bosom friend, the marine.” He said as way of introduction.
Cruz nodded as she extended her hand and shook his uncalloused one in a firm handshake.
“This is Cruz Manuelos. Retired marine officer and former ranch owner.” Aaliyah quickly says. Knowing that her father was not upset at missing the wedding, but afraid of losing her to a different city.
Her brothers had moved to other parts of the state with their brides and Ehsan had only been willing to stay because his family’s interests lay here.
She guessed that it was the reason why he had been chosen amongst all the other men her father was better acquainted with. Those who were in the oil business tended to want to strike it rich on their own after a while. Which meant moving away to start their own wells.
It might have been the reason why he rushed to meet them here. He wanted to make sure he could at least say goodbye to his daughter. The person he was closest to, after his own wife.
“Former?” Her father quickly caught onto what Aaliyah said.
Cruz smiled and nodded. “Yes, sir. I still need to go back to settle my affairs, sell the ranch, the land, and my cattle… but I know that I can be happy anywhere if Aaliyah is with me. And she is happiest when she’s near her family.”
//
Aaliyah’s family held a small celebration for them at her childhood home.
She could tell that her mother didn’t approve of Cruz by the way she dismissed her with a look.
Aaliyah nodded, understanding that her mother might take some time to warm up to her bride.
It had taken until the birth of their son for her mother to warm up to Ehsan.
She couldn’t expect Cruz to be any different.
Her grandmother seemed just as uninterested. She simply told Aaliyah to sing something for them, in Arabic. Trying to dismiss Cruz altogether.
Cruz, ever shy but trying her hardest smiled and politely offered to accompany her on the piano. In perfect Arabic that hinted at her family being Syrian and not Saudi Arabian, like hers.
Aaliyah tried to hide her smile at the surprise the matriarchs of her family showed at Cruz politely showing them that she understood them.
With deft fingers and crooning voice, she made Aaliyah’s heart feel like it was finally thawing from where it been buried.
//
The day after they had exchanged vows, Cruz made the trip back to the ranch.
As she waved goodbye from the window on the train, Aaliyah tried not to cry. As it was only then that she realized, for the first time, how attached she had become to her wife. A woman she had known for a day but had already fallen in love with.
An unexpected surprise.
All stemming from a curious glance at the Matrimonial News.
//
//
It had been five months since she last saw her bride and it felt like they had done everything backwards.
They got married before the sun had set and had yet to exchange a single kiss. Unlike sweethearts who had known each other longer than the day they talked away.
Cruz left after spending a magical night singing next to Aaliyah. Their eyes constantly catching as they harmonized over the sweet notes of the piano.
She had wanted to stay, but Cruz knew that if she spent another minute, another hour next to Aaliyah, she would never leave.
It had been nearly impossible to let go of Aaliyah’s hand as they stood on the platform, where Cruz boarded the train again.
She didn’t know how hard it would have been to say farewell if their lips had met.
Even now, all she wanted to do was get back to Aaliyah as quickly as possible. Packing away her things and sending them ahead to her new home, as well as trying to finalize the sale of the small ranch she had built with her own two hands, was taking longer than expected.
Cruz had half a mind to leave everything as it was but knowing that soon she would be able to hold Aaliyah in her arms forever, made time pass faster.
//
//
Aaliyah’s soft eyes studied the name on the outside of the envelope. Cruz Manuelos. She said her name aloud a few times. Liking the way it sounded coming from her lips.
Cruz Manuelos.
It was a strong name for a woman that had been orphaned and hardened by wars but remained as kind as ever.
She ripped the letter open, and her eyes danced over the words that made her feel like she could breathe again.
As morning approaches, on this, the last day I will stand in the ranch that was for so long the only thing I longed after, I realize that I want only you. I love you. I want to be with you this very moment. I want to fold you in my arms and hear from your lips that you love me too.
Know that I am forever yours and will get to you as fast as this carriage and horses can get to you.
Cruz Manuelos—October 23, 1890
Aaliyah brought the paper to her lips and gently kissed it before folding it away.
They had exchanged many letters between the first time they met and now.
Aaliyah thought it was perfect.
A modern love story where they met through a personal advertisement.
Where they fell in love at first sight and that feeling only grew stronger as Cruz shared more of herself with these neatly printed words. Now held in between her fingers as more than treasured pages. They were the windows to Cruz’s soul.
A woman that had been just as lonely as her. Who had been willing to share as much of herself as Aaliyah needed to know. Who asked just as many questions. Always eager to learn anything and everything that crossed Aaliyah’s mind.
She didn’t need to hide the pain of losing her son. Or the confusion that came with finding that it had been easier to be without Ehsan.
Even now, her mother and grandmother, who had initially been reluctant to accept Cruz, were warming up to the idea that she would become a permanent fixture in their lives.
It might have less to do with the woman herself and more with how Aaliyah had been transformed.
She no longer hid away from them. In fact, Aaliyah visited them daily, excitedly sharing something Cruz mentioned in her letters as she stayed for lunch.
//
//
It was the first week of November when Cruz returned to her.
Aaliyah had known that Cruz was making the trip back.
But knowing something to be true, and being able to say, “There’s my beloved,” as Cruz’s gaze found hers, was another thing altogether.
Cruz tipped her hat down over her eyes and smiled widely from beneath the shade of the porch. Aaliyah’s smile mirrored Cruz’s before she leaned in to kiss her. Tears slid down her face as she became overjoyed at knowing that Cruz was here to stay.