The First Wife: A Short Story Read online

  Part 3

  It was cold, bitterly so, and although it was late in the morning, it was still dark as Mileva struggled against the snow. Even though she was in her 70s, she insisted on walking several miles each morning, even on days such as this one. The streets during winter were normally quiet, but today was particularly bare due to the biting cold. The snow had stopped the day before and not re-started and while the rooftops and several trees were white with the snow, the rest of the city was a dark gray. The sky remained heavy with clouds, and the snow in the streets had gotten dirty from the activity the day before.

  Mileva was thankful for the lack of activity today. She cherished the few moments of alone time she would have. She had slept fitfully the night before, uncertain how to respond to the letter that remained on her table. Walking in the cold of winter, the wisps of her breath reminded her of her return to Zurich from Heidelberg. While previously it had seemed like only yesterday it had just occurred, today it seemed like another lifetime. Mileva had been 22 years old when she returned so enthusiastically to Zurich. She had known nothing could compare to her adopted home, but she had not been prepared for the longing and ache created in her heart by the distance between herself and Albert during that winter semester in Heidelberg. She had been true to her word and written him immediately after she arrived in Heidelberg. She had been surprised with the rapidity and voracity of his responses. Not only had he returned her correspondence immediately, he had done so in a romantic fashion.

  Mileva never could have guessed he had it in him. She immediately regretted leaving Zurich. Suddenly the few months of the winter semester became an eternity. Mileva dove into her studies with vigor to compensate for her longing, but to no avail. She found herself daydreaming of Albert, and her return to him. His letters were all she looked forward to each day.

  As she read his words talking of his desire in his typical sarcastic fashion, Mileva could hear his voice and it warmed her. After what, even to this day, felt like a lifetime, Mileva returned to Zurich and to Albert. He had wanted to meet her at the train station, but she refused, afraid his passion for her would wane were he to see her after a long day of travel. Instead, they agreed to meet the next day.

  That morning had been magical for Mileva. She met Albert at a café between their two apartments. She was immediately aroused by his smile and touch. They talked for hours without noticing the time going by. Over the next few weeks, they were inseparable. They talked primarily of physics and their lives after school. Within a week, she took Albert home to visit her family during holiday. Initially, her parents had been reserved on her beginning a relationship, but having met Albert, they accepted him without reservation. Her father told her he found Albert to be charming and effusive. He was happy for her. Mama was happy as well. She knew things were going to be perfect, and she began to imagine their life together, the two of them growing old, living in Zurich, surrounded by their numerous children.

  A few weeks later, Albert reciprocated and invited Mileva to visit his family. Her excitement was only matched by her anxiety. She was certain they would not accept her. After all, she was older, academic, and not Jewish. Nevertheless, she knew it was the next logical step in the progression of their relationship. The meeting went worse than she could have imagined. While his father and brother obviously did not approve of her, they remained cordial and polite. His mother, on the other hand, was sarcastic and biting. She refused to even sit at the table with Mileva or converse with her. Albert was apologetic and made excuses, but Mileva had overheard them discussing her. She knew his mother was disappointed Albert would jeopardize his future with an older woman, a non-Jew, a Serbian.

  Following the visit with Albert’s family, Mileva decided she would not hinder his future. On the train ride home, she told him this.

  “What? What are you saying?” Albert asked, his voice faltering.

  “What I'm saying Albert, is I will not be responsible for your alienation from your family. I will not jeopardize your schooling nor your future. You have great potential, and I will not be responsible for you not achieving it,” Mileva replied resolutely, her gaze fixed out the window at the wintry land that rushed by as they sped toward Zurich.

  Albert leaned in, grasped Mileva’s hands and pled, “No Mileva, you will never hold me back. You are my inspiration, and because of you I hope to be a better student, a better physicist. I find myself engaging in more studies and exploring things in new and novel ways due to my desire to impress you.”

  Mileva turned toward Albert and noticed his eyes gleaming in the waning light as tears began to silently roll down his cheeks.

  “But Albert, your family will never accept me,” Mileva began before Albert cut her off.

  “I don’t care about them. My father accepts you.”

  “No he doesn’t.”

  “Perhaps not, but he is not actively against you. I admit he would prefer if you were more traditional and Jewish, but he will not stand in the way of my happiness.”

  “And what of your mother? She refused to even look at me.”

  “Nonsense, she’ll come around.”

  Mileva nodded slowly as she returned her gaze to the window. This time she saw nothing as tears welled up in her eyes.

  “If she does not,” Albert continued undeterred, "I don’t care. You’re the woman I love, and I cannot describe reason to my emotions. I only know that while you were gone, my studies faltered as I felt lost. I could not focus on the most minute tasks at hand. All my thoughts were in Heidelberg with you. I was consumed with thoughts of what you might be doing or learning, how you were liking Bavaria, that you may never return.” Albert paused, looking down at his hands to gather himself as a lump formed in his throat.

  “Even when I was able to focus long enough to gain new knowledge,” Albert continued, “all I could think was what you would have thought about the information. I was consumed with thoughts of you, and my marks for the semester prove it.”

  Mileva looked back at Albert as her heart lightened.

  “As you see,” Albert said as he held his marking report in front of her, “I made a 4.9, but the professors were gracious enough to round it up to a 5, so I could pass.”

  Mileva looked at the marks on the paper before her. His grades had indeed dropped. His physics grade, his favorite subject, had dropped the most, all the way down to a 5, the lowest passing grade.

  “So you see my dear,” Albert said as he returned his grade report to his pocket and took Mileva’s face in his hands, turning her so that they were looking into each other’s eyes. “If your goal is to ruin my education and career, continue along this path and push me away. Mileva, I love you and hope to someday make you my wife. My mother and her concerns be damned.”

  Mileva melted into Albert’s arms as the two kissed for the first time.