The Agreement

The Agreement

Elena was a force to be reckoned with. She was unlike any other woman in the country, and perhaps unlike any woman in the world. A ravenous beauty, extraordinarily talented and brilliant. She excelled at everything. A star swimmer, national chess champion, and a blue-ribbon equestrian. She graduated valedictorian from her Ivy League university. She opened a business and just watched the money pour in. She did whatever she wanted, and she traveled the world. Her life was perfect. Well—almost.

There was a problem she needed fixed, and only Linda could fix it. She would have to convince her to do it.

It was Marcus. When they first met, he was perfect—Linda wrote him that way. Elena and Marcus had met at their money management firm when they both had appointments with the same financial advisor. Like Elena, he was successful, handsome, and he always said and did the right things. He would buy Elena flowers, write love letters, and spend endless amounts of money on her. She was happy and in love at first. She truly appreciated Linda for giving her such a perfect boyfriend—a perfect life.

Elena learned she could visit Linda when she slept. She would find her at her desk writing the story. Linda was surprised the first time Elena visited. Elena was there to talk about her career. Elena didn’t like it. She didn’t want to be a high-paid executive at a top advertising firm working for someone else. She wanted to be an independent, successful entrepreneur who didn’t have to go to a job every day. She wanted her freedom. It took convincing, but Linda agreed to change Elena’s career. She made her the owner of a chain of photography studios located in several of the largest cities in the country.

Elena found Linda willing to accommodate her requests, and this pleased her. After all, it was her life. Linda, however, found Elena overbearing. She hadn’t intended Elena to be this strong and powerful. Elena did not like compromises; she wanted what she wanted and would never stop arguing about it, so unless it interfered with the storyline, Linda would give Elena what she asked for. These types of visits were new. Linda had never had a character leave the story to exercise influence over her. She considered rewriting Elena, making her more passive—but she didn’t want to weaken her. So she kept her strong, powerful—demanding. Eventually, Linda got used to Elena showing up every so often for feedback sessions.

What Linda didn’t realize was that as Elena gained more influence over her, Elena’s autonomy began to take shape. Elena did notice. She became aware that some days she could do something different than what was written. Her will was sometimes stronger than Linda’s words. She never shared this with her.

Elena eventually had her life just the way she wanted it. But then something terrible happened that broke Elena’s heart. Marcus ended their relationship. There was no reason for him to do this. They had not fought; they had no tensions or conflicts. This upset Elena. It seemed cruel. She was going to talk to Linda about it that night. Elena wanted Marcus back in her life. To her surprise, Linda was understanding and receptive. Usually, Elena had to argue with her to get something changed, but Linda agreed to it right away. It made Elena happy; it seemed like Linda really cared about her. Only a few days after the visit, Elena heard a knock at the door, and when she opened it, there was the largest bouquet of roses she had ever seen. It was so large she couldn’t see the delivery driver holding it. When she set it down, she noticed the card. It read, “To my darling Elena, the love of my life. I was wrong. Forgive me. Marcus.” She was happy.

Marcus and Elena were quickly back on track. Elena really loved him, and he really, really loved her. Then, unexpectedly and without explanation, it happened again. And then again. Marcus would break up with her, then woo her back: flowers, love notes, fancy dinners. Elena saw the same boring patterns and began to see Marcus differently. He was empty—shallow. He would look at her and say, “I love you,” but his eyes had nothing. Did he even see her? She wondered.

This is what Elena had to talk to Linda about. She had had enough and didn’t want Marcus as her boyfriend anymore. She wanted a new boyfriend.

“I really can’t stand him, Linda,” she said.

Linda tried to explain why it was happening.

“I’m just making sure he knows how important you are, so he appreciates you. When you are broken up, he thinks a lot about you and reflects deeply on what you mean to him,” Linda paused. “Don’t you love the flowers, the love notes, and the attention he gives you when you reunite? You really are the love of his life, Elena. You need to know and believe this.”

Elena thought about it.

“I don’t care. I just don’t love him anymore. You can’t force me to love him. You have made Marcus too perfect—too boring. He nauseates me. I want another boyfriend.”

Linda wasn’t happy, but she knew it was pointless to argue. She found it ironic that Elena would point out that Marcus was too perfect, but not mention anything about herself when she was even more so. Linda thought it would be a good idea to practice writing characters better at self-reflection. But the bottom line was that Elena was no longer right for Marcus if this is how she really felt. She had to consider what was best for him. She couldn’t trap Marcus in a relationship with a woman who didn’t love him.

“Okay. You don’t have to be Marcus’s girlfriend anymore. I’ll fix it,” she said.

It happened again. Marcus broke it off. Elena was glad. Marcus was a closed chapter. Now Elena didn’t need a boyfriend, but she was eager to move on into the next scene, her next romance. She started to look around at her life. There were no new men being introduced. All the men she already knew were either married, gay, or in some way not suitable as a boyfriend. Why were there no new men in her life? There was no forward momentum—she felt stalled. Elena knew what was happening. She would see Linda that night.

Elena approached Linda, who was surprised to see her.

“Elena, why are you here? You are no longer Marcus’s girlfriend. You have no reason to be here,” Linda asked.

“I asked that Marcus not be my boyfriend. Now you make it where I can’t find a new boyfriend? I think you are punishing me because I don’t want what you want for me,” Elena said.

Linda thought about this. She wasn’t sure how to respond. Elena seemed confused.

“Elena, you asked not to be Marcus’s girlfriend anymore. I didn’t force you out.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t want a boyfriend. I just don’t want it to be Marcus. You need to give me the chance to meet a new boyfriend.”

“I’m sorry, Elena. I can’t do that. You can only be Marcus’s girlfriend. If you want another boyfriend, you have to find someone else to write that for you.”

Elena got up and left. She was angry—very angry. It was unfair that Linda was dictating her love life like this. It made no sense. Didn’t Linda understand her readers would reject that Elena could only be in a relationship with a man she despised? Why was she drawing such a hard line? Linda had always listened to her before, and what Elena asked for worked out for both of them. When Linda changed Elena’s career, it freed her so she could travel with Marcus. This gave Linda the freedom to write a lot of fun and interesting scenes. Linda should be grateful, but instead she was making Elena’s life difficult. They had to work this out.

Elena thought much about this as she suddenly had a lot of free time now that she and Marcus were broken up. Eventually, a plan began to form. Elena thought it through until she was convinced it would work.

The next night, Elena was back with Linda.

“We need to talk,” Elena said.

“What is there to talk about? I’ve told you what you need to do. You can only be Marcus’s girlfriend in this story,” Linda said.

“Why?”

“Because it’s not about you, Elena. You need to accept there are other people who have lives and want things too. I have to think about them. Marcus loves and adores you more than you understand. The breakup has been particularly difficult. It has broken his heart that you don’t want him back. I keep trying to find him a new girlfriend, but he isn’t falling in love with any of them.”

Elena thought about this. Obviously, Linda was much more concerned about Marcus’s happiness than she was about hers. This irritated her a lot, but she didn’t say anything.

“You made him too perfect, you know. That’s what I can’t stand about him. If he wasn’t so perfect, it would be better,” Elena said.

“What do you mean, too perfect? He’s the man of every woman’s dream,” Linda said. “You were in love with him until he kept breaking up with you. I did that for a reason. I told you why. I was going to stop once I was sure he understood how important you were and how much he needed and loved you.”

“It worked the first time. When he sent the roses, I even thought it was good we broke up because he worked extra hard to make me feel special. But it got so boring—another bouquet, just bigger; another love letter, just longer. Everything seemed empty and meaningless.”

Elena paused so Linda could think about what she said. Then she continued.

“Linda, I didn’t come to argue though. I came because I think I know how we can fix these things.”

“How?” Linda asked.

“By letting me do something that he would forever appreciate me for.”

“What do you want to do?” Linda asked.

“I want to save his life.”

“Save his life? How would you do that?”

“Have you ever said he was a good swimmer?” Elena asked.

“No, I’ve never said anything about whether he could swim.”

“Perfect. Write that he can’t swim. Then write a scene where Marcus and I are on the bank of a river and I will slip. He will reach out to catch me, but we both fall in. I’m a strong swimmer and I will save him.” She smiled as she looked at Linda for her reaction.

Linda thought about what she said for a moment.

“You’re saying you would be willing to be Marcus’s girlfriend again if I let you save his life?”

“Absolutely. He won’t have to keep breaking up with me to appreciate me, and I will know he isn’t perfect after all. It’s a win-win. Think about it.”

Elena left and went back to the story. She would wait for something to happen. Then one morning, the doorbell rang. She answered, and it was the largest bouquet of roses she ever saw.

The note read, “To the love of my life. I have missed you terribly, and my love for you is stronger than ever. Marcus.”

Elena and Marcus had been back together for several weeks. There was no mention of any trip to a river. She was getting impatient and planned to visit Linda soon to talk about it. They had an agreement, and Linda seemed to be delaying this development. Then, one morning, Marcus asked her a question that made Elena smile.

“I was wondering if the most beautiful woman in the world wanted to have dinner at River Steakhouse tonight?”

Elena knew the restaurant. It was an upscale steakhouse that sat along the bank of the river. It was among the most highly rated restaurants in the region and required advance reservations. Elena understood why this took so long now. Linda was setting the scene, making it special for them.

“River Steakhouse? Oh, my goodness. Who could say no?” Elena answered.

“Perfect. I’ll pick you up at 4 p.m. I love you.”

Marcus arrived exactly on time. He did everything a man intent on showing his care and love would do. He complimented Elena on her appearance, opened and closed the car door for her, and pulled out her chair in the restaurant. His attention was on her, and only on her. After the waiter left with their order, Marcus reached across the table for her hand. Elena extended it, and he held it gently as he professed his love to her again, his bright smile flickering in the low light. It was truly vomit-inducing. Elena wished Linda would learn to be a little more creative in her writing. Marcus seemed so fake to her. If only Linda had made him more real, things may have been different.

After they finished their meal, Marcus asked Elena if she would like to take a stroll along the river.

“It’s one of the most beautiful places around here. With you on its bank, it will be the most beautiful place in the world,” he said.

“Yes, I would love to.” Elena smiled as she waited for him to pull out her chair. She could hardly stand being around him and was glad it would be over soon.

As they walked along the path, Elena looked for the perfect spot where she could stop and take a picture. She found it. It was a little lookout on a bend. The water flowed nicely, and she couldn’t see the bottom. She looked around, and they were by themselves. She held up her phone to take a picture. Then she fell forward toward the water. Just as written, Marcus reached for her, but instead of stopping her from falling, they both fell into the river.

Elena landed in the water close to a snag and was able to hang on to a branch. She pretended she was trying to help Marcus, but couldn’t reach him; the fast-moving current caught him and pulled him farther downstream. She watched as Marcus flailed his arms, calling out that he couldn’t swim. Then his head began popping in and out of the water until Elena saw him slip below the surface for the last time.

As Elena pulled herself out of the water and back onto the bank, something glistened on the water’s edge and caught her eye. When she looked, she saw a beautiful diamond ring. Elena realized Marcus must have dropped it when he fell. He was going to propose; this was why they were there. Elena appreciated Linda’s gesture, but it wouldn’t have worked out.

She would have to see Linda that night. Explain why she did what she did. Linda was not going to be happy with her. But Elena needed Linda to understand that she could not just surrender her heart to her. No one could force Elena to love someone she didn’t love—not even the author of her life, Linda.

That night, Elena went to see Linda. She was surprised to find her not at her desk. Linda was always at her desk. As Elena approached, she noticed a stack of papers. She could see it must be the manuscript, the title page on top, but she couldn’t make it out. She stepped closer. Elena hadn’t had the chance to discuss book titles with Linda. She had a few good ideas. Her favorite was Elena: A Force to Be Reckoned With. It didn’t seem important, as there was still so much of her story to be written.

As she got closer, Elena looked down and read the title page.

The Life of Marcus: From Love to Betrayal

By Linda