Vera's Book Corner

Valerie and Timothy were trying to make things between them as they were before, but it wasn't so simple. Some things have changed. Above all, they were changed. The things that happened to them in the past five years had an effect on them, and they were not the same people, but they were trying. After the long battle with cancer, Valerie couldn't stay the same, and now she was seeing everything from a different perspective. She understood how precious life was, and she was utterly grateful for every new day that was given to her for a living. And Timothy, he wasn't the same either. He was full of regrets. In a hard way, he learned that love should never be taken for granted. If he was fighting harder for his love, everything would be different now. What remained unchanged for Valerie and Timothy was their love. Despite the time that passed, their love was still strong, pure, and innocent, as it was at the beginning of their relationship. Or perhaps their love has grown...

"Val, do you have a few free hours of your precious time?" Justin said to Valerie. "Why?" "My friend Christian would like to meet you..." "Justin, will you ever leave me alone?" Valerie said angrily, not letting him finish the sentence. "Val, please let me finish what I have to say..." "Grow up! Aren't you tired of trying to set me up with some of your friends? I don't know how to explain to you so that you will be able to understand that I don't want to meet any of your friends!" "Val, please don't get angry at me. This time is not what you think. My friend Christian owns an art gallery, I showed him your work, and he was fascinated by your photographs." "You showed him my photographs without my permission?" "I'm sorry. Maybe I should have asked you first." "Yes, you should." "Listen, an artist canceled an exhibition, and in his gallery next month t...

"Val, do you have a few free hours of your precious time?" Justin said to Valerie. "Why?" "My friend Christian would like to meet you..." "Justin, will you ever leave me alone?" Valerie said angrily, not letting him finish the sentence. "Val, please let me finish what I have to say..." "Grow up! Aren't you tired of trying to set me up with some of your friends? I don't know how to explain to you so that you will be able to understand that I don't want to meet any of your friends!" "Val, please don't get angry at me. This time is not what you think. My friend Christian owns an art gallery, I showed him your work, and he was fascinated by your photographs." "You showed him my photographs without my permission?" "I'm sorry. Maybe I should have asked you first." "Yes, you should." "Listen, an artist canceled an exhibition, and in his gallery next month th...

On sunny days, Valerie loved to sit for hours at Trafalgar Square. While she was enjoying the warm sun, she was also taking pictures of London and Londoners. Even though the sun in London wasn't as hot as the Californian sun, she loved when the sun rays caressed her face and skin. More than she could ever imagine, she missed Santa Monica. She wasn't missing the hot Californian sun, but she was missing the life she had there. She was missing her family, her friends, for whom she wasn't sure if she should still call them her friends, and most of all, she was missing Timothy. She could live the rest of her life in a place with eternal ice and without the sun, but she could never get used to life without him. On this hot day by London standards, on Trafalgar Square, next to Valerie, sat a young couple of teenagers in love. They were around sixteen or seventeen, and they reminded her that she was also this happy with Timothy when she was at their age. She smiled, hoping that ...

Six months after signing a contract with Mr. Archer, Timothy's book was on the shelves of the bookstores, and with every new week, the book had more and more readers. The book never made it to being among the top ten best selling books in America, but it was well accepted by both the readers and the critics. At the book readings, the bookstores were too small to accept all the fans that came to meet the author of the book they liked. Timothy went on a small book tour, visiting twenty-four cities, and every day, the people from all around the country were telling him how much they loved his work, how his book changed their lives, and how they were eagerly awaiting his next book. Sometimes the readers had a lot of unpleasant questions like, "Is there a woman who inspired you to write this epic love story?" or "Do you have a muse?", but Timothy always avoided talking about his personal life. Soon, an offer from Hollywood to make a movie based on his book arrive...

The days, the months, and the years were passing, and everything was changing. Well, not quite everything. There was no force on earth strong enough to change Valerie and Timothy's love. Despite the miles that separated them and the years that passed, their love remained constant. The pain, too. Valerie reacted better to the cancer treatment than everyone expected. Two and a half years after she finished with the treatment, she had no symptoms of the disease and the cancer was not detected in her body. The cancer was in remission, but she continued every three months to go to her doctor for regular check-ups. Slowly, one day at a time, she was trying to return to her life as it was before the disease, but life without Timothy wasn't much of a life. Without Timothy, she was missing the most important piece of the mosaic. Without him, she felt an emptiness in her heart that nothing and no one could fill. Last year, Valerie rented a small one-bedroom apartment in East London...