It was the blossom of their youth.

She had smooth skin with the favored alabaster brow, her shining honey brown locks were styled into a bob that framed her face, and her cheeks blushed pink with love. He was as handsome as handsome could be with bright blue eyes, a dashing grin, and dark hair that curved downward, stopping just above his ear.

They met in the silver light of the full moon, at their special place. They embraced each other gently, and he lifted the young woman off of her feet as they kissed tenderly.

Under the willow tree.

Lillian's arms went over Harold's shoulders and slid down in between his shoulder blades. Their kiss seemed to last forever, but that could not be so. He set her gently back down on the ground, her short heels barely sinking in the soft river soil in between the roots of the willow.

"I love you," Lillian breathed with a soft smile.

Harold's eyes shone knowingly as he pressed his lips to her temple. A swift, yet gentle breeze swept over the willow tree, and its hanging limbs brushed over them.

Smiling, Harold plucked a string of the leaves off and laced his fingers through Lillian's as he pressed them into her palm. She glanced down at their entwined hands and then back into his beautiful eyes. Then, her gaze moved over to the trunk of the old willow tree and the edge of her lips twitched into a smile.

"Do you have your pocket knife with you, Harold?" Lillian asked.

Harold reached his other hand down into his pocket and he pulled it out and smiled. "As sure as you are right in front of me," he said.

"Could you carve our initials into the tree, right there?" She pressed her lips together hopefully and tapped her fingertip to no spot in particular on the tree trunk.

He smiled down at her. "Of course."

Harold opened his trusty pocket knife and prodded the tip of it into a groove in the bark and dragged it through, stopping once in a while to artistically examine his handiwork. After carving out an L and an H, he then began to carve something around it.

Lillian put her chin on his shoulder and peered over it, curious.

He glanced back at her and a smile spread across his mouth. "I'm carving the shape of a heart around it."

Once he was finished, he stepped back so Lillian could see it. She brushed her fingers over the carved shapes, then she turned to Harold and threw her arms around him. "Oh, it's perfect!" she cried happily.

The moon had become low in the sky, and it was time for the two of them to return to their homes. As usual, Harold escorted her home, and she blew a kiss to him before stepping in through the door. This time, she had the piece of the willow branch still in her hand, for she was going to press it in a book.

Their nighttime meetings were bliss.