The Four Novices Waited Motionless

The novices looked at Sister Sabina inquiringly. They realized that this was not really about watering any flower beds. What the real reason for their presence in this remote part of the convent garden was, however, remained a mystery to them. Sabina was about to explain, but the words she wanted to say to the students stuck in her throat.

The night was deep and quiet, broken only by the soft rustling of the rose hedge as Sabina bent back its branches to reach the passage in the wall, careful not to prick herself on the sharp thorns. She pulled open the latch and a soft creak could be heard. The door opened.

And there he was: Angelo! He stepped through the hidden portal, silently and almost like a shadow in the darkness.

His appearance was like a hot breeze brushing across the garden, and immediately there was a strange tension in the air. Sabina's skin tingled. She couldn't help but stare at him. His presence was irresistible, almost unnatural. Angelo stood there, tall, the moonlight playing on his striking face, his deep dark eyes shimmering with a strange, magical glow. His shirt was unbuttoned to his belt, revealing more than a hint of his strong, muscular torso.

Everything around Sabina seemed to stand still for a moment. The novices held their breath. They too had fallen under the spell of the mysterious newcomer. He approached the four young women.

His steps were calm and deliberate. But every time his foot touched the ground, the earth seemed to vibrate, as if it were reacting to his arrival. Sabina felt her heart beat faster, a feverish trembling inside her. She knew that this must not happen, not here, not now. She wanted to do something, to say something, but she was frozen like a pillar of salt.

The four novices waited motionless. Angelo radiated a magnetic attraction to them and each of them reacted to it in their own way. They all sensed that something unusual was happening.

Clara tried to avert her gaze from him, but she was unable to do so. Her blue eyes, usually calm and serious, widened and a flicker of confusion took hold of her. She fought against the feeling inside her that she couldn't interpret - a mixture of fascination and an uncanny excitement that unsettled her.

Elisabeth felt a shiver run down her spine. Her hands involuntarily clenched into fists as she watched him, but it wasn't fear that filled her. Rather, it was a vague curiosity, almost like a secret urge to get closer to this strange man. She tried to think of the strict teachings of the monastery, but Angelo's gaze drew her deeper into an inexplicable desire.

Maria, usually so stoic and imperturbable, found herself unexpectedly gripped by an inner restlessness. A feeling she hadn't felt for a long time awakened something inside her - a spark of emotion that she had always kept under control. She watched Angelo as he approached her and shook her world of fixed rules and well-established order.

Agnes, on the other hand, felt the tingling in her limbs like an electric wave. Her heart was racing. She was always the liveliest, the one who liked to be in motion, but now she was paralyzed. She didn't know what disturbed her more: the fascination this man aroused in her or the fact that she couldn't escape it. Her mind warned her, but her body reacted differently.

Angelo stopped in front of them and looked at each of them long and penetratingly, as if reading their innermost feelings and thoughts. Then he turned away without saying a single word and walked towards a stone table that stood forgotten in an alcove of the garden surrounded by hedges. The four young women followed him as if pulled by strings.

Sabina looked after them longingly. She felt abandoned and betrayed by Angelo. She wanted to scream, run after him and hit him. But she stood rooted to the spot, her throat constricted so that no sound could come out. Silent tears ran down her cheeks. What had she done?