It would only take a second. It wouldn’t be a crime exactly, but it would violate a code of conduct he was sworn to uphold, a code drummed into him through 30 weeks of training and practiced assiduously the past 15 month on the job, a job he was specially selected for through extended family connections.

Yes, it would only take a second. She could, of course, get him fired, and all of that training, this special position he had worked for and been so fortunate to achieve would evaporate. He would be cast back into obscurity, drudging away again in his father’s print shop.

Yes, it would only take a second. His parents might be disappointed in him if they actually witnessed the moment. But the sun was at his back and the bearskin hat would cast a shadow. Even though the event was being televised around the world, all eyes would be on her.

Yes, it would only take a second. How long had he waited to see her again in person? Of course, he saw her every day taped to the inside of his locker, her dark hair flowing around her high cheeks. Her beauty, captured in an ornate frame, also adorned his bedroom desk, igniting warm pride and yearning with every glance. Indeed, he had thought about her, pined for her every day, well before his fortune put him in this position.

Yes, it would only take a second. The moment was almost here as he watched the procession approaching the church, the gilded carriage holding the bride to be. And why did this red festooned groom have to marry her? So they could live a life of pomp and fortuitous circumstance, no doubt.

Yes, it would only take a second. Though who was he anyway? A lowly foot soldier performing a duty that was nothing more than pageantry and tradition. He wanted to gaze at his boots to see his reflection in their mirrored finish, but he dared not look down.

Yes, it would only take a second. The couple would soon disembark from the gilded carriage. He was one of the few soldiers who would stand this close as she passed.

Yes, it would only take a second. He stood at attention. The carriage approached slowly, only footsteps away. His neck moved not a muscle, but his smiling eyes slid gently sideways, and he winked.

Yes, it only took a second. –And it was worth it. Beautiful Kate, Princess of Wales, had smiled back.

Image by Travis Gilbert