14-Year-Old Caught Stealing Watermelons, Never Expected 9 Years Later, He Marries the Daughter of the Watermelon Farm Owner
The love story that began with a watermelon theft in my childhood may seem unbelievable, but it is a true story. Every time I see a watermelon, I remember an interesting memory from my childhood. The incident back then embarrassed me for years, but it also led me to meet my now-wife.
It was when I was around 13, just entering 7th grade. It wasn’t time for school yet, so my friends and I would run around and play all over the village. My parents didn’t supervise us too much, just warned us not to go near the river. As long as we weren’t doing anything life-threatening, we could do as we pleased.
We weren’t the type to stay home. At the time, we didn’t have a TV, gaming console, or any books to entertain ourselves, so we often went to the small forest near the village to climb trees and disturb bird nests. After dinner, we’d go out to catch cicadas. In short, we never stayed still at home. I remember we once tried to destroy a beehive, and the result was that we got stung badly and swelled up, taking days to recover. However, those were just small mischiefs. The most memorable incident was when I was 14, I went to a neighboring village’s watermelon field to steal watermelons. Back then, everyone was poor, and parents couldn’t afford to buy watermelons for their children. There was no way we’d exchange watermelon for rice. If children asked for it, parents would slap them without hesitation.
After summer vacation that year, a few of my friends came to my house and invited me to play. For some reason, the topic of the neighboring village’s watermelon field came up. As we talked, we all became so eager that we just wanted to get a big, sweet watermelon to satisfy our cravings. We were all so proud and stubborn at that age, none of us wanted to back down. One friend suggested we go steal the watermelon. Whoever brought back a watermelon first without getting caught would have the others listen to them. Since I often worked with my parents in the fields, I was quite familiar with the area, so I volunteered to go first.
When we arrived at the watermelon field, as I had predicted, there was no one watching, and there were no good hiding spots either. Stealing the watermelons seemed easy.
Even though it wasn’t too intense, I still watched cautiously for a moment, sure no one was coming. I then grabbed a bag and began my work. I didn’t have much experience choosing melons, so I just mimicked what I had seen the adults do, knocking and inspecting. In a hurry to avoid being caught, I quickly picked two melons and stuffed them into my bag, planning to escape. However, just as I was about to leave the field, a girl ran out from behind a tree, yelling, “Stop! Drop the melons, thief!”
I panicked and started running with the melons. In my desperation, I forgot all the plans my friends had told me and just ran toward the village. Luckily, the area was open, so I could run without many obstacles, though carrying two melons weighing several pounds made it difficult to run fast.
Seeing the girl getting closer, I quickly placed the melons on the ground, thinking she would stop chasing since the melons were right there. But to my surprise, she kept chasing me, yelling, “Thief! Don’t run! If I catch you, you’ll regret it!”
Exhausted, I couldn’t run any longer. Sweating heavily, I found a pile of firewood nearby to rest. Soon enough, she caught up with me, pointed at my face, and said, “I told you not to run. How do you think you can escape from me?”
Gasping for breath, I said, “I already gave the melons back. You didn’t lose anything, so why are you still chasing me?”
She wasn’t polite, clearly angry. She said, “You stole from my family and are still trying to argue? You think just because you put them down, I’ll trust you? How do I know the melons aren’t spoiled?” She then pulled me up and dragged me back to the watermelon field. As she dragged me, she said, “You need to come with me to check. If the melons are fine, I’ll let you go. If not, I’ll tell your family you’re a thief.”
I had always been mischievous but had never stolen anything before. I couldn’t stand being labeled a “thief,” so I obediently followed her. Fortunately, I hadn’t lied, and the melons were still fine. After that, she finally let me go, but not before threatening me that if I ever did it again, she wouldn’t let me off so easily.
When I got home, I was furious but couldn’t tell my parents. Instead, I vented to my close friends, telling them about the girl and her behavior. I thought the matter was over, but the next day, the whole village knew I had stolen watermelons. Suddenly, I was the subject of gossip, and everyone avoided me. My friends distanced themselves, and my parents gave me a good scolding. At that time, I was angry with the girl, thinking she had broken her promise.
Later, I found out that the girl didn’t tell anyone, but a friend of mine did. After I shared the story with my friends, one of them, fearing the girl would come to my house and I would tell on him, decided to tell his parents. His parents, trying to protect him, blamed me for everything. At the time, I didn’t know that. I angrily went to the watermelon field and yelled at her, saying nasty things.
She retorted, “I didn’t tell anyone. I didn’t even know your name or where you lived.” I was so blinded by anger that I didn’t listen to her explanation. I said, “You chased me all the way to my village and now say you don’t know where I live? Just give a brief description, and everyone will know who I am!”
We argued fiercely that day, and for many years after, I was mad at her. Every time she and her father came to my village to sell watermelons, I found excuses to prevent my parents from buying from them.
As time passed, I started working. I failed my college entrance exam, so I found a job in the town. I heard from the villagers that Hong Tu (the girl from the watermelon field) had passed the exam, moved to a big city, and was working there. I was still a little angry, so I vented to that friend who knew the full story. He told me everything about the past.
At that moment, I realized I had wrongly blamed her all these years. I had caused so much trouble for her and her family, and still, I had looked down on her. I felt guilty. However, I still held onto the hope that she had stayed in the city and her parents no longer sold watermelons, so there would be few chances of meeting again, almost none. That way, I could avoid any awkwardness. But as fate would have it, when I was 23, my parents told me they had found a match for me and urged me to go on a blind date that Saturday.
I thought I wasn’t too old, so why were my parents pressuring me to marry? I had only been working for two years and hadn’t made much progress. How could I support a family? My parents must have predicted what I would say because they cut me off: “You know you have no future. If you don’t find a wife soon, you might never marry. This girl is well-educated, graduated from college, and specifically asked to meet you. If you go, be polite and make a good impression.”
There aren’t many educated people around here, especially not many girls. Suddenly, an unsettling feeling crept over me, and I asked my mom, “Where is she from?”
My mom laughed and replied, “You know her. You even stole watermelons from her family. She’s doing really well now. You’re lucky she even agreed to meet you.”
The moment my mom said that, my bad feeling grew stronger. I wanted to avoid it, so I said, “She’s so accomplished. How could I deserve her? Maybe I shouldn’t go.”
My mom slapped me, saying, “Don’t speak disrespectfully. Even if you don’t marry her, you can still be friends.”
The next day, I went to meet Hong Tu as planned. She had become a beautiful young woman, dressed fashionably. I was just an ordinary country boy. I couldn’t understand why she would be interested in me. As I was lost in thought, Hong Tu spoke first: “I still want to explain the situation from years ago. It wasn’t me who spread the story. I promised you I wouldn’t, and I kept that promise.”
After hearing her, I understood that this wasn’t a blind date at all. She just wanted the chance to explain. I nodded and said, “I found out the truth recently. It was Khôi’s parents who told everyone. I’ve been meaning to apologize but never found the right moment.”
Hong Tu nodded and said, “I heard you’re still single. Me too. My parents keep pressuring me to marry. If you don’t mind, maybe we could try getting to know each other?”
Her words shocked me. I thought that after explaining the misunderstanding from years ago, everything would be fine, but she was really interested in meeting me.
I agreed, and in the following months, I realized she was an interesting, strong-willed person. After a year, we got married. After marriage, I moved to the city with her, and now we have two children. I am so grateful that despite the awkwardness of our first meeting, we managed to come together.
It turns out that in life, some mistakes lead to unexpected connections, and what seemed like a bad beginning can sometimes turn into the most beautiful chapter of your story.
