As Jake walked towards the park, his heart pounded loudly in his ears. Would she be there, he wondered. Shaking his head violently, he kept walking towards the park. A thousand and one thoughts filled his mind despite his scoldings. They nibbled at him, tingling his spine. The morning was cool yet, he was feeling cold.
Upon reaching the familiar swing that started their friendship, he paused in his steps. The birds were chirping, a dog barked in the distance. No other sounds were heard. Jake felt empty all of a sudden. He had been hoping that she would be here. He had simply ignored his subconsciousness. Disappointment settled in and he sat on the swing forlornly.
“Jake?” a voiced called out his name hesitantly.
Turning around at the sound, he stared at the person. She looked absolutely stunning to him, a glow seemed to surrounding her. “Crystal,” was all he managed to utter.
“I didn’t think you would be here,” she gave him a small smile.
“I wasn’t sure you would be here too,” he smiled. “How have you been?” He cringed at the question. It sounded silly to him.
She looked reluctant to answer but he still got an answer. However, he felt that something was wrong and she didn’t want to tell him. What happened to us, he thought. That fight that drifted them apart. He thought bitterly. He had never wanted it to end that way. He had merely suggested that the guy was sleazy and she went nuts on him. The worst fight that broke their friendship, something that neither had expected nor wanted.
“So, still with him?” he certainly did not want to hear that they were still together. To his dismay, she nodded. “Any kids?” he prayed not. She shook her head sadly. Crystal had loved kids and would have gladly given any good husband children. Apparently, the guy didn’t want any.
Their conversation was all about small talk, he was still single. Somehow, the thought cheered her up. He thought he saw her smile. When Jake reached home, he was feeling better although troubled by Crystal’s lack of interest in answering some of his questions.
He thought of the times where they spent hours on the swing to play. They would play jokes on each other, hide themselves just to scare each other and simply enjoy time with each other. Even when they weren’t talking, they would still grin at each other for no reason. It was simple and just pure joy to be with each other.
Crystal had dressed differently when they turned fifteen. Her fashion sense was accentuating her body and Jake started to take notice. He liked her new look and often praised her. He wasn’t happy whenever she said that she was going on dates with boys whom he didn’t know. There were times when he knew those boys and they weren’t the decent ones. He could prove to her that those boys were best to avoid. It was often the ones whom he could not find fault with that they fought the most.
Crystal had cried. For the first time because of him. She would cry but in the past was because she had hurt herself. When she first cried in anger because of him, his heart broke. It ached in a way that was new to him and he had never felt that before. All he wanted was the best for her but she was hurt in the process. From that time on, he hated Bernard. He was the one responsible for Crystal’s pain; even now.
