Can you Remember? #Wattys2016

Chapter 8: Our Place?

UPDATED:  OCTOBER 2, 2020

912 - 1,586 words

I become lost in my thoughts at thinking how this actually might work and all the worries I have. Sage is looking at me in a weird way, so I guess I'm making a weird face. I didn't like the way he was looking at me, but then again we were probably both making weird faces.

"What?" I ask him in a bit of an annoyed voice, raising an eyebrow at him and placing my hands on my hips.

"Nothing. You just made a weird face and then made a smirk."

"Oh," I say embarrassedly, looking away feeling some heat rush to my cheeks. I slap my cheek quickly with my hand, mad at myself for feeling embarrassed. What did I have to be embarrassed about?

"Anyway, let's keep moving. It's not too far from here, just past these trees right here," Sage tells me, gesturing with his hands. There was a cluster of trees in the direction he was pointing at, and it makes me feel a little weird. I had come too far to turn back now, so I covered my eyes with my hand once again and let him lead me. We walk just a few more feet before he stops leading me and drops my hand to my side. I can hear him move off to the side and flick a switch of some sort that results in a loud buzzing sound that fades away after a bit. "Okay you can open your eyes now."

When I open my eyes, my jaw drops to the floor in amazement. There is just no way that I took part in finding and creating this place. The area is crowded with trees, but there is a small clearing in the middle with a small round table, two chairs, a rug, a generator, and a TV set. Everything is enclosed in a tent, but the flaps are open which allows me to see the inside. There are lights strung throughout the tree branches all across the space making a circle of glowing lights. On some low lying branches are many lanterns of different shapes, sizes, and colors. There are small blue stars, big green squares, and medium red hearts everywhere. It just didn't seem like something that I would have done because it didn't seem to fit my style. There being random furniture and decorations made sense, but nothing else did. It was too colorful and bright.

"There is no way I helped make this," I say to Sage without turning my head. Looking at this place, I think of my hangout with my friends. That felt more like me than this did, more like home than this place did. If Sage's claims this is true, that me I saw in that memory must've taken part in making this. I wish I could've knocked some sense into her. She didn't have to change.

"Well believe it because you did. By looking at this do you remember anything?" Sage asked me hopefully. Sure he was excited because I had some part of a memory, but he can't expect it to happen one after another everytime he showed me something.

"As of right now no." Sorry to burst your bubble!

"Ok well come on, let's go in!" He takes my hand, much to my displeasure, and leads me into the tent. Sage closes the flap of the tent, and I take a look around.

Up close, this place looks even more amazing than it did from far away and only served to make me feel more out of place here. There are crates in the corners with food and drinks and streamers all around the room. Also around the space are quotes on the wall. I walk over and trace my fingers over the painted letters, surprised by how straight and clean they look given how flexible tent walls were. The quotes were from different people, some from musicians and authors, some from tv shows and songs. I take them all in but stop when one quote catches my eye.

"'Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory' - Dr. Seuss?" I say to Sage with a confused face.

"It's one of the quotes you wrote," he tells me, coming to stand next to me. "Weird how it can apply to now considering what has happened."