HAZE

CHAPTER 9

OLD SCHOOL LOVE

The walk to Amara's house was about three minutes long. Nana complained of exhaustion and wanted to go to bed immediately. However, she took a shower, changed into her pajamas, gave Griff one of her sweatpants and t-shirts in Amara's house, and then went to bed. Griff, on the other hand, got the chance to snoop around a bit. He wanted to get to know Amara on a personal level and since he couldn't get to be around her at that moment, looking around her house was a good option as any.

Her house was a tiny bedsitter. Her books had been neatly arranged in a box and placed under the table, a few were on the table in a pile, and he concluded they were ones she frequently read. Her books were unique; they seemed to have a theme. Most were book series, and the current one she was probably reading was the Sterling Shoe series by C.M Owens called Kade's game. Griff had always fancied the Triple dare book of that series. She had sticky notes, multicoloured pens, and highlighters on her desk.

From the way her clothes were arranged, Griff knew she was into precision. Her house was not spotlessly clean but clean enough to welcome guests. She had arranged her clothes in colour order same as her shoe rack. Her wardrobe door had a huge mirror, and he couldn't help but imagine her looking at herself there. He turned from the mirror when Nana started talking in her sleep, then stretched her arms and accidentally jarred the nightstand, felling a few things.

While picking them up, Griff came across a bunch of letters. He perused through all of them and realized they had the same address, probably her home address. Griff hadn't been in touch with her in a while, and writing to her was the best idea so far as asking Nana for her phone number was out of the question. And as he went about gathering what he needed, Griff was coming up with the words he would say to her. Closing the door behind him, he rushed to the nearest bookstore. A few operated on a 24-hour basis. Five blocks down west, he found one open. The name didn't register in his mind even as he looked at the sign. His focus was entirely on getting what he needed. He settled on a blue piece of hard paper and stamps. Sitting on the booths there seemed like his only option. He didn't want to go back to Amara's place and chance Nana coming to and seeing what he was doing. The paper had an array of flowers on the furthest edge, perfect for her. On the backside, it had a sweet message:

Wishing you were here with me

Right now, under the sun rays

Holding my hand like you mean it

You are so damn addictive

I crave you all day long.

He started reminiscing the times they spent together and smiled to himself as he started writing.

Dear Amara,

Hello beautiful, how are you doing? When I met you, I found a missing piece and, in a way, a whole new puzzle that needed completion. Now that I am alone again, nothing is as it once was, the sky is grayer, and the air is more forbidding. I am like a drifter whose home is out of reach. I feel the only way to make it right is to write to you.

Today, I was standing in one of my favourite places in the world, surrounded by food, music, art and culture, and all I could think about is how much I wanted to show it to you. So maybe one day you will let me.

Stephen King once said the most important things are the hardest to say. They are the things you get ashamed of because words diminish them. In this case, how much I miss you cannot be expressed. I think of you; I dream you and sometimes conjure you up. You have no idea how much impact you had on me. Take care of yourself until we meet.

Yours sincerely

Griff.

He read the letter three more times before he was satisfied that it was worth sending. When he glanced at his wristwatch, he realized that he had taken at least an hour. It was time for him to go back and rest, waiting for the next day. But, on the other hand, he was eager to be up early in the morning and get to post it.