In Your Shadow ✓

Chapter 58

James was sitting on a rock near the Forbidden Forest, staring out at the frozen lake in silence.

He let out a sigh as he thought about what happened the night before. As he crossed his arms, a brown buzzard suddenly landed on a tree branch next to him.

"Oh!" James' eyes widened in surprise. "Hello."

The bird stared back at him.

"Did I disturb your peace? Do you live here?" James pointed backwards at the Forbidden Forest.

The bird shook its head slowly.

James blinked. "Am I a Disney princess, or what?" He joked. "But I mean... My dad did have the ability to talk to snakes, so... I reckon this is not that weird. Maybe I inherited something. Either way, it's nice to meet you, Birdie," he nodded at the animal.

The buzzard started flapping its wings rapidly.

"Oh, okay, sorry!" James raised his hands. "Do you not like being called that? I apologize."

The bird simmered down.

James let out a relieved sigh, then squinted his eyes as he stared at his company. "You're a pretty bird, you know... your brown feathers remind me of Mia's hair... even your eyes are blue," he noticed. "I wonder where she is... I miss her already..."

The buzzard stared at him in silence.

"Look!" James pointed at the frozen lake. "I took Mia skating there a while ago," he reminisced with a small smile. "She was so adorable... she got the hang of it quite easily, too... not like I expected otherwise, is there even anything she's bad at?" He wondered out loud.

The bird didn't answer his question.

He frowned. "Why does she even like Alex?! I mean, sure, he's not the worst, he's decent-looking too, I guess, but... is he really a better choice than me?!"

Once again, the bird didn't provide him with an answer.

He ran a hand through his messy hair frustratedly. "I suppose I made a bad first impression. I wish I could go back in time and kick eleven-year-old James in the ass, not gonna lie."

After thinking for a few seconds, he suddenly stood up.

"Was I really that bad, though?!" James raised his voice. "I mean, if I remember correctly, I was pretty nice to her the first time we met! I wanted us to be friends! It was her who was mean about it!"

The bird blinked.

"Okay, maybe I was a bit weird sometimes... All right, if I really think about it, looking back, I did do some questionable things... but still, I always liked her!"

After taking a big breath, James sat back down.

"I just want to make her happy, you know?" He glanced up at the buzzard with a sad look in his eyes. "She never smiles, it's such a shame... She has a stunning smile... I might sound cheesy, but I just simply could not imagine loving anyone else... It's like I have her name written all over my heart, how could I possibly give it to someone else?"

Leaning back, James turned his head towards the sky.

"Did you hear that, grandpa?!" He smiled. "I turned out just like you! You should take some responsibility, don't you think?!"

Sighing, James closed his eyes.

A few seconds later, he felt something cold on his face.

After he lifted his eyelids lazily, he saw that it started snowing.