Short Stories :P

{3} One Last Time | Sep 18, 2022

TW: Swearing

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Rain was dripping off of my glasses. I could barely see where I was going. But I didn't care. I had to find him. I had to find him before it was too late.

I went to every place I could think of him being. His house. The back of the school. All of his friend's houses. But I just couldn't find him. "Where could he be?!" I yelled out, not caring about who heard me, though it was raining pretty hard so the sounds of water droplets hitting the ground blocked out my voice.

My breathing was rapid. My heart was beating crazily fast. My blonde hair covered my eyes, all tangled up and wet. I clenched my hands into fists, trying to relieve some of that anger. And that was when I remembered, "The tree house!"

I started running again. Running as fast as I could. I ran past his neighbourhood. I ran past the school. I ran into the woods and straight to the tree house. Our tree house. And there he sat, on the swings, his dyed purple hair messy and ruffled. His eyes. His beautiful, grey eyes were now dull, staring into the foggy distance, while all that could be seen were the blurry silhouettes of the tall trees.

"Roland!" I yelled out, leading to him snapping his head towards me, eyes wide with shock. Then, he smiled. The brightest smile you could ever see. Brighter than all the stars in the sky. Happiness rushed through me as I sprinted towards him. The purple haired boy stood up from the swings, his arms wide, engulfing me into the biggest hug.

"Oh, Kris, I thought I would never see you again." Roland murmured into my shoulder. I nuzzled my head into his chest, not wanting to let go. Ever. Though, all good things come to an end, am I right? We both pulled away, him staring into my sea blue eyes.

"Aren't you supposed to be on the plane to London by now? To the boarding school?" He asked. I stayed quiet for a moment, admiring the beauty of his, once again, lively grey eyes. "I- I was. But the flight got delayed." I responded, my voice quite hoarse from the long period of time I didn't talk.

Silence fell upon us. All I could hear were the raindrops slapping onto the leaves. Tap. Tap. The wind blowing through the branches. Whoosh. Whoosh. The creaking sound of the old swings still moving. Creak. Creak. Finally, Roland spoke, looking down at his feet. "Why.. why didn't you say goodbye?"

His voice. It sounded different. It wasn't happy and cheerful like it usually is. It wasn't full of life. It was broken. I didn't answer, looking away because I couldn't bear seeing the sadness that masked his face. "I-- I wanted to. Trust me, I really did. It's just.. I didn't know what to say."

Roland harshly pulled away from me, his sadness morphing into anger. "What do you mean you 'didn't know what to say'? Everyone got a goodbye! Everyone but me! Do you not care about me anymore? What did I do wrong? I deserve a goodbye as much as everyone else does!"

It wasn't just the rain rolling down his cheeks now. It was his tears as well. As much as he tried to hide it, I could tell. I have been there for him when he cried. I was the only one there for him. The only shoulder he could lean on. "You think I didn't say goodbye to you because I don't care about you? Do you really think that?"

My voice was starting to raise as my blood started to boil. "Yes! What other reason would it be!" Tears filled my blue eyes as well, but I held them back with all of my strength.

"I didn't say goodbye to you because I care about you the most! I couldn't stand seeing your face as I tell you that we'll probably never see each other again. Because my dad thought you were a bad influence and is shipping me all the way off to England! I didn't want the last time we ever saw each other to be a goodbye."

The end of that sentence came out so much calmer than either of us expected. The anger slowly faded away, letting the sadness wash over again. "But at the airport, when I was sitting alone, waiting for it to be my flight, I started thinking: Would I regret it if I didn't say goodbye? Would I regret it if I didn't take the chance to see you one last time? Would I regret it if I never told you how I really felt?"

Roland's eyebrows were furrowed. Confusion was painted onto his face. "W-- what?" Finally, a single tear rolled down my right cheek. "You heard me." I murmured, too scared to look up and see his reaction.

And that was when I felt his lips on mine. Shock overcame me, but it slowly went away as I started moving my lips to be in sync with his. Roland cupped my cheek with his left palm as both of my hands were hooked onto his neck. With our lips together, I finally felt whole. I finally realised that he was the one who I was looking for. He was my missing piece.

Growing up, I thought soulmates and love and 'it's meant to be' was all a bunch of bullshit, but now, I'm finally realising that fate is real. And that Roland was my other half, and nothing in the universe will ever change that.

As we slowly pulled away, my eyes fluttered open, I gazed into his beautiful grey eyes. One. Last. Time. "Goodbye." And with that, I left, not daring to spare one last glance. Because if I did, I wouldn't be able to leave.

985 words

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I was told I was going to move away, but the thought of having to lose this one guy completely torn me. I decided to think about what I would've done if I ever had the courage.