Whispers Beneath The Shade

Once upon a time, in a park there stood a big old shade tree. The tree gazed at the young lovers sitting on a bench. It can't stop itself to recall the lovers that he saw a few decades ago. The couple really looked similar. It was around the '90s the time that it recalled.

'So familiar' the tree thought. It tried to remember the couple from before. The time the tree swore to remember it's when the same couple carved their initial on it's trunk.

Then the tree came across another but distant memory. "You know that your father will be angry at you for going out with me without his permission right?" The dark haired boy worriedly in it's memory asked.

"He won't be angry if no one will tell" The blonde haired girl jokingly told. When the couple is out of reach of the old tree. The memory faded into darkness. Now the tree wondered why they looked so familiar.

The current couple that was just sitting on the bench is now gone. The tree searched it's memory once again. Then remembered they had a picnic under it's shade.

"Hahaha, no they did not beat each other around the bush." Once the girl said that the boy looked even more confused. "It's an idiom. It meant that he's just wasting time to avoid the question."

"Oh, right" The brown eyed boy sheepishly uttered. The boy hurriedly snatched the book out of the girl's hand then ran for his life. "You won't embarrass me anymore if you don't have this book!!" The boy cheerfully yelled.

The blue eyed girl chuckled under her breath and stood up to leave their picnic layout under the tree to run after the sprinting boy. "Wait till I get you!!" The girl screamed on top of her voice. Luckily there is no people around the park to hear their loud noises.

The memory faded again replaced by another one. "I'm so sorry. I know I'm pathetic but please don't distance her from me. I love her so much to let go of her. Sir, please" The boy begged like his life depend on it.

"NO! I won't let you be with her. I can't have her going out with you. Yo-You peasant. I don't know what she saw on you but you don't deserve her. She cannot be with you!" The father of the girl lashed out to the boy.

"But daddy I love him with all of my life. Please let us be together!" The girl pleaded with all of her heart. The man no longer said anything and dragged the girl by her arm.

The boy sobbed as he watch the girl cry her eyes out. To watch and not do anything is an unpleasant experience. That was what the tree felt along with the boy.

The tree felt sad and tried to find more memories yet only the ones that are surfacing no longer has the couple but only each one of them.

"I came back here everyday hoping that I'll meet you here again but it seems that you won't be coming back. I only have a few months left, please come back to me." The previously boy now became a man. He caressed the initial that they onced carved into the old tree's trunk.

After that he left knowing that he might not come back again due to his illness becoming more critical. A decade has passed when a beautiful woman has came back to her old hometown from another country.

She came back to the place where the old tree still stood. Once she saw the initials have not faded she felt happy. A familiar looking man passed her. "Excuse me, is your name by any chance be Arthur?" Questioned the woman while also hoping in her heart.

The man glanced back and answered. "I'm sorry but my name is not Arthur. I have a cousin named one though." The woman tooked noticed that indeed he is not Arthur for his appearance is not the same.

"Oh, Can you please help me find and talk to him? My name is Margaret." Margaret plead the man. "I'm so sorry to say this but Arthur is not with us anymore. He passed away a decade ago."

Margaret looked so defeated when she heard the news. She felt all the hope she had faded into a nothingness feeling. She felt as if someone is drilling a hole on her stomach. It's not a very pleasant feeling to know someone you love so much has been dead for a long time and you, not even attending his funeral.

The tree came back to it's senses when it saw the same couple came back to sit near his roots and placed a cloth for their picnic. The tree only hoped that history will not repeat itself.

The End