Between Friends and Lovers

(09) Oliver

I had been nervous about being around my old friends, but now sitting here around the fire—that we started an hour ago since it started getting chilly—laughing, everything seemed great. We were sharing stories and laughing, and it didn’t feel like I hadn’t been around them for two years.

Initially, I thought that Middleworth was the same, but now I realised that the people were also the same. However, I could accept that my friends were still the same. This town still being the same, though, was going to take some getting used to.

But despite the conversation going well, it didn’t take long before I zoned out of the conversation. I looked around at the people I was once very close with and wondered if I could truly fit in with them. As much as it was fun catching up with them, I wasn’t sure if they could accept me like they did before.

“Penny, for your thoughts,” Rosana said, taking a seat next to me. “You seem lost in thought. Hope we’re not overwhelming you.”

“Not really.” I sighed. “I’m just taking all of it in.”

“Don’t stress yourself, Oli.” She bumped my shoulder playfully. “Take it one day at a time.”

There was a beat of silence as I stared at her. Everyone knew that Rosana Almeida was beautiful—if her Instagram posts were anything to go about—but in that moment, she looked angelic almost ethereal. Or that could be because I hadn’t seen her in a long time, and her beauty was hitting me all at once with the fire helping. Her tan skin was flawless. Her raven-black hair was in some sort of updo, leaving all the attention on her face, especially her almond-shaped hazel eyes.

“This place is still the same,” I said, looking around. “I don’t know how to take it.”

She laughed. “You don’t know how to take it? What does that mean?”

It means when I thought about coming back to this town, I thought I’d find things different from when I left. Seeing everything still the same made me uneasy.

“It’s unsettling.” I rubbed the nape of my neck. “I feel like I’ve changed more than this town has.”

“That’s where the beauty of it lies.” She looked around at all our friends before saying, “People are unpredictable, and they change constantly, but not this town, Oli. It never changes.”

I’ve never thought of it like that. But I could handle people changing. It was part of life, after all. What gave me comfort in Shadowfall was that my surroundings constantly changed. Maybe it was an obscure view of life, but it was my view of life. If my surroundings changed, it calmed my anxiety. It gave me peace. But when everything remained the same, I felt as if life was stuck in a continuous loop, and I hated that.

“I can deal with people changing,” I told her honestly. “My surroundings not changing, though that drives me crazy.”

“Oliver.” She paused, took a deep breath, and said, “Maybe you should consider seeing the beauty in your surroundings being the same.”

“I don’t think I can.”

My parents changed and chose to divorce, and I could deal with it. My brother chose to leave, and I could deal with that. People treating me differently after my surgery, I could deal with that. But Middleworth being the same, I couldn’t deal with that.

“Okay, fine.” She turned and faced me. “Pick a day, and I’ll drive you around town showing you why Middleworth is great the way it is.”

I chuckled. This wasn’t where I thought this conversation was going to lead. I thought that Rosana and I were going to agree to disagree.