Facing Phantoms, Pursuing Flowers

Distracted and Tactless

It's the New Year, 2016.

January 4th, Simon McAlister's Public High School, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.

'Melody! Stop day dreaming and start focusing, test is next Monday, if you want to pass this course, you better start paying ATTENTION! I understand Canadian Nationals are in three weeks but you need to realize that if you fail this course, you have to retake it, so atleast make an effort to try!' Yelled Mr. Huntingdon, Melody's history teacher.

Eh? Oh no, I forgot to act like I'm paying attention.

'Sorry', she mumbled, obviously still very distracted.

Thankfully, classes ended soon. But really, she didn't do anything but daydream in classes today.

Celest Holister, her best friend, came up to her and slapped her on the back as she was walking home from school.
'Hey, where are you, Dy? Just which planet are you on today?'

'Oh, hey Celest'

'See? You barely even realize I'm here'

'Well, I'm just tired I guess'

'Uh huh, tired from what? Your last competition was two weeks ago!'

'Training is still hard! Nationals are in less than a month'

'Yeah, but....you haven't been this distracted since Brandon'

'Why are you bringing that up?!'

'Well it's obvious this isn't a normal issue. So it's gotta be a boy issue. And yeah, I noticed how you act around your long time crush, so to me, it seems that you are in lov-'

Melody clasped her hand over Celest's mouth to shut her up.
'Don't say that! I don't even know!'

'Oh, so it is a boy problem?Congratulations for moving on from Brandon. Come on, out with it! Just spill! I might be able to help you, after all, you are very tactless,' Celest winked in excitement.

'Um, can we just drop the subject?' She said uncomfortably.

'Can't you tell your best friend?' Celest pouted.

'Okay, fine. But don't laugh.'

'Cross my heart and hope to die'

'So...um I don't know where to begin. Uh, well we are friends of course, um he's the new kid in the Cricket Club I told you about before.'

'The Vietnamese?'

'No, the Japanese 15 year old. So anyways, like, our friends keep saying we like each other, but I don't know how I feel about him. He's saved me multiple times before, and I feel safe with him, but that's how I feel with all my friends, so I don't think it's special or anything. But when I saw him talking to this Japanese girl I think I got jealous. And then, like, he gave me a CPR once-'

'HE KISSED YOU-' Celest interupted and then was shut up by Melody.

'He did not! He resuscitated me!' She corrected.

'Oh my gosh, what happen? Why were you unconscious?'

'It was just the claustrophobic thing, but yeah, as I was saying, he gave me CPR and carried me to a hospital and like, I just felt so safe with him, maybe it was just my brain malfunctioning. Then recently, he's gone back to Japan for Nationals and he texted me that he would be staying there til Febuary, and I don't know, but I think I already miss him.' She finished.

'Wow, that sounds like quite the love affair you've been having.' Celest teased.

'You're supposed to be helping me and you said you wouldn't laugh'

'Sorry, but that is what I think. I think you like him. And from what you've told me, it sounds like he's head over heels for you too'

'So what do I do?!'

'Chill, firstly, I suggest you reply him that text message.'

'Oh yeah, I should. He probably thinks I'm dead.'

'He probably thinks you're angry at him'

'Well I was actually, but I guess I can't blame him.'
___

Melody arrived home after and lay down on her bed and tried coming up with a reply to his text which he sent 5 days ago.

'I am staying in Japan for school. I'll miss you, but I'll see you at the Cricket Club in Feb' was what he texted her.

'That's okay. See you then' Nah too stiff. She typed and then deleted.

How about, 'Okay, good luck in school' no, too blank.

Let's try....'Hope to see you soon. Enjoy school, be happy!' Ugh, too cheery.

'Okay, well take care! See you then. Have a good school year. Hope exams don't clash with skating. Remember to practice hard! All the best for the New Year!' Too control freak.

She tried and tried but just couldn't type the right message and so she gave up and aimed her phone into her pile of clothes, but it hit the wall and bounced down and crashed the floor.

Uh oh, what did I do to my phone?!

Just then, her mom called from the living room, 'What was that, Melody? Are you okay?'

'Uh, my shirt fell'

'It sounded alot heavier than that!'

'I was in it'

'...'

If she knew I threw my phone, she'd flipped.
Hahaha, flip, I hate the flip. Oh I should go to the rink to practice. But I have homework, damn school! If it wasn't for school I would have all the time in the world to do leisure stuff and increase training hours. If it wasn't for school, I might be training in Toronto right now. If it wasn't for school, Sota wouldn't have to stay in Japan! Wait, what? Oh, I might as well try for the reply again...

So she got up and picked her phone up.

No scratches, phew!

What should I say? Well, I'm not good at replying to things I'm angry at. I'm tactless, straightforward, and blunt, so I've been told. So what should I say? Sigh.
Hey, I know......

...

4am in Japan, Sota's phone sang All Of The Stars by Ed Sheeran.

He woke up. He had adjusted his ringtone to be different for her messages.

He blinked in tiredness and thought sleepily,
Oh, Dy must have replied me....

It took a moment for the words to sink in...

Wait a second! Dy replied me? Yes, she replied me!

And he threw off his covers and picked up his phone and unlocked it.
Anxiously, he opened her message.

Read it a few times and put back his phone. Sank back under his covers. Looked up to the ceiling and imagine her voice saying what she said in her text message.

I miss you

It was just three words, and it was tactless, straightforward and blunt. But it was what he needed to know, what he wanted to know. And he closed his eyes eventually, smiled and thought,

She misses me....

Hey, this is really short. But I didn't have too much time cause its exam period, but I was bored of preparing for essays so I decided to write a short chapter. Sweet and sappy. Thank you for reading!