Story clips

#8

I watched as the sun peppered the sky with hues of pink and purple, peeking out from behind one of the hills as if to prolong its stay. The breathing beside me was like a lifeline, and it stopped so would I. Her words rolled out over the hill we were sitting on, caressing the entire world with the melodic noise that tumbled from her chest. "I like to think that the sun and moon are in love." Her voice was gentle, as if she was afraid that if she spoke too loudly it would shatter the serenity. Scare away the silence.

"How the sun takes so long to set, as if it's trying to stall. To see the moon for as long as it could." A gentle breeze blew back her hair, shutting her eyes against it to revel in it like it's the only breath of air she's ever gotten. "And how the moon will rise early. Just- sitting there. Waiting. Watching." I watched as she curled her arms around her legs as if the shield herself from the world, tucking her head into her knees.

"And maybe we could all learn a lesson from that. That even through distance, we could all put forth the same effort. It would make things better." I watched as the girl next to me began to spew words of wisdom far beyond her age, acting like a war hardened criminal as she began to speak of heart break like she's been put through the wringer thousands of times. She knows this.

"Because we should stop wasting time of superficial professions of love that only end in despair. Stop saying the words 'I love you' when you don't mean it. Stop throwing the words around as if the gravity of their meaning doesn't affect you. Love is about feeling this vibration through your entire being, not just used to fill space at the end of a conversation. 'I love you' should be with the gravity that it contains, that you are opening up to someone. You are sharing yourself with someone. Sharing your heart and soul, and the words 'I love you' are not goodbye phrases." A smile crept onto her face, sorrow filling the void behind it as I could see the memories flash across her eyes. "We could all learn a lesson from the sun and the moon. Because nothing is real anymore. Everything is superficial, but the sun and moon are in love. And I think that's beautiful."