After the rain

Places

  Daniel and I were studying in the public library after I got kicked out of the house by my sister and her friends who were partying and celebrating the end of their exams. I left by choice since the game were getting a little noisy.

  It was 11am and we were chased out of the library. 

  And we were walking alone in the darkness. The dimly lit streets were little comfort. The street lights were badly functioning, they just stood there, waiting for us to bump into them, feel our way around them. 

  What happened to the brightly neon lights? The city never sleeps, it shouldn't have a spot of darkness, not even in the night. But this was my first time hanging out so late at night.

  Daniel's quiet presence soothed me. His face was relaxed, as though he was walking on the street in broad daylight. This place was probably familiar to him.

  I remembered something. That day when Luke was carrying him home, and meg me along the way. It was  somewhere around here. This place that was familiar to me in the day, was foreign at night. My parents warned my sister and I against walking out at night, where there was no light. They said this part was especially dangerous. I used to be afraid of going out after 6, but look at me now. The older I grew, the greater my distaste for rules became. As long as my parents didn't know, it was okay. They were often on business trips anyway.

  But Daniel had business to do at night at some point in his life.

  We passed by the pubs that reeked of alcohol. They were the only flashing lights I could see, the only noise I could hear in the distance. The sounds of rock and pop music and people yelling at each other mixing and crashing on my ear.

  I saw a few people who were our age. They were in their school uniforms. But none were dressed in blue and white.

  The bartender was younger than us.

  But Daniel was unfazed by these sights. Maybe he was already used to them.

  So we just continued down this dodgy alley, until we reached the Main Street. Then we crossed the road and trudged up the hill, continued straight until we saw a fork, where we parted.

  'My Dad wasn't at the bar today,' Daniel said before he left.

When I got home, my sister was asleep. I looked out of my window and saw a thousand dots of different colors, but none were white or blue.

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  Skye began attending her remedial classes instead of our classes. She said she wanted more attention from the Teacher. Remedial classes were also easier. Hence we hardly saw each other, and when we did she would just greet me and hurry off. She seemed to think this distance between us was necessary. 

  I still thought that it was rather sad that she had to be retained. It would've been nice for us to graduate together.

  Jenni began to join our study sessions in a bid to improve her grades, although they were already above average. In these last hundred meters, she said, we have to sprint and do our very best. There was some truth in that. No one really cared about emotional matters anymore. It was all about perseverance and hard work.

  Jenni did not look at Daniel like she used to do. Instead she simply concentrated on her work, doing it diligently. Daniel no longer stole occasional glances at Jenni. He worked on his mock papers with great concentration.

  I was the only one observing people.

  They liked each other. No, they had somehow fallen in love. Though you wouldn't be able to tell if you looked at them back then.

  Personal feelings are pointless if they destroy your perfection.

  They both understood that. Everyone understood that, including me.

  Even Skye.

  Given the increasing number of students with access to education. The supply of students would increase. Since the number of spots in top universities have not increased, that just means that the competition for those places has become much tighter. Only the smartest who work the hardest will get in.

In the end, Jenni, Daniel and I were just searching for that place.