Hana

Anemone

Lance clutched the handle gently, twisting it to make the umbrella spin. The sounds of busy streets and blurred voices filled his ears, which many found overwhelming. Not Lance. He liked the chaos; it made him feel less alone. As he walked down the sidewalk, he watched the faces of those he passed by or the ones that stood across the street. He made note of a high school aged girl texting frantically on her cell phone. She looked angry, so Lance assumed she was having a fight with a boyfriend. A couple crossed in front of him, exiting a sweets shop. The man was feeding the woman a chocolate since her hands were full with bags and a shared umbrella. They made eye contact with Lance, so he flashed a warm smile, which they returned. He turned the corner and continued walking, watching the sides of the buildings for the right door. Finally, he found it and backed up under the awning and closed his yellow umbrella, shaking the water off. The bell jingled as he walked in. The smell of coffee and paper filled his nose and a friendly voice called to him.

"Welcome back, Lance!"

Lance turned to the woman that greeted him. She was a short, tan woman with straight brown hair and eyes to match. "Hey Linda. It's good to be back."

She handed him a plastic umbrella bag, "Did you finish the book already?"

"I did. It was really nice! Your recommendations are always a pleasant experience," he responded, accepting the bag and stuffing his umbrella in.

Linda held her hand out to Lance, "That's great to hear!"

Lance handed her the umbrella, which she set behind the counter. "Do you have any others that may interest me?"

"Hmm..." she thought, slightly rubbing her chin. "There is this one that I read a while ago that you may not have heard of. Let's see...it was called, um..."

Lance dried his shoes on the rug as she searched her mind.

"Oh! It was called, uh, When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi." She stretched her arm out to point towards some shelves, "It should be in the third aisle from the back, probably around the middle section."

Lance smiled at her, "Thank you." He headed to where she had pointed. His hand trailed the sides of the bookshelves, sometimes hitting the spines of books as he passed. Lance scanned the titles, picking up a few books to read their synopses. After reading the summaries of about five books, he found the book Linda recommended. He ran his hands over the smooth cover and smelt the pages. He decided that it was worth it and purchased the book. After leaving the counter, he retrieved his umbrella from Linda and exited the store.

Lance turned back the way he came, the route as familiar as his own face. He turned the corner and passed the sweets shop the couple with the chocolate were in. He stopped and turned back to pick out something.
He bought a package of cute little chocolates and munched on a couple before closing the bag. He also stopped to retrieve a couple boxes of tea. Finished running errands, he returned to his apartment. It was on the bigger side; money was not an issue for Lance. He was by no means a millionaire, but he certainly wasn't struggling. His parents were very supportive and have done everything they could to help. Lance appreciated everything they offered.

Lance prepared his kettle, coughing a couple times, and put it on the stove. While the water heated up, he put the tea he had bought in the cabinet and pulled his new book out of the bag, setting it on the table next to the chocolates. He glanced over at the kettle, which had yet to whistle. Lance thought for a second, then sat down and opened the book.

After reading for a while, he was interrupted by the kettle and got up to prepare a cup of tea, wrapping the outer covering around the pages he read to mark his spot. As he let the tea steep for a minute, he kicked off his shoes and traded his jacket for a cranberry-colored sweater cardigan. Then, he curled up on his couch with the mug of tea. Wrapping the sweater around himself, he stared out the window wall at the sunset rain.

The rain was calm. Relaxing. But it stood for a time of happiness. No, it is happiness. The sun is hot and unforgiving.

But...

the rain just wants to be hugged.