r e m i n i s c e | an original.

ch. 1: Until Today

"please don't ever become a stranger whose laugh i could recognize anywhere."

My father, Julien Durand, wanted to stay near home for the rest of his life, surrounded by everything he knew and trusted. His best friend, Omar Essa, wanted to run as fast as he could without looking back at his spontaneous footprints. They met each other in a college in France, and changed both of their lives forever. Omar's contagious laughter and adventurous spirit drew Julien to a world beyond his own; Julien's powerful way of listening and his comfort in the known smoothed out Omar's wrinkles. They planned to stick together wherever they went, but their adult lives took them to new places, and they slowly separated. Their paths, paths once so close, were now entwined with those of others, and though they could not follow each other, they held pieces of each other in their hearts forever.

Eventually, their paths crossed again, as those of people who are meant to be in each other's lives often do.

Just less than twenty years later, Omar and his Italian wife Lucia were living in Morocco, Omar's home country, where Omar had been an engineer and Lucia had been an environmental activist. They had two kids together in Rabat: Amira and, two years younger, Elio Essa, who were raised speaking French and learning English. At the time, Amira was ten years old, and Elio was eight. This was when Omar decided to give in to his old chaotic nature, and convinced Lucia, Amira, and Elio that they should move to Hawaii, as he had been offered a promotion there. There was a familiar pull in Omar's subconscious, telling him that much awaited him in Hawaii. Maybe he loved the idea of the clear sea, or longed to get to know a new culture, or didn't want to miss out on the easiest chance he'd get if he wanted to immigrate. Or maybe he knew, somehow, that he had an old friend there.

Lucia didn't take much convincing- she loved adventure as much as her husband. She could resume her activism anywhere in the world, so a sunny beach didn't seem to be a bad option! Amira didn't mind, either. She was an opinionated girl, quiet but clear, and she held optimism for every new thing that came her way. For this situation, her optimism was that this would bring her closer to Dr. Phil. No one could figure out whether she meant physically or emotionally.

The skeptical member of the family was young Elio. He was a charming little boy, who fell in love with every plant, animal, or object he saw. The world intrigued him, and in his eight years of living, he had taught himself that the world he saw could be his. However, he never thought about the world that he couldn't see. He never thought about seeing new sidewalks or drinking different water. Elio wouldn't know what was his anymore. He fought and he cried and he whined, for days on end, until his parents promised him that his life would change with their move. He believed them, beginning to ponder not of what he didn't know, but of what he would know. Lucia and Omar hated breaking promises, but they knew that this wasn't a promise to worry about. They were right.

When they arrived in Waimea, Hawaii, they all went off to explore. Omar and Lucia checked into the hotel they would be staying in until they got their living situation figured out, while Amira, struggling to maintain her grip on her brother's arm, went to the ice cream cart by the beach, promising to stay safe and give her parents any change. Whilst his
older sister was distracted, stumbling over a few words in English, Elio managed to slip away from her to meet new things: new sand, new trees, new animals, and possibly new people. He scurried through a clump of palm trees, only to find a girl around his age hiding behind the trees. She looked more focused than anyone he had ever seen.

Elio cleared his throat bravely, and said, in his best American accent, "Hello, I am called Elio!" He plastered on his best Hollywood smile, and hoped he hadn't ruined his only first impression so far.

The girl was obviously holding back a toothy grin, concealing it with a proper lady smile, but her eyes said everything. There were slight crinkles next to her eyes, and the glare of the sun got comfortable within her dark brown irises. Her red t-shirt and sandy jeans weren't suited for someone at the beach, but for an adventurer. She had chapped lips and a small scratch on her bare ankle, and her honey yellow hair was pulled together in a careless ponytail. Elio was so entranced by this girl - whose name he didn't even know - that he was certain she was the last thing he could ever love. Nothing could come after her: no tree, no ocean, not even a dog. And so he happily said goodbye to everything around him as he decided she would be his best friend in the universe.

That girl was me, Amalie Clarine Durand.