Compilation Of Things That Put Me To Sleep

One Day, In Berlin

It has been one year and three months. The only reason is why this story is told in the present tense is that the only way it can ever be present is now as words on pages.

She rushes to finish her make-up. It's not really a full-on make-up look. Not at all. She only wears sunscreen and some lipstick. She makes little efforts to look good, not because she's so confident in her beauty that she can do without make-up. It's just that she doesn't enjoy the artificial look that make-up can create and she knows that she's not getting any prettier any time soon. In fact, this is probably the prettiest she would ever get without her make up. The freshness is still on her face, despite her sleepless nights and often times crazy diets.

She grabs her phone and gets out of the house. She's young, hustling to get things done. And it seems selfish to phrase it this way, but she rarely cares for anything else other than herself right now. She knows what she's doing and she knows what she's fighting for.

She also knows her friend must have already arrived in Berlin for around thirty minutes now and he's waiting for her. And she's on a one-hour-train away from him.

It has been one year and three months.

The train starts and she puts her headphone on. Her eyes are glued to her phone as she's checking the list of places she's taking him today. He'll be in Berlin for three days. She knows for sure he's not going to stay at the station and wait for her there. He's probably roaming the streets with his camera. She knows him well enough to know that he can't stand still with that amazing atmosphere surrounding him. He wants to capture them.

The weather is perfect. It's not summer yet, but we can all tell it's going to be summer soon. She has always wanted to be on the other side of his camera, to see him looking at her through the lenses and to see the photos that he takes of her - to see herself through his eyes. She can imagine how contrasting it looks with him standing on the streets of Berlin. His vibe is just not Berlin. He has this calming energy that she finds fantastically soothing to the souls.

She takes a small video of the views outside her train. She wants to remember today, it feels different to have somebody waiting on you. She has been to Berlin many times. She has friends here. She has Christina but Christina isn't him. And it's not that she's not close enough to Christina, in fact they're so close she's surprised she would ever have such a close foreign friend, not to mention their age gap. He's different.

He immediately sees her story of her being on the train and sends her a witty reply. She smiles. That's all it takes. One hour has never felt so fast. She gets off the train and rushes outside. Her energy meets the energy of Berlin. It's not certain if it is her glow or is it the sun in Berlin that's so illuminating? He sees her and takes a picture of it.

The conversation starts. She knows her ways with words. She knows them too well. Well enough to draw people closer and to keep them at the distance that she wants, just "close enough", but never close enough. Berlin is always Berlin, her energy vibes with the city so well she never regrets choosing to study near here. She brings her energy to the city and the city helps recharge her energy. She recharges his energy. It's been one year and three months.

He holds her hand. She acts natural. She does the talking, he does the clicking. Simultaneously they are creating memories and capturing them. Berlin seems unreal today.

It feels different.

It's been one year and three months.