Cherry Blossoms (a short story)

Cherry blossoms

It was true how people would often try and avoid the things that would make them feel scared, but being at the same school, it was inevitable that I would bump into her eventually. It turned out that we had an English class together. It was kind of fitting that she excelled in it, she seemed like the type that would read poems under the shade of a tree, something I could picture her doing.

Our assignment was given to us, to perform a set of poems that would answer each other. When she and I were partnered together, I didn't know whether I should be glad or run for the hills. As I walked towards her desk, with the assignment in my hand, the drumming of my heart filled my ears before a tightness in my chest soon followed. I gulped and took a deep breath to calm myself before speaking so that my voice wouldn't sound weird.

"Hi, I'm your partner for this assignment," I said.

She looked up, her eyes meeting mine.

Badump

"Hi!" she replied with a big smile.

I could feel the dry grass beneath me, the long strands brushing against my skin. The sun, which was obscured by the large tree behind us, offered shade, leaving a cool and refreshing feeling, and yet my palms were sweaty.

"So, what kind of poem do you want to do? Should we do one about tragedy? A lot of people do those because it's easy to convey the emotion," I asked.

"Hmmmm no, that sounds too sad," her eyebrows furrowed as she fell into deep thought, "How about we do one about romance?"

I went silent for a second, "...Sure, I don't mind,"

We met after class every day for two weeks to choose the poetry we would use. We grew closer throughout this time, and we could even be considered friends. The cherry blossom tree put in the back of the school was our favourite place to go to. It was quiet and desolate, as if there were only the two of us in the world.

White petals scattered on the ground, covering the green grass beneath us. I felt her eyes fall on me when I noticed her getting closer and closer. My eyes widened and my entire body went stiff. Her hand reached out and grabbed a strand of my hair. "You had a petal in your hair," she said, her voice sounding deeper than usual.

My heart trembled as I felt her breath on my skin. She didn't move away and remained close to me. I looked up, confused, only to find her staring at me. I couldn't say anything and my mouth gaped open like a fish out of water. She brought her face closer to mine, our lips only a breath away from touching when she stopped.

If I were to move a little closer, then our lips would meet.

I brought my face closer, our lips brushing against one another, delicately. An explosion of feelings collided within me, guilt, happiness, love. I pulled away. I kept my gaze down, avoiding her eyes that clearly conveyed her emotions. I didn't want to hear the words that would destroy the spec of happiness I gathered. Without a word, I stood up, ready to leave when I felt a hand grab my wrist.

My heart jumped.

"I-" I'm sorry, I wanted to say.

"No. Don't say that,"

She saw the guilt in my eyes.

"We're not wrong and we're not weird. We're just like everybody else, just two people who fell in love." I felt her hand tighten around my wrist.

"That's not what everyone else will see." I whispered.

"Who cares!" She yelled.

"I do!" I yelled back.

I took a step back and looked at her, tears welling up in my eyes. She let go of my wrist, knowing that I wasn't going to be with her. I couldn't. I didn't have enough confidence in myself or her to think that we were actually going to work. Who could guarantee that we'll be together ten years from now, or even a couple months from now.

I was young back then and scared out of my mind about being different. I wasn't like her, who could disregard the thoughts of everyone else, and boldly live life the way she did. I was a rule follower. I was never late, I handed in my work on time, and my skirt was strictly below my knees, abiding the school's dress code despite thinking how stupid it was.

She never looked at me again. She moved classes, and I barely saw a shadow of her figure in the hallways. My heart shattered, but I knew I had hurt her even worse. I was the one that ran away so I had no right to be feeling this way but that didn't stop the gut wrenching pain I felt whenever I caught a glimpse of her.

We were strangers now.

Time was brutal. Despite my heart ache, it continued to move and before long, it was already time to graduate. In two weeks, I will no longer be able to see her anymore, not even a glimpse. Life was taking us in two different directions, one that didn't intercept. I was going to attend a university in the city while she stayed here in this small town.

Years passed and the first time I saw her again was on the television. Just like back then, the sight of her instantly made my heart jump. She was standing next to a girl I didn't know and a feeling of dread consumed me. My eyes lingered on their hands that were intertwined as they stood in a crowd of people. It was a protest. She was fighting for the right to love. The two looked at each other with warmth and trust.

I felt my heart shatter once again. I gripped my chest, a dull ache consuming my heart. Tears poured down my face as a torrent of regrets invaded my mind. I cried till my face was red that night because that was when I had realised that I lost her. For good.