𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚎

Ｃｈａｐｔｅｒ ５

You weren't much of a writer yourself, only coming up with a five hundred-word essay you got an A on in high school was your biggest achievement. However, whoever crafted such a lighthearted piece was indeed an intellectual in literacy. This wasn't some ordinary poem. A haiku? A sonnet? Acrostic? The answer was there on the tip of your tongue but you failed to recall such an art piece.

You were touched, of course, it was a short and sweet message. Albeit a bit hard to decipher its meaning what did it all mean? How could you respond to such words with your own blundering ones? You couldn't possibly think of another creative poem to match how you were feeling. Let alone talk about the rising embarrassment and bashfulness that grew on the apples of your cheeks.

'Who could have written it?' you thought endlessly. 'And why did they write to me?' More and more questions engulfed your tiny brain as it couldn't pinpoint any potential suspects. You're skeleton friends seemed a good start but you had to quickly extinguish that thought. You didn't want to toot your own horn. Is someone falling in love? With you?

Your mind wandered to Blue as you regrettably did so. He did explain his platonic feelings to you when he dropped you home, so why were you thinking such thoughts? It was just a major misunderstanding! You both settled for friends. Just friends.

'For now.'

You flushed at the thought. Shaking off the shame of how you could think of someone, let alone someone you barely know fall for you that hard.

Red was another contender but you shot down the idea almost instantly. If Red wrote the letter wouldn't it be more crude and crass? He could say it to your face right now, so there was no need to go through the trouble of sending an anonymous note. Again you didn't want to assume he could write something as beautiful as this but at the same time it was so out of character to suddenly switch up his "tactic". If this was another way of teasing you and railing up another reaction for his entertainment you would scrunch up the not and throw it at his laughing face.

Yet you knew deep down you didn't have the heart to touch the letter in such a way. Holding it now was already making you nervous, fearing you slightly crumpled the paper in your shaking hands.

You ruled out each person and monster you knew. Leaving you with...no one. Of course. Back to square one.

You made a promise to yourself to find your secret admirer one day. Maybe by investigating or just by chance you were determined. Determined to find this mysterious person and confront them? Thank them? Reject? Accept? You weren't sure how you felt about this ordeal but you were grateful someone was thinking out of you in such a way.

Countless scenarios played in your head like a cheesy romance movie. Maybe this person was your destined soulmate. The change you wished upon that day to be graced on your feet like an angel. They would confess their undying love for you on the spot as you both run into the sunset with arms around each other. Smiling and laughing to a happily ever after.

Yes, it was indeed really sappy but a person can dream, can't they?

You neatly pocketed the note into your sketchbook, gently tucking it between the flaps of your pages. You sigh to yourself looking at the scenery around you. A lakeside just not far from town, you happen to come here when you're stressed if the park is too repetitive. In winter the lake would freeze over, making it into a skating rink. You weren't the best at skating but Jessabell invited you and her girlfriend to skate together.

You would trip and fall every time you moved your legs. So much you lost count of how much your bottom hurt. It was so used to the pain it might as well have gotten flat. But they were sweet memories. The two females held you up with their supportive hands as the three of you steadily glided through the ice. By then you learned how to tread ice like a pro or, well, amateur skater.