Paper Lanterns

Chapter 12 Φ

Chapter 12 Φ

Dear Mr. Steve,

You have received my letter! Honestly, I didn't think it would work. I was almost conviced that you got your letters hold off at the postal office, but here's your reply instead.

I had a great time at Cassie's house. She has an amazing family. Her mom's a great cook. I think I gained a few pounds there. Her dad kept on throwing jokes all day. There was this one time when he was telling me something and I thought it was a punchline, so I laughed. It was embarrassing, but they were really cool. We only laughed about it.

Her older brother, Carl, who is an intern at Creeksburg Medical Center, was also there. He has the same dark auburn hair with freckles on both cheeks as his sister, so it's easy to tell that they're related. Personality wise, he's the opposite of Cassie. Oh, except that they're both friendly. It probably runs in the family. He was very easy to get along with.

I got home on Sunday afternoon and instantly missed their family. Cassie would be back in a few weeks. Speaking of which, Julianne also went home for the rest of the summer. I'm all alone here in our apartment. A while ago, I might or might not have danced around like no one's watching.

About college, I still think I could make this work. I haven't inquired about the scholarships yet, and I regret it. I have a few days off every week, but I find myself idling around lately. I will go to NWU soon. Thank you for your offering a helping hand again, sir.

Sincerely yours,

Chelsea

***

I couldn't stop myself from quivering as I slid the letter into the mailbox. There was a security camera nearby, and I wasn't sure if it was related to Mr. Steve receiving my letters even if I directly dropped them here.

Looking to my left and right, I made sure that no one else was around, before I walked towards the bench that was located at the other side of the street right in front of Mr. Steve's house. Since this was all getting confusing, I started to refer to this house as Mr. Steve's property as well, whoever he might be.

I took a seat on the bench, and for the hours that had passed, I made sure that I wouldn't miss a thing. That letter had to disappear from the mailbox at some point. I doubted that there was some kind of electronic tunnel underneath that old, cramped mailbox.

After two hours, I couldn't help but yawn, wiping away the tears that formed at the corner of my eyes. I suddenly felt bored. Stretching out my arms, I tilted my head to one side and counted, "One... two... three..."

Another hour passed. I took out my phone and scrolled to see who I could talk to. I saw Natalie's name and thought of saying hi.

***

Me: Hey!

Natalie: You're texting me! This is amazing, Anna.

Me: Haha, I'm bored. So here I am, figuring out how to text people.

Natalie: Well, that's a drastic improvement. How are you?

Me: Okay, I guess. I met a few friends here.

Natalie: Guys?

Me: One. Oh, there's another one. He's my roommate's older brother.

Natalie: You like him? ;)

Me: No, I don't.

Natalie: Then why would you even mention him. Spill!

Me: A crush? But don't get ahead of yourself, we won't be seeing each other until who knows when. He's busy with his hospital internship and all.