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✦ ENTRY NO. 007
✦ TIME LEFT: 19 DAYS
Hᥱᥣᥣ᥆, ι h᥆ρᥱ y᥆ᥙ'rᥱ d᥆ιᥒg ᥕᥱᥣᥣ. ᥱ᥎ᥱrydᥲy hᥱrᥱ ι᥉ ᥲ ᥒᥱᥕ ᥱ᥊ρᥱrιᥱᥒᥴᥱ, ι kᥒ᥆ᥕ ι ᥉ᥲy ιt ᥲ ᥣ᥆t bᥙt ι'꧑ rᥱᥲᥣᥣy ᥱᥒj᥆yιᥒg ᥱ᥎ᥱry ᥉ᥱᥴ᥆ᥒd. Tι꧑ᥱ ι᥉ ᥉ᥙᥴh ᥲ ρrᥱᥴι᥆ᥙ᥉ thιᥒg ᥲᥒd ιt ι᥉ ᥆ftᥱᥒ ᥕᥲ᥉tᥱd. ᥆h ᥲᥒd—! Ι fιᥒᥲᥣᥣy ꧑ᥱt thᥱ ᥉tᥙdᥱᥒt ᥴ᥆ᥙᥒᥴιᥣ, thᥱ ρrᥱ᥉ιdᥱᥒt ᥕᥲ᥉ ᥲ ᥣιttᥣᥱ ᥕᥱιrd. Bᥙt ι'ᥣᥣ tᥱᥣᥣ y᥆ᥙ ᥲb᥆ᥙt hᥱr ᥲᥒ᥆thᥱr tι꧑ᥱ, t᥆dᥲy ι'꧑ hᥲᥒgιᥒg ᥕιth dᥲᥒ hᥱᥒg ᥲᥒd ꧑ᥲrᥴh. hᥱy, ᥕhᥲt'᥉ thᥱ ᥉ᥲyιᥒg ᥲgᥲιᥒ? tι꧑ᥱ fᥣιᥱ᥉ ᥕhᥱᥒ y᥆ᥙ'rᥱ hᥲ᥎ιᥒg fᥙᥒ?
✩ ◛ .⋆
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𓆩⟡𓆪
╰┈➤ "𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒖𝒚𝒔 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕?" I asked the other two individuals standing in front of me. March was looking around the busy town, while Dan Heng was looking through his phone.
"Hmm... maybe we can watch the new movie that came out," March suggested, pointing towards the theater just a few blocks ahead.
"That sounds fun, what do you think, Dan Heng?" He only shrugged, going along with March's suggestion. We entered the humble cinema, purchasing our tickets at the front desk. March took care of all the snacks while Dan Heng and I headed to the theater room.
"Oh, what's this? You two are already sitting next to each other? My, my~" The cheerful pink-haired girl teased mostly Dan Heng, and it was working. Even in the dim light, I could see his face become flustered.
"Sh—shut up! You insisted on getting the snacks, and we got seats. What do you expect?!" he retorted, but she just brushed him off with an 'Oh well, whatever' as she took her seat beside me. I couldn't help but chuckle at his sudden outburst. As much as he appeared indifferent, he actually had an endearing softer side.
We endured the entire movie, each of us having completely different opinions about it.
"That movie was total garbage," I sighed, feeling a little disappointed that I wasted two hours of my time.
"What—?! I think it might actually be my favorite movie of the whole year?!" March held her mouth open in disbelief after hearing my take. Dan Heng also chimed in,
"It wasn't horrible, but not anything super special."
"So we all have a different view... this is a bust for our project." All three of us started to exit the building, thinking of what else we might be able to do. As we walked down the sidewalks, I was so completely drowned in my thoughts that I couldn't hear the familiar voices ahead of us.
"Wait isn't that...?"
"That totally is!"
"Hey, how are you doing, girl?" A hearty tap landed on my back, belonging to the infamous Serval. Next to her stood Pela, looking genuinely excited to see me. "So this is where you were stolen off to?" It took a moment to process everything, but when I did, I couldn't hold back a big grin.
"Oh! What a coincidence seeing you guys! What are you up to?" I asked, genuinely curious. Serval then put her arm around someone hiding behind her. When he stepped into the light, I saw that it was her little brother, Gepard. Catching a glance at his face, I noticed a hint of an embarrassed blush as he looked at me.
"Just shopping with this rascal."
"Um, hello. It's nice to see you again." Gepard greeted politely, slightly bowing his head. I smiled back, appreciating his respectful demeanor. "How is your knee doing?" After quickly checking my leg, I turned my attention back to him.
"It's doing great. It healed really fast. Thanks again for bringing me to the nurse that day!" Gepard responded that he was glad to hear it, but then fell silent for a moment. It seemed like he wanted to say something more to me. Serval noticed this too and harshly nudged him with her elbow—trying to encourage him discreetly. His flushed face grew even redder, but he eventually held out his hand calmly.
"Uh, I bought these... band-aids for you, in case you get hurt again..." I took the band-aids from him, surprised by his sudden gift. It was a little unexpected, but I knew he meant well nonetheless.
"Oh, well, thank you very much. I'll be sure to use them well." Serval seemed satisfied with her brother's display of courage, patting him on the back.
"Alright then, sorry to hold you guys up like this. We gotta get going anyways. Good seeing you!" Serval grinned, playfully kicking her brother, who winced at the impact. I said my goodbyes to them, watching their silhouettes fade into the distance.
By now, the sun was setting over the horizon, casting beautiful golden hour hues on the countless rows of shops. The once busy town was now settling down. Our journey eventually led us to a small sidewalk that overlooked the shore. My gaze was captivated by the crashing waves—a small thought came to my mind,
This atmosphere right now, it's perfect.
"Hey, guys, do you maybe want to visit the beach?"
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The fading warmth of the sand felt amazing on my feet as all of us gazed out at the endless sea. March and I decided to take off our shoes and dip our feet into the cool, clean ocean.
The sensation of the water on my skin brought back memories from my childhood. Being by the sea filled me with a serenity that words couldn't fully describe.
"It's like the water cleans you," March whispered, her face looking completely relaxed.
"Yeah," was all I could say, struggling to find the right words to convey my feelings. Dan Heng rolled up his pants and stepped into the water beside us.
"Do you like the ocean?" he asked, his gaze meeting mine.
"Yes, it's actually the only reason I came here. Just to see how beautiful it was." At that moment, March flinched, and both of us turned to see if she was alright.
"That's it! This could be our project topic!"
"Huh?" I looked at her, feeling a bit confused.
"We all share a common interest in the ocean!" She exclaimed excitedly, as if she had stumbled upon a treasure. "I can take pictures of the beautiful waves!"
"Then... I can write a few short poems about the ocean," Dan Heng stated calmly, stepping closer to me.
"I see... so it's like we're combining all our hobbies into one shared interest. That's a good idea!" March nodded enthusiastically, and I couldn't help but start to feel her elation. "Then, I will paint the ocean." She jumped for joy, grabbing both of our arms to join in the celebration.
Even Dan Heng couldn't hold back from laughing with us.
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"Are you sure you don't want me to walk you home?"
"Pffft. Where's this coming from?"
"I'm serious—"
"It's okay, Dan Heng. I can get home by myself."
"Ugh, take your lovers' quarrel somewhere else. I'm going home." March sighed heavily, starting to walk away from the two of us. Dan Heng seemed too exhausted to even argue this time. After she left, a suffocating silence settled in, but then he fixed his eyes on me.
"Hey um... are you and that underclassman close?"
"What?" For a moment, I had no idea who he could possibly be talking about—until it dawned of me. "Oh! Gepard! Well, he's Serval's younger brother. And he's the one who helped me when I got injured."
"But I was the one who patched you up..." He mumbled so softly that I only caught the last part. In fact, his whole attitude became strange after bringing up the topic.
"What was that?"
"Never mind! Just text me when you get home safe!" Yhe male snapped, giving me little time to respond.
And before I knew it, he had fully disappeared into the chilly evening air.
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╰┈➤ EDITED ✦
Original publication 06.23.2023
Re-written: 07.15.2023
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𝗔 𝗣𝗔𝗚𝗘 𝗜𝗡 𝗗𝗔𝗡 𝗛𝗘𝗡𝗚'𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗜𝗩𝗔𝗧𝗘 𝗠𝗘𝗠𝗢𝗜𝗥
As of recently, my life has been flipped upside down. It's all related to a new student, who happened to transfer to our school around more than a week ago.
At first, I didn't like her. She stirred up rumors. Students were constantly talking about her strange appearance in the middle of the school year—how no one knew anything about her, or her old school. She didn't seem to have any parents or relatives, and no one could find out where she came from. On top of the fact she was already becoming friends with the bothersome group of people.
So when she spoke to me on her first day—I blew her off. I didn't want any unnecessary attention put onto me from being involved with her. There was enough turmoil surrounding her anyways.
Yet, due to what I'd call a stroke of misfortune at the time, she was paired with March and I in a group project. I told her I'd only cooperate if she left me alone after it was over. To my surprise, she actually agreed. She even went a step further as to say I'd never see her again.
Yet, it seems she forgot all about that bet, and to be honest, I'm glad she did. I find myself strangely drawn to her, despite my initial resistance. In the short time we've spent together, we've become friends. When I fell seriously ill, she showed genuine concern and cared for me, even in the face of my rudeness towards her. We discovered shared interests in books and the ocean, which brought us closer.
I came to know that she's actually, a lovely person.
- D. H.
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