Stories came from life as life was shaped from the particles of the earth. Words formed sentences as sentences are formed by deep emotions. Emotions built connections and connections created love. Love created moments as moments shaped stories that stay for life.500Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡujQWJcSgLP
You see, complications are not only formed in words, or it’s not what you watch on movies. Complications are very real.
Complications with a capital “C” at the beginning of this sentence, is by far the malevolent antagonist in my so called not-so-started love life. Why did I ever agree to Heaven when I know I couldn’t keep her promise?
“So,” Scott emerges like a ghost beside me out of smoke. “You asked her out?”
I wish he didn’t have to say that.
“No. She doesn’t want to be asked out.”
He cringes. “What?” he huffs. “Dom, she’s booooring.”
“But we’re friends.”
Scott snorts. “Double what did you say? You agreed to be just friends with the girl you like—more than a friend like?” I nodded and he grasped his hair in frustration. I am so stressful, I know. “Dom, friend is a word for puberty baby boys! Honestly, you need to take some serious logical action.”
“You know sometimes I hate you. Thanks for the support. You are really helpful.”
“Oh come on, Dom! Don’t be mad.”
“So, help me out!” I was shock how desperate I sound to my own best friend. Even Scott wasn’t that dumb or numb to notice it. So I gave in.
“She doesn’t want to be more than friends with me. She doesn’t want to go out with me. If I try and do any of those things, she’ll cut me out. Being her friend is the only way I know how.”
Scott frowns. “Wow. She’s jeopardy.”
“More like anomaly.” I add.
“Maybe she’s just playing hard-to-get. Usually, when a girl says N-O she meant the opposite.”
My eyebrows crease. “Really?”
“Yah.”
I doubt it. But what if Anna meant it that way? What if she’s just playing hard-to-get? What if she just wants to make sure how sincere I am with her? What if she wants me to try harder?
“Hey, Scott?”
Scott raises his eyebrows at me.
“Maybe it’s time to show me how saintly you are. It’s your chance to get a recommendation for your early canonization.”
Right on cue, his head Bluetooths with mine.
***
Heaven makes her way to the hall of lockers.
Standing close by I watch her take the note I attached on her locker before she unlocks it. Behind me, my ever so aggressive best friend, Scott, pushes me out. I’m sure she read the letter but I didn’t get any reaction from her face. It’s like she thought the letter came to stick on her locker’s door by mistake.
So I moved to plan B.
I attached another note to her locker and I stood beside the door. Once she closes her locker, she’ll find the note and the note will point at me. I am sure it will work because the note clearly states “handsome” with an arrow directed to me.
She closes her locker. She finds the note. She looks at me.
I plastered a grin at her. She blinks hard at me in question. She takes the stick-on from her locker and waves it to my face like a white flag—only that the stick-on is yellow.
“What’s this?” she asks.
“A note.” I answered.
She rolls her eyes skyward. “Seriously?”
“Go out with me.” I say and I watch the curtains draw down from her eyes.
She crumples my note in her hand. “I thought we’ve agreed on this.”
“I’m not asking you on a date, even though I want it to be a date. I’m just asking you out. Like a friendly date. A date with a friend.” I start babbling.
She sighs. “It’s still a date.”
“No, it’s not.” I prompted and she gave me a ridiculous pointed look. Darn. It is a date.
She hugs her books close to her heart and she bites her lower lip. “I can’t.”
When she turned away from me, it was like the world had shut its doors to me. Scott moved beside me and he nudged me forward. Irritated, I turned to look at him and he’s holding a guitar. My eyebrows creased. He doesn’t know how to play that instrument—but before I could argue with him, he pushed me forward with a force that might have knocked me off Heaven.
“Anna,” I called and she turned to look at me.
I love the way you move
And the sparkle in your eyes
There’s a color deep inside them
Like the blue suburban skies
I don’t need to be the king of the world
As long as I’m the hero of this lonely girl
Scott, on the other hand, being the helpful best friend that he intends to be, double acts with me. Well, he’s my echo and my background music though.
Heaven isn’t too far away
I’m closer to it everyday
No matter what your heart say
I know I’m gonna find a way
Scott then mashes up with…
More than words
Is all you have to do to make it real
Then you wouldn’t have to say
Bloody hell Scott, song confusion huh? So I came back with…
Heaven isn’t too far away!
Heaven isn’t too far away!
And then he goes off again.
More than words!
I went back in to reel him off.
Heaven isn’t too far away!
But he keeps on mashing the song.
More than words!
I want to roll my eyes at him.
‘Coz I already know…
But then I gave in to the mash-up.
Saying I love you...
(The song is a mash-up of More than words and Heaven. Some lyrics had been altered. If you wanna hear the mash-up, click on the youtube link at the side.)
I noticed that people had crowd around us and Heaven stood there, grounded on her feet, her hands clutched the edges of her books.
“Anna, go out with me. I promise, it’s not a date.” I said as I outstretched my hand for her. Her eyes followed down to it and then they flew up to my face.
She takes a step away from me. “I’m sorry. I can’t.”
And for the fifth time, I watch Heaven walk away from me.
***
There were laughter in the hallways and some stupid jokes were thrown at me like a tomato. But I didn’t hear them. All I hear is Heaven’s rejection. Words may fail and can be meaningless until someone close to you uses them against you. Maybe Heaven doesn’t want me after all.
“Maybe it’s the mash-up.” Scott says. “I’m sorry, Dom. But don’t give up now. I promise I won’t do any mash-ups with you from now on.”
I smile at his insouciance. But it wasn’t his mash-up who gave me the rejection.
“We still have lunch and dismissal. We can trap her later. I will get you back-up dancers if it’s all that it takes to get her precious yes.”
I splutter a laugh. “No need, Scott. I didn’t know you can play the guitar.”
He snorts. “I am Scott Orson. Music Major. Talent comes to me naturally.”
I nudge him. “Thanks for backing me up earlier. I could not have done it without you even if I got busted.”
“Busted!” Scott starts to tease but he eases down. “Stop it, Dom. Don’t make me cry. It’s perfectly bad for my image. Besides, she obviously likes you.”
“Are you saying that because I’m your best friend?”
“Duh. I am Scott Orson. I know things. Girls are my specialization aside from majoring in music.”
I rolled my eyes at him.
“You poor boy, you clearly don’t have much experience on girls.” He says with a tsk. “If Heaven builds too many walls, build a bridge.”
I think that’s my cue. A light bulb just lit on top of my head. I think for the first time, Scott has made sense. If Heaven builds too many walls, then I can build a bridge.
People build too many walls, a rampart to protect themselves from the things that they fear most. That reminds me of an anime I’ve watched. It’s called Attack on Titan. The people build very high walls to protect themselves from the Titans that live outside their city. I think the people grew accustomed and dependent on the strength of their walls that when a bigger Titan came and destroyed it, they were not prepared. I don’t want to make a spoiler out of it because the scenes were pretty pulp fiction. But the point is: the walls had enclosed them too much. The walls that supposed to be the shield of humanity had them locked up for danger and death.
Moral lesson? If people build walls, then build bridges to reach them. In real life, we build too many walls and not enough bridges.
I need to build a bridge to reach Heaven.
***
I was on my way home when I saw her walking alone. So I booked the courage in my system and I machine-rized my knees to move and approach her. She looks up and sees me. That awkward stage in a friendship when you’ve talked to them a few times but you don’t know if you can be an asshole to them yet. If she’s in the awkward stage of talking to me after that little stunt I’ve played earlier, she didn’t let it show.
“Hi,” she tells her shoes.
I turn to her and she’s looking at me. “Hi—h—hi me?” I point at myself. Her eyebrows rise in amusement and she nods.
“Hi.”
“Are you going to ask me out again?”
“And have you refuse me again?” I huffed. “Yeah.”
She glances at me and smiles.
“Sixth sich sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick.” I start to say and her eyebrows meet.
“What?”
“Sixth sich sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick. That’s what I’m going to say.” I alibi.
“What does that mean?”
“According to Guinness it’s the world’s hardest tongue twister.”
She snorts. “And you have a talent for twisting your tongue for it.”
I smirk at her. “Try and try. For all I know you have a talent for saying no too.”
Her smile disappears and she bites at her lower lip. “Why do you keep on asking me out when you know I’m gonna turn you down?”
“I’m an optimist. I believe in all good things. I believe that one of these days you might actually say yes.”
She smiles to herself. “I wish you didn’t have to say that.”
“Why? Were you tempted to say yes?”
“Almost. But not quite.”
“If you can just open that door to your heart and let me in.”
She steps away from me. “I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve already locked the door and I threw away the key.”
“I’ll use the window then.”
She sighs and starts to walk away. I follow her.
“You know, people walk away because it’s easier than to fight for what they really want.”
She turns to me. “Well, I won’t let myself get attached to anything I can lose.”
My eyebrows met in confusion. “Then I guess I should prepare for severe impact to the heart.”
“Trust me; it’s much safer not to feel.”
“Can I walk you home?”
She snorts. “Like the whole world could stop you.”
We started walking together.
“Anna,”
“Hmm?”
“I think it’s a bit too late.”
She blinks in question to me. But I think she already know what I mean.
“Yeah. I think it is.”500Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4DOsfKOwsb
