Prompt: Write about what you think love is591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw20lxWFn6D
Maisy stumbles into the house, cheeks pink from cold and anger, fists curled like little puffed pastries.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuzLeIkLSTf
'I had a very, very, VERY terrible day today!' She proclaims loudly, taking off her thick jacket. Her elder brother, Peter, announces his arrival with heavy footsteps on the staircase.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkjkGBBKwke
'What's wrong, Maisy?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF7Vmhsun5k
'Just EVERYTHING!' The girl fumes. 'Miss Natalia was even meaner than usual today, and that's just the tip of the iceberg!' Beneath her outburst the girl applauds herself for using her newly learnt phrase. 'Danny said he didn't love me!' At this, she crosses her arms melodramatically with a little hmmph.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj7Hn2rAqfe
'Aw, Maisy, come here.' Peter takes his sister by the shoulders. 'Tell me what happened. Start with Miss Natalia.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFYwMzP6s0c
'Well, I was playing with the soccer ball and Ben kicked it over the fence. So I climbed over and ran to get the ball from across the road. Then when I came back, Miss Natalia was so very angry and said all kinds of silly things to me. And then she didn't let me play for the rest of lunch!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡopTDGCovxJ
'I see,' Peter says, with a smile to himself. 'And what about Danny? He said he didn't love you? Now why would something like that upset you, Maisy?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd0YNCVyyHN
The girl puffs her cheeks. 'Because I - love - him!' Peter laughs at her declaration. 'Don't laugh, Peter! I'm being quite serious!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtEY5obyBqO
'I wasn't laughing at you, Maisy.' He responds, conscious of her feelings.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf6EmnW3dc7
'Then what were you laughing at?' She demands.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz8PCNOSl1s
'I was laughing at...' A moment's thought. 'I was laughing at love.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJesjUCuxG
A crease appears in Maisy's soft and rounded forehead. 'What's so funny about love?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwE3CKa5NUK
'I'm not so sure, Maisy. Why don't you help me out?' Peter grins, not only beginning to enjoy himself with the conversation but also satisfied that he had distracted her from the day's events. 'Tell me what you think love is, hey?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNNvjEe0TR
'It's, it's, um.' She looks from side to side as if expecting an answer to be floating out of reach in the room. 'Well. It's when you like someone very much!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYQp9ry8M2D
'That's a start. So you said you love Danny. Is that because you like him a lot?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNqJtOR9e6q
Maisy erects her body to inject confidence into her voice. 'I do like him very much!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2gK5o8Ew0a
'Okay. Why do you like him?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3nbJURtGjJ
'Well, everybody likes him. And he's very clever. He beats me in all of Miss Natalia's tests. And he's good at soccer. And he makes funny jokes.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzUtPsx7Cn
'Hey, I make funny jokes, I'm good at soccer, I'm clever and everybody likes me...' Peter purposefully puts a playfulness in his tone to show his sister that he isn't being serious.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PyZ46r77z
'Don't be silly. You're different! You're my brother, and besides, you're not good at soccer!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSg2WwFpMHf
'I guess you're right, I'm not very good, am I?' Memories of letting his sister win with a comical oh no I lost face just to see her smile. 'But anyway, what exactly did Danny say to you?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHHc8VnEwvI
'Well I put a letter into his bag. And I wrote it in running writing! With curls and everything! It said, To Danny, I love you like trees love the sun. From Maisy.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYfUkK0gBb
'That's nice.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIW5tLVj7If
'Which is what he said, too! He said the letter was very nice but then he said that he didn't love me back! I didn't know what to do then because that never happens in movies so I couldn't tell what I was supposed to say. So I ran off.' 591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UUCwgdhrr
'I see. Well, you know, love isn't like you see it in movies. A lot of things aren't.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMeSsDIvXIF
'The what is it supposed to be? I liked Danny very much so I thought he would like me very much too! How else does love work?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC2rxURQm0P
'I'm not sure how to explain it, Maisy, but I'll say that one day you'll understand what Danny did.' Peter looks out the window at the snow topped roofs.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXttV5hI5c8
'Hey! That's not fair! I told you what I thought love was. Now you have to do the same!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOgY0NsXVTy
A few seconds pass in silence. 'Okay. Put your coat back on, I want to show you something outside.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuzSjvfjvr2
Maisy utters some mild protests but relents to his suggestion, as he takes her by the hand to their garden.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDlKMUQmnFj
'Do you see all the snow, Maisy?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ483b41ZhK0
'Yes. But what has that got to do with -'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmRapbw2426
'Shhh. Just watch the snowflakes fall.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJkVYO1XGn0
They stand on the path by the street, eyes mesmerised by the stars of white that danced from the skies to the ground, like leftover drops of heaven.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVF7Ysve65y
'Love... Love is like looking at these snowflakes.' Peter begins. 'Every snowflake is different, but every snowflake is beautiful. The snowflakes are like people.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLLUt9qyi1C
Maisy opens her mouth to interrupt but decides against distracting her brother from his story.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBS1C5YwVij
'And some of the snowflakes, you can catch on your tongue. It kind of burns, but it sparkles, too. That's the love you're talking about. Out of the thousands and thousands of snowflakes that fall you might only be able to catch a few. But even the ones that you just give a passing glance, that make it to the ground, you can see that they're pretty too, in their own way, and if you can understand that - you can love everyone. Sometimes it's hard to see, for some flakes, that they're worth loving. But even those, people like Miss Natalia -' Maisy giggles at the mention of her teacher. ' - when you really think about it, those people love you in their own way too.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl0aXkKnfUF
Maisy wraps her arms around her brother's waist as the late afternoon breeze begins to pick up, sending crystals swirling around their heads.591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIAdUxqJEPU
'You caught Danny's snowflake on your tongue, but he couldn't catch you. But he loved you in a different way, and that's why he said he liked your letter, why he told you so quickly.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4wCgnYJjQs
The girl bites her lip, cocks her head, and contemplates this notion for a few minutes. Eventually, she turns upwards confidingly to look at her brother, and announces: 'I don't get it.'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEDwoyosGO
Peter laughs again, but it's filled with such joy that Maisy can't help but laugh as well this time. 'You know, I don't get it either.' He says, hugging her tight. 'Maybe when we're older we'll both understand. But for now, how does getting back inside for a nice hot chocolate sound?'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMkAeVBTdbk
She smiles, immediately brightening. 'That sounds good!'591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6rbhQCopNQ
They turn around, back into the warmth and comfort of their home, with a love that burns a little but sparkles too, like the fire crackling under the mantel, the night filled with stories and smiles and songs, while outside the window snowflakes fall one by one. 591Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwFbSO1C42
