When I first saw you, I felt a rush of nostalgia. Memories fluttered in the corners of my mind, out of reach but within eyesight. Perhaps our paths had collided once before, in a different lifetime.
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Before I had even learned your name, I felt a connection to you. You reminded me of a story I had read once, one about plot twists and betrayals. The story also spoke of stars, love, and redemption. I wondered about you then, curious about what fate had planned for us.
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At first, you were only a daydream. You were unattainable, someone I could watch but could never approach. I knew you were here in this world, but you were ethereal in my eyes. This changed, however, when you first spoke to me. The illusion broke, and suddenly you were no longer a fantasy. You were here with me for the first time, for once not otherworldly. Simply just human.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAhBgh3f8DRA
I remember when I asked you if you believed in physiognomy. I expected you to crack a smile ocean wide and burst into fireworks of laughter. Instead, you fixed your gaze on me, your eyes holding a playful gleam in them. No, not playful. Childish. You answered that you might believe in it. You added that practices like physiognomy should be considered before being judged. 96Please respect copyright.PENANARIGggP0Ok7
Is this true, then, of practices that don’t hold a grain of logic in them? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAcvSqvSWqd9
Logic is irrelevant. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAk02z8QEC9q
Irrelevant, you say? How curious! You’re a strange one, challenging logic so easily.
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I admire you for it. You remind me of the stars, you know. You shine so brightly, so brilliantly, and yet you’re too far away for me to ever truly reach you.
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When you’re with me, I feel euphoric. Light sparks within me when our hands entwine. Yet, when you let go and leave, it flickers out. I am lonely without you, stuck in a world of monochrome where I stay stagnant. You are the sun, and I am just a moon. While you illuminate the galaxy, I am only a mere reflection of your light. I am nothing without you, and you are everything without me.
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If I were to be a physiognomist and compare your face to that of an animal’s, I would choose the face of a fawn. You have small ears and a long nose, both defining features on your face. A smatter of freckles covers your cheeks, painting a microcosmos upon your skin. Your eyes are like those of a doe, wide and pure. Almost too pure.
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You certainly share the personality of a fawn. You think everything is an oddity, treating each experience as if it’s your first. When I questioned why you were so carefree in such a cruel world, you grinned and told me that you wanted to live life to the fullest. You treat every breath as if it’s paradise, as if just being alive is enough to be happy. When I voiced this thought aloud, you stared at me with considerate eyes. Happiness lies in small things. If you try to grow up too soon, you’ll miss out on all the minor details.
96Please respect copyright.PENANADXS5rJCOkT
We’re sitting on your rooftop when I ask you something that I’ve been pondering for years.
96Please respect copyright.PENANA57aXC1ZAuz
Do you ever wonder about youth? 96Please respect copyright.PENANA4UubMBiykQ
Youth? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAkIZKf1Wld1
Do you ever wonder why youth is portrayed as something so beautiful? 96Please respect copyright.PENANA1npdKpBRgi
Perhaps when we’re younger there is a type of exhilaration when we experience things that fades as our innocence dies. Perhaps when we’re older, we look back and realize the most beautiful moments in our lives were in our youth. Maybe that’s why we yearn for that purity for the rest of our lives, chasing after it until the last echo of our hearts resounds. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAbj4n7VDTaz
Hey, promise me something. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAMPJ7Ls156g
What? 96Please respect copyright.PENANASjveIcjlcp
Promise you’ll always be by my side. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAljdwV5M37H
I promise. Let’s waste away our youth together.
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Raindrops started falling then, covering us in a layer of mist. You jumped up in delight, running around and trying to catch the rain in your palms. At that moment I finally understood what happiness was. Through you I felt free, my heart beating with child-like glee. After a few moments, you turned back to look at me. You beckoned me with your eyes, a silent dare hidden in your smile. I grinned, standing up to join you. We spent the rest of the day dancing on the rooftop, filling the sky with laughter. I didn’t notice your tears until afterward.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAT3rtWVNLOV
On a different day, we strolled through the beach, both of us barefooted. The waves lapped at our heels, our toes bathing in the silky texture of the sand. All of a sudden you sat down by the shoreline, pulling me down with you. A beat passed. Then you started to speak, your voice barely a whisper.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAZQEd7yNsjM
Do you ever wonder what it would be like to read a story that stopped mid-sentence?96Please respect copyright.PENANAoEfRSp5u8G
A story that doesn’t have an ending?96Please respect copyright.PENANAbY6WSSdW2B
Exactly. Wouldn’t that be intimidating? 96Please respect copyright.PENANATWV62wHD99
Would it be?
An incomplete sentence leaves too much room for error. The blank space after the last word breaks off is ominous. The unknown of what happens afterward is frightening. A writer should finish a story so that it is whole, and so that the reader receives the closure they desire.
A second went by before I responded.
I disagree. The blank space after the last word of an unfinished sentence is not empty. It’s filled with all the things left unsaid. When a writer cuts off a sentence, that leaves an expanse for you to interpret. What emotions still echo within your soul after the last word? What words are still left on the tip of your tongue? Each reader would build pillars out of the emptiness, constructing an ending only they could truly understand. That would be their closure. The unknown is not something to fear, but rather to challenge.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAm9pju0SwoU
You were staring at the horizon when I finished talking, the sunset painting your eyes shades of scarlet. Something that looked like contentment danced in them as you turned your head toward me. Our eyes interlocked and you smiled at me. We held each other’s gaze before you tore your head away. Your hand started to rummage through your pocket before you pulled out a forked bone.
96Please respect copyright.PENANABbR7wM8gGz
Check out this wishbone I bought. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAVwnOXK9d9e
Why did you get it? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAGbruos9ABm
I’ve always wanted to use one. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA4qkCSaYVkZ
Why am I not surprised? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAmWJaOKkLxi
As if you haven’t wanted to try to use one before. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAI75cLCQHK8
Okay, you caught me. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAiMZJY6dc3W
I knew it. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAKSGrDRTjaa
Yeah, yeah. Can we hurry up? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAT32hOKjre7
Okay, let’s break it together. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAfP5uVXpE6z
On three? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAbkqCaKt27d
One, two-
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The bone snapped. You held the bigger end. I watched as you closed your eyes, murmuring your wish under your breath. You looked beautiful in the dying light. Once you were done saying your wish, your eyes opened and you grinned at me.
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What was your wish? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAMPiC1DhlP9
I wished for an epiphany. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAxxRNgeMhON
An epiphany? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAQJ1rlPvvDG
Yes. That’s all I’m telling you. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAOPZGwSMamc
Why won’t you tell me anything else? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAV3h9plmK11
You’re not supposed to share your wish, otherwise, it won’t come true. 96Please respect copyright.PENANADU9j94eQPf
Is your wish worth the burden of a secret? Is it that important? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAVZcoc4z05H
It’s that selfish. Look, I promise I will tell you what it was when the time is right.
Okay.96Please respect copyright.PENANAmj0ZQrgBRH
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A beat. The silence between us was deafening. I wondered what you were holding back, but I didn’t dare attempt to find out. Hope was a dangerous thing to flirt with. After a few minutes, you spoke once more.
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Sunsets are so beautiful. I wish I could stay in this moment for eternity. I never want morning to come again. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA6MKauGl3Xz
You would be content with never witnessing another sunrise? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAdQZDuSSaqg
Yes. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAgU1XG5bBWt
Sunsets signify the end of a journey, you know. A type of death. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA0FBYLB7HsA
I know. 96Please respect copyright.PENANATAor3aOdLx
You’d choose that over the promise of rebirth the sunrise offers? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAfp2kxACLzD
Forget rebirth. All good things come to an end. Death is inevitable, but that doesn’t mean we should fear it. Through death, a wounded soul can finally heal. Death offers a type of peace that life can never give; a final closure to a beautiful piece of art. The moment before you die is the most beautiful moment you will have in your life. As you take your last breath, you will re-experience every memory you’ve made in your lifetime. It’s death that makes life so thrilling. Without death, our lives would lose their beauty. The concept of youth would no longer apply to us.
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I stared at you in wonder, startled by your words.
Wow, what a sophisticated statement. You should be a philosopher. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAtw2dMdQYHL
Pfft, as if. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAIhvZpLvWZ6
I’m serious! 96Please respect copyright.PENANAczjYfZoz7N
So am I. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAR8XJfnki4v
You have an interesting view on death, you know. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA0pW2dckxfS
Yeah, well I spend a lot of time thinking about it. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAwdIQNug2N4
See! That’s something a philosopher would do. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA5mljLeniwC
It’s something everyone should do. You haven’t truly lived until you’ve wasted enough time thinking about death. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAvnLeLFmwqr
Your inner Nietzsche is showing. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA8Rzxp7dvyJ
Hey, don’t compare me to Nietzsche! You know I don’t like his works. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAbUDaZ3pgH5
I know, that’s why I compared you to him. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAEa882X8BlK
That’s it, come here! 96Please respect copyright.PENANAbwJXDgBAXd
No thanks! Gotta go!
96Please respect copyright.PENANAw3Yz201Svk
I lept up and started to sprint across the shoreline. Your footsteps followed behind me, drawing closer as you gained speed. I whooped at the sky, the sound echoing across the beach. The wind blew past me, whipping my hair out of my face. I almost felt like I was flying, the exhilaration of running taking me on a high of euphoria. My feet splashed against the bank of the seashore, causing me to be showered in droplets of water. You caught up to me after a few seconds, your outstretched hand catching mine. I whirled around, my eyes meeting yours. You looked heavenly, the traces of laughter etched into the corners of your eyes. I pulled you in close to me, your body colliding with mine. The force of the impact sent the both of us spiraling, our arms wrapping around each other as we twirled around. Our laughter filled the vast emptiness of the beach, the colors of the sunset blurring behind us.
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After a few minutes, we stumbled down onto the beach, neither of us letting go of each other’s hand. My head laid next to yours, our bodies parallel to each other. Together we watched the sunset bleed into twilight. After a minute, I glanced at you. You turned your head toward me at the same moment. Our eyes met. Your eyes reflected the constellations, holding a thousand stars in their depths. The rising moon bathed you in shades of silver, your skin turning luminescent. My breath left me as I stared at you, starstruck. You looked back at me, your smile fond. I was about to speak when you broke out into a yawn.
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I think I’m going to fall asleep. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAzIMRANe8zv
Go ahead, I’ll wake you up if anything happens. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAzqorIe9FGk
Okay, good night. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAVhca8r2kYf
Sweet dreams.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAZNmIdZVPvr
You closed your eyes, your hand slackening in mine. I stared at the moon as I listened to your breaths even out. After a few minutes, my eyes darted over to you. Your expression was peaceful as you slumbered. I reached my hand out and brushed a strand of hair out of your face. Once I was certain you were asleep, I whispered a confession I had been too afraid to utter out loud before.
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I love you…
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The soft call of an owl was the only answer.
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Over the next few weeks, my love for you blossomed. Every moment we could spare, we spent together. Our footsteps covered the streets of our town, leaving behind memories we created.
Every time we were together, my feelings grew. Eventually, my love for you flowered into a rose, its scarlet petals flourishing. I knew it was time.
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You had called me the night before, telling me to meet you at the tree we liked to eat picnics at. I raced there the next day, bearing my heart on my sleeve. I was ready to risk it all if it meant we could be together. You were there when I arrived, your legs dangling off one of the tree branches. Behind you lay the ocean, vast and endless. You turned toward me, our eyes interlocking.
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Hey. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAoxIKwPBHrh
Hey. Why did you ask to meet up today? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAf4upNxZRLQ
I needed to tell you something. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAl9OsUzwDKX
Okay, go ahead. 96Please respect copyright.PENANABs1twKeBgw
I love you.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAmXQjHKBniX
I stood there in disbelief, my heart skipping a beat.
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You love me? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAq1uIJDZ8G5
Yes. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA64GYMq4Zju
Romantically? 96Please respect copyright.PENANA6gpQl3H1Jm
Yes.
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My heart burst with joy, and I laughed out of pure relief.
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I love you too.
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You grinned, jumping down from the tree. I started walking towards you, and soon we were embracing each other. Your arms felt warm and comforting, and I melted into them.
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I know. I heard you whisper your confession on the beach. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAFgkNAtn4dp
You did?! 96Please respect copyright.PENANAUmoPgCc9W8
Yeah. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAAGSTGSnYDF
Oh. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAlfR6Vwbkq3
It's okay, I found it endearing. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAmKUdKYimp7
Shut up. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAhed4AkTEg5
Ha, okay. Oh, and I guess I should tell you what my wish was. I almost forgot about that. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAcEy1faN3LE
What was it? 96Please respect copyright.PENANAFDWMccLMWK
I wished you would realize that you loved me back. 96Please respect copyright.PENANAqQig9UKLxg
Well, wish granted. 96Please respect copyright.PENANA2EUBRkzZoy
Yeah, I should use wishbones more often.
96Please respect copyright.PENANAYqo0UBvU4G
I shoved you playfully, and you burst into a peal of laughter. Emotions were flooding my senses, a mix of contentment and euphoria filling my heart. Everything felt too much and yet too little at the same time. I grasped your hand, ready to leap into the unknown.96Please respect copyright.PENANAfRjv3xIcGy