'Why am I doing this…'
I asked myself as I sat on a bench at a small park not so far from my house. The trees here were thick and old, their branches sprouting out from all directions, intersecting and tangling with each other. Leaves rustled in the summer evening's breeze, and the combined noise sounded like a whisper of an old witch.
I had been here before, many times, not by my choice, and certainly not to have a good time.
Although SHE always seemed to have a good time whenever she brought me here.
It's been a year since I left high school. I was free. Finally free.
I didn't have to face the things that I had to put up with every day.
I didn't have to see people that made my life miserable.
Yet, here I was. Waiting patiently for the master to arrive, like a good dog that's been summoned.
"Hey, Bree!"
My heart stopped when I heard Abigail's voice.
That harmless cheerfulness, the positive vibe that oozed from it.
Her voice dripped with joy. Infectious like poison.
"Hi…"
I got up from the bench and welcomed her arrival.
"I'm so glad you turned up!"
She said, giving me a hug. She smelled nice—different today, but still like Abigail.
She held on to me a little longer than I was comfortable with. Not that I was comfortable with it in the first place.
Nevertheless, I felt my guard lowering as she gestured for me to sit down again.
So I did.
"How have you been?" She asked.
"I've been okay."
She just responded with an mm-hm, placed her palm on my thigh, and looked into my eyes, holding my gaze.
She wasn't letting me go till I spoke more.
"How about you?"
Asking her about her life was probably better than talking about my life.
"Things have been so stressful and hectic at the college. I'm glad I came home for the summer break."
Shit… she's going to be here for the entire summer.
"Don't get me wrong, though. I also had a lot of fun. I've made some great friends and met a lot of cool people. Did some really wild stuff too, if you know what I mean, hehe."
She giggled. I didn't know what she meant.
"Your grades weren't that horrible back in school. How come you didn't go to college?" She asked.
"I… couldn't get a scholarship."
"Aw—" she said, looking at me sympathetically, adding "it sucks to be poor, doesn't it?"
"It does."
"But you know what?"
I shook my head, biting my lip.
"You are still so cute."
With that, she brought her mouth to my left ear, and gave it a gentle and playful nibble.
"Pl… please don't do that."
"Haha! And you are still so shy."
I looked away. In a distance, I saw a child walking by holding their mother's hand.
Lucky you.
"But hey, I have been meaning to say," Abigail held my chin to turn my head, making me face her again, and continued, "I'm sorry about before."
I said nothing.
"I feel like sometimes I… and some of my friends… haven't been very kind to you."
Sometimes? Not very 'kind'?
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not asking you to forgive me. But I just… wanted to get it out of my system, you know?"
Despite my best effort, I could feel my eyes slowly welling up with tears.
"Can we be friends again?" She asked, gently squeezing my thigh with her hand.
A small tear fell from my eye, and that's when Senne's voice boomed in my head.
:I bet you are having a good time while I'm all alone here.:
I shook my head as Abigail hugged me tight.
:I know you can hear me. Are you going to miss the stream tonight? Is it that fun outside?:
"No."
I pushed Abigail away and shot up from the bench.
"What's wrong?" She asked, incredulously.
"I have to go."
"Go where?"
"There are people waiting for me."
"People? Who? Where?"
"You don't know them."
Abigail got up, crossed her arms before her chest, and leaned forward.
"Heh-you made some new friends?"
"Ye—yes."
"What are their names?"
"BigDi—"
I stopped myself in the middle.
"What was that?"
My phone in my hand buzzed with a notification, which Abigail—ever so attentive—noticed too.
"Wow, you really have someone waiting for you, eh?"
"Yes."
"Can I see it?"
"What?"
"Can I please see the message?" She asked, with a mischievous grin.
"No."
"Keeping secrets from each other now, are we?"
"It's not like that."
She then broke into a short but distinct laugh.
"It's fine. You better hurry if they are messaging you."
"I will. Thanks."
With that, I turned and paced away from her. I couldn't hear her following me, but I heard the small 'ding' sound, which I recognized as tje sound of her phone starting to record video.
What for… why is she doing this to me?
Unable to do anything about it, though, I checked who sent me the message. It turned out this was a DM notification from the streaming app.
The sender was karuhi07.
Although I knew nobody could possibly take a peek at the message, I looked around, and unlocked the phone only after confirming that it was 'safe.'
'Hi, Bree. This is karuhi07. Your last stream with that lady was great. Was she your friend? Your sister? Or even a real ghost?
Anyway, please get her on your stream again. It was great content.
PS: Please tell her her voice is lovely too.'
People that I wanted to impress didn't see me for who I was.
People that I didn't want wanted me for who I was.
Life is cruel, and when you are lonely, even a short life like mine can feel too long.