Sunday, 20 January 2008

• Here and Now/Yubikiri Update #4

  My head is starting to ache a bit.  I feel like I've lost some creative steam in light of things that I've done and decided.  I also have plenty of story to write, but I always have trouble with what's next.  I'm a few dozen steps ahead.  Once I get to where I've planned though, it'll be smooth sailing, hopefully.  I have a new update now, either way.  Sorry for any mistakes you might encounter in this update.  I always write when it's late, when I'm not too focused.  Enjoy!
  

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  Hues of flamed orange mingled with vestiges of yellow left in the dusk sky. Trees were ablaze with their fall leaves, embers slowly drifting downward as a breeze uplifted the flames and, with the flames, hope, lifted just high enough to singe a heart as it came tumbling down.

  A month had passed and Tobias still had a hairbrush in his book bag everyday. Walking up to a person and returning a hairbrush was pretty hard in Tobias's mind. There was just so much that stood between them; her friends, the fact Tobias was still the “new student,” their lack of a friendship whatsoever, and, most separating of all, her probable image of him as a creepy pervert who likes to go near open windows to peek on girls singing. It wasn't on purpose, dammit.

  It was also a bit of a shame that in his time at school so far, Tobias had only made one friend, Cecile. Her appearance was misleading. She had a pale complexion and a slim frame, but was loud, straight-forward, and a bit frightening to Tobias. In the end though, she was rather nice and liked to talk, something Tobias had trouble doing for long stretches of time.

  Cecile liked to ask Tobias about what the city was like. He obliged to tell her, and she listened with eager attentiveness. Tobias, on the other hand, felt a pang of pain and loneliness every now and then when he mentioned what it was like before he moved. And just as Cecile asked Tobias about the city, Tobias asked her about what was popular around where they lived. Apparently, there was a downtown district somewhere that the students frequented. Tobias figured he'd go sometime. Life was getting boring.

  They had made it a habit to walk home together, with Tobias usually carrying Cecile's books, her absurdly heavy books. That afternoon, as the two were walking home, it finally hit Tobias to ask Cecile if she knew that girl who had so graciously thrown a projectile at him.

  “Oh, I think you're talking about Olivia,” she mused in thought, “She volunteers at the hospital. Yep, she's really popular and smart. Way out of your league too, if you're thinking about asking her out.”

  “That wasn't exactly why I asked,” Tobias sighed, “I have to return something to her and I don't-”

  “You stole something from her?” Cecile interrupted, “Jeez you're a creepy kleptomaniac? No wonder you can't make any friends.”

  “No,” he wondered why he could stand the abuse, “That isn't the case. She kind of threw a hairbrush at me.”

  “A hairbrush?” Cecile was quizzical, “That's weird. Why don't you hurry and give it back to her? She might think you're doing something creepy with it, like putting it in a shrine dedicated to her where you ritually burn loose strands of her hair you find.”

  “You have an odd imagination,” Tobias noted with a bothered expression, “I don't really know how to get to her, she's always with her friends and I don't know anyone except you really.”

  “You should just volunteer at the hospital like she does then!” Cecile was proud of her suggestion, “I can give you a form tomorrow at school!”

  “I guess that could work,” Tobias figured it was a way to not only return the brush, but to get to know her too. Not that he was interested in going out with her or anything. He didn't like her at all, honestly.

  “Okay, it's settled!” Cecile exclaimed as she clasped her hands together.

  “Wait, does that mean you volunteer at the hospital too?” Tobias asked a part of him dreading more time around Cecile, but also finding relief in it. The two of them rounded a corner, turning onto Cecile's block.

  “Oh, no,” her voice softened. She gazed down as they reached her front gate.

  “Then how do you-”

  “I'll see you tomorrow,” Cecile hurriedly snatched her books out of Tobias's arms, opened the gate, and left Tobias standing outside the gate, puzzled and dazed.

  The sunset burned an intense orange as it sunk down into the horizon, trying to hide from the world.

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