"Damn, it's getting hot out here. Where the heck is she?" Asked Anton who was waiting under sweltering heat with the scorching sun over his head. After 30 minutes sitting on the park bench, he started to get tired of looking at people passing by and having fun without him.
"Boo." Someone whispered in his ear.
Anton was surprised by a girl very dear to him. Her name is Rachel, someone who he has known for the longest time. Tonight, she’ll be moving out of this town. On a promise that they had made prior, she asked Anton to accompany her last day here.
"Did you wait long?" She gleefully asked.
"What do you think?" Anton joked curtly.
"Yeah, my bad. Want me to get some water for you?"
"Nah, I’m good." Anton answered while fanning himself with a large leaf.
"Hmmm, if you say so. Anyways, where are we going after this?”
"Well you're the one who invited me."
"Then how about the mall? We haven't been there in ages."
"Ain’t that a bit too… boring?" Anton thought.
"Eh, beats drying myself like jerky out here."
"Roger that, let's get moving." Anton ended while getting up from the bench.
The mall they were going to was not too far from the park, so Anton chose for them to walk there. Besides that, Anton wanted to enjoy the best view of the town that they could, as another fun sight for them to remember. During the stroll, Anton remembered the memories that they shared here. They’ve known each other for forever now and have probably explored every nook and cranny of this dainty town, but it never occurred to him that Rachel would even leave this town. Remembering that, he got all bummed out.
Arriving at the nearest mall, they wandered into various shops and facilities. Trying on clothes and makeup at boutiques, looking at collectibles at the toy stores, challenging themselves to VR games, they did all sorts of things. Suddenly, a novelty store at the end of a deserted alley caught Rachel’s attention. It seemed that the other shops were closed there that day, leaving only the flickering lights of the novelty store. Impulsively, she rushed straight to the shop, leaving Anton confused for a brief moment.
The store’s lineup was varied and eclectic. It had things ranging from tacky home décor to useless knick-knacks, you name it. However, her eyes were immediately glued to a picture frame, the kind you’d display on a desk. Behind its edges tangled in vines and the carvings on each of its ends, there was an eye-catching simplicity to it. She took it from the shelf, and went to the cashier to go pay for it. Satisfied, Rachel stored the newspaper-wrapped frame into her tote bag.
After that, Rachel dragged Anton to the arcade. It has also been quite a while since they visited one, so they chose to waste their money on every game and machine that the establishment had to offer. Everything from racing games, DDR, air hockey, to zombie shooters, they tried it all. One highlight in their arcade escapade was the bowling machine, where Anton scored 3 strikes in a row, blowing Rachel out of the water. While playing, Anton stole a glance at Rachel's bubbly face, comparing it to himself who was all gloomy ever since they met at the park earlier. Even so, he still tried his best to savour this joyous moment, because he knew it might as well be his last moments with her.
While looking around for more games that they haven't played with, Anton saw Rachel fixing her attention to a cat plushy sitting adorably in the claw machine. Seeing her wanting it so badly, Anton volunteered. He thought it might be good idea as a parting souvenir for her. He gave it his all, using all kinds of techniques and moves. But in the end, due to his fruitless efforts, he finally gave up. Even so, Rachel appreciated his efforts and was still smiling from ear-to-ear.
"It's getting late, let's go back to the park."
"Great idea, I'm getting worn out just standing here." Anton answered, annoyed.
"Haha. Are you still hung up on that? Maybe the kitty didn’t wanna leave.” Rachel said while patting his back.
Flustered for no reason, Anton looked away without a reply.
“Y’know, how about we go to a photo booth first? We've never had our picture taken there before." Rachel asked.
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Anton sighed as he ruffled her hair with a smirk.
"Alrighty then, just this once. Show me the way."
-o0o-
They arrived back at the park at 7:00 pm, while Rachel's plane was due to depart at 9.30. She then decided to order an Ub*r, avoiding the long waits of public transports. While waiting to be picked up, the two of them relaxed for a while. Sitting themselves on the bench where they met earlier.
"Today was pretty fun don’t you think?" Rachel said while looking at Anton.
Not knowing what to say, Anton only nodded.
“Oh yeah, I almost forgot...”
Rachel took out the gift along with the photo from her bag, and handed it to Anton. Without a word, he accepted the gift.
"Be careful with that, you know those are quite pricey."
"It’ll be fine, it's safe with me." Said Anton while staring at gift wrapping.
"Promise?"
He replied with a nod.
Rachel's phone rang, indicating that the driver’s nearby.
"Hey, look at me."
Their eyes finally met, Anton was tearing up.
"Don't be sad. When I get there, I'll definitely let you know. Just wait for my call."
Anton became silent as Rachel wiped his tears and gave him a hug.
"Thanks a bunch for today. I want you to take good care of yourself alright. Say hi to your family for me."
Anton nodded as he tightly returned her hug.
"Wherever and whenever we are, we’ll see each other again somehow."
"..."
"I guess I’ll be going now."
Rachel let go of her hug, then walked herself back while waving her hand.
"Buhbyeee! Don't cry, you'll miss me even more if you do!"
Not wanting to part ways, Anton reached his hands towards her.
"Rach’, I-"
His words were cut short.
Anton's vision started to blur. All of a sudden, it turned pitch black. An error screen appeared in front of him, there was a glitch with the application he was using. Anton took off his VR headset and then placed it next to the picture frame on his desk. Wiping his eyes, he turned off the computer that was still on. Without fail, he would always shed tears every time he returned to the past. Even though he himself understood that it was all just a simulation.
Anton's phone lit up, showing a pop-up that said "Rachel's Birthday". He quietly sat there, glancing at the reminder. Suddenly, a knock on the door broke the silence.
"Hey, hurry it up will ya. They’re about to leave." Said a girl behind the door.
"Yeah, hold up. I'm still getting changed." Anton replied.
Anton got up and hurriedly took off his scruffy tee, replacing it with a black button-down shirt that was hanging behind the door.
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Not long after takeoff, the plane Rachel was in crashed. At that time, Anton knew nothing about it. He just went about his day as usual, all while waiting for Rachel to call him. The word he finally did get was not through her cheerful voice, but through news coverage of a commercial airline’s crash. 7 days later, coinciding with Rachel's birthday, the wreckage of the plane and the bodies of its passengers were found at the foot of a mountain. Among the bodies, Rachel and her family were identified. The news hit Anton hard. He ended up locking himself in his room for weeks. Eventually, when he finally gathered the guts to come out, he was still drowning in his sorrow. The spark of joy and zest within him already faded, as if his world crashed along with that airplane.
A dreadful year passed by like it was nothing for Anton. One day, while he was dragging his feet across the room, he accidentally dropped the picture frame given to him by Rachel. It resulted in a large crack in the middle of the photo. Seeing the consequences of his carelessness, Anton broke down. What's left of her was blemished. He ran straight to his room, and curled himself up in bed. He then put on his earphones and proceeded to put on his favourite playlist. While tuning himself out from the world, he remembered the times he shared with Rachel. Since he was little, he would always try his best to get back on his feet every time something bad happened to him, at least in front of Rachel. But without her around, he lost the will to do just that. But it was during this moment of escape that he realized something, seeing him like this is something she probably wouldn’t want. She hated it when Anton became all mopey, and always tried her best to cheer her up, even if she herself was having a hard time as well. Anton felt pathetic, he had always known that grief would someday drag him down one way or another.
Realizing that drowning himself in sorrow will get him nowhere, he worked hard in letting go of the tragic past that kept latching onto him. Keeping only the fragments of happiness that they shared together. Step by step, he slowly rebuilds his normal life that he had before. He returned to his classes. To his parent’s joy, he also finally started talking to new people. The more people came into his life, the more support that came with it as well. With that support, was the zest that he lost. It was this new enthusiasm within him that inspired Anton to create. He wanted to channel his distressing past into something entertaining. He wanted people to have fun. But at the same time, he wanted to help those who were mourning and struggling with grief. He didn’t want people to end up closing themselves off from society like he did. Anton, who already had a background in game development, was inspired by one of his colleagues to create a virtual reality game. He thought maybe, by sharing his stories to the world, other people could feel the pieces of happiness he once felt. The same ones that Rachel gave to him. Though from time to time, he might remember the sad days he had with her and the tragic fate that came along with it. But in the end, he finally found his own way to transform his grief into something worthwhile. Believing that Rachel might be up there, smiling at this little game dedicated to her.
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After sowing some flower petals, Anton inserts a copy of the photo they took that day into a small frame and places it on the grave.
"Wait for me alright, we'll see each other again someday."
[https://i.postimg.cc/ry1CYLqf/407479.jpg]