CHAPTER IV: BRIDGE AT THE TOWN

Back when we first moved in, there was a bridge a few blocks away from our home. When you go there, you will see a perfect view of the sunset, and its reflection from the river. The day came where bridge was built completely and available for the public use, from little children to adults, everyone loved to go there. It was their favorite place, and they whispered secrets that only them, the river, and the sun could hear. And it continued for a while, the children from before were now adults, and the adults from before passed away. But the genuine love and care they had for the bridge remained. As the sun rose, many vehicles passed the bridge. And as the sun set, people went to the bridge to talk, laugh, and enjoy.

Sadly, people seem to forget that happiness was merely a part of what they would inevitably come across with.

Everyone had different stories about 'the incident'. Some say it was a group of teenage friends, and others say that it was a couple on the verge of breaking up. But it all boils down to a fight, words shouted, punches thrown, and a body found dead the next day. At first, the people involved were the main culprit. Fingers were pointed and but the most caught in the brunt of it was the bridge itself. It was deemed to be 'too dangerous' for people to stay, and so what once was a place of relaxation and peace was now a fearsome destination. People gradually avoided it, and now almost no one decides to visit, too afraid of what would happen if they stay for too long.

No one except me.

Well, it was supposed to be only me… until she decided to plop down and give me unwanted company.

She is currently massaging her red forehead, and if we were in a cartoon, I would see a tick mark on the corner of her head. "You could just tell me that I'm too close cute boy, instead of headbutting my soul out of my body."

"I thought it would be effective for driving you off too, killing two birds with one stone." I huffed; irritation clear in my voice. Mine feels like it's on fire, never underestimate how firm a person's skull is. "Except that I ended up doing the complete opposite. Unfortunately."

The girl crossed her arms and pouted. "You're mean."

"And you're annoying."

There was no response, and for a while I thought she finally settled down for her own good. Or even better, leave me as I enjoy a peaceful scenery on my own.

"Woah! Look at the sunset!" She points at the sunset, and then downwards at the river. "And how the water is acting like a mirror for it! It's a shame that we're the only ones here... it's beautiful!"

I snorted, "I don't think that people would enjoy going to a bridge where a person died."

"Yeah— wait… really?"

I didn't really want to entertain her further, but chances are she might bother me more, so I have no choice but to answer. "A person was found dead at the bottom, and the blamed the bridge… so this is only used for transporting cars and such." Though the number of vehicles passing through are getting smaller and smaller each day.

"Oh, then it must have been hard for the people…"

I was a little baffled by her reaction. Usually they (read: Caleb and his long list of girlfriends) would blame them instead of feeling sorry. And it was completely reasonable, as they were the ones who accused a culprit that wasn't even investigated thoroughly. But she sat beside me on the edge of said bridge, a face filled with pity and sorrow.

So, I couldn't help but ask. "Why… do you feel bad for them?"

She answered just as quickly. "Because they had to let go."

Watching my expression, I must have been too obvious with my surprise, because she snickered. "It's just that… the people probably loved this, because I've only been here for a few minutes and I'm already thinking that it's beautiful… so what more for them who have stayed here for years? I'm sure that they've done a lot of things here, like singing, dancing, and having fun… so it must have been hard for them to stay away here."

"You see… letting go of something, whether small or big, it takes a lot of courage. If you feel too sad, you have to let go. Same with too much happiness, or anger, or any emotion for that matter. Even if it was based off a lie, it still hurts. Maybe deep inside, they still want to go here… but because of what happened, they couldn't. And among the long list of what people fear: objects, places, this very bridge itself…is also themselves. It's their own feelings that elicit both weak and strong emotions within them, such as anger, happiness, sadness, disgust, and fear. In this case, it's a mixture of all of them."

She glanced at me, "That's why I feel bad for the people."

"You…have a unique perspective on things…"

"I don't really like the unique perspective phrase…" She grinned, eyes crinkling slightly. I stared at her; my previous shock now doubled with her long explanation. "I mean, I don't think I'm the only one who thinks that way. It's just that mine slightly differs from the people you've talked to, just like how theirs differ from mine."

I stayed quiet and continued to watch the view in front of me, along with the light sounds emitted from the waves in the river. It seems that she did the same, occasionally letting out sighs of satisfaction, or the casual point of birds flying towards the sun.

Time passed that way, and now the sun is close to falling as darkness replaced it. I sigh and remove my dangling legs in between the two pole-like metal in the bridge. I jump back to the unused road with a slight 'thud', patting my clothes to remove any dust that might latch onto it. My parents would probably ask of my whereabouts if I rest here any longer.

"Going home, cute boy?"

I narrowed my eyes, "Will you stop calling me cute boy?"

"But I don't know your name?" She tilted her head, "What should I call you then?"

There are two choices that I could take: First is to ignore her and quietly walk home, and the second one is to wave goodbye as a polite gesture, but I still wouldn't tell her name, as it would be the last time that we would talk. Both are in favor of keeping my social circle with Caleb, sometimes letting his girlfriends visit if I could tolerate them (which is a possibility too little to happen). Moreover, she was still a complete mystery to me: her annoying smile, her gestures, and her way of talking.

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•���⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•

//

"Oh, then it must have been hard for the people…"

"Why… do you feel bad for them?"

"Because they had to let go."

\\

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅

I stopped in my tracks and I look back at her. She was sitting while observing the moon take over the sun. I clear my throat, catching her attention. Her eyes were slightly widened, as if she wasn't expecting this. Brown eyes meets blue, and I speak. "I'll tell you my name if we meet again. You can tell me your story and your name there too, if ever that happens. Goodbye."

When I faced forward again, I could hear muffled snickers and I scowled, my ears searing hot in embarrassment. Not even a minute went by, and I already regret responding to her.

"I'll hold on to that, cute boy!"

I bit back a smile.

Maybe I'll hold on to it, too.