When the Lady Arlene asked me to take a letter to the Crown Prince of Darland, I thought it would be a simple task.

Granted, she did keep her apartment in the tallest tower of the castle on the highest peak in the land, and his father’s palace was at the base of the distant hills. What I hadn’t counted on was his immediate reply, which required an answer from her post-haste.

That was three days ago.

I spurred my horse - the fourth I had exhausted since this debacle began - to even greater speed. I had to get this latest dispatch to the Lady with all haste; the Prince was waiting anxiously on her reply to his new communique, which was safely tucked in my saddlebag. It read:

“I don’t know. What do YOU want to do after we meet for dinner?”

© 2018 - dustygrein

#flash #flashfiction #makemesmile #amwriting

*

I sit on my tree and stare at the sky, its rich blues flowing in my veins. I close my eyes and inhale deeply the sun, it’s warmth caressing my skin. I shift my head to the side and let the wind tickle my neck. A gentle touch, almost velvety and so pure. My long dark hair flows in all the directions, dancing on my cheekbones and playing against my lips.

I smile.

The world is still a wonder to me. Even after all the millenniums. After all this time.

I look up and stare at the sun, sipping through the moving leaves. My smile widens

as I hear the waves crashing against the rocks. I hear everything. All of the mankind, in one single breath and one single sigh. I close my eyes, feeling the subtle trembles of this world. The earth shaking under the tree. I think of the sharp rocks, surrounding this tree and the cliffs underneath it. I lean forward, my hands grabbing the old branches. My eyelids flutter and I let myself see my surroundings just like humans do.

It’s actually refreshing.

So mundane and wonderful.

As I lean forward I can see him. He’s here again. Every day, at the same time. One hour just for him in peace and quiet. Just him, the sea and the sound of nature. I watch as he takes his walk and as always I am mesmerized by his simple routine. I smile as he picks a long stick and draws pictures on the sand. Fine lines and smooth thoughts. I love the serenity that fills him and vibrates, not only from his gentle heart but also a very gentle mind. It’s unspoiled and honest. I like that. It fills me with hope for the world.

I let go of the branches and let myself fall from the tree. Landing on my tiptoes, lighter than a feather. I take slow steps, nearing the edge of the cliffs, my simple, white summer dress, flowing gently in the increasing wind. My bare feet touching the sharp rocks. I inhale again and make a decision. It’s time. I step over the edge and fall with joy, my wings spreading as I sore through the air. It’s still magical to me, the feel of the wind gusting through every single feather... I peak down like the bird nearby and laugh out loud. Oh, the joy. I land on the sand and my wings disappear, my hair falling into place. I take a couple of steps and join him, sitting down on the beach next to him.

Hello there, stranger. Having your walk?

He turns his head and smiles at me.

Yes, it relaxes me. Thank you for visiting me again. Your company means a lot to me.

It’s my pleasure. Is there something you want to tell me?

I had a dream today and I finally remembered it.

Then by all means, please share - I give him a reassuring smile and he nods.

I dreamed about closeness. The emotional one. The kind that you only get, when you feel safe with someone. When you trust that other person with your whole heart.

And is that important to you? - I ask gently, already knowing the answer but wanting to hear the sound of his voice when he realizes it for himself.

Yes. I need that sense of complete trust, that opens all doors and makes the walls disappear. I don’t know if that’s realistic or not... or if it even sounds intense to you.

It does, continue.

Alright... and it is a very intense thing to me. I didn’t experience anything like this before. I still don’t know if that’s a realistic thing to want, but I think there might be a chance. Do you think that that’s possible?

No. I know that it is. And now, it is also possible for you. It always was.

But how can you be sure? - He asks calmly. Staring at me with those beautiful eyes that reminds me of the sky than I have fallen from.

Because I already lived through all the time that exists. I have seen and felt everything... yet I never get bored with it. The world is a beautiful place and your heart will eventually open to its full potential.

I take his hand and squeeze it gently. He smiles at me, finally hopeful. I let my wings open and fall on the sand. Wrapping us in warmth and shielding his body from the cold wind.

He touches the delicate feathers and looks at them with pure joy. He isn’t even surprised, just takes everything that I give him. His eyes wander to mine and he nods again.

I knew there was something about you. I just didn’t know what it was. Thank you for talking to me. It really helped. And whatever happens now, I know I will make it. With you or without you in my life. Because you made me realize, that there is more to me. That I can open up to people. That I can see through my walls.

I stand up, hide my wings and help him get up, by taking his hand.

So how about that walk, stranger?

It would be my pleasure...

..................................................................................................................

Written for a friend who dreams of things that in the end, we all want.

and a song that followed me through

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yYV9-KoSUM

Remember when we were younger, when we thought we were immortal? That we could fly? That we'd stay kids forever? How, when our parents told us that life wasn't "all fun and games" we couldn't believe it?

I do.

And I remember how when the harsh realities of high school and the disapointments of life closed in around us...it was you who lightened the load. You could make anyone laugh, and, in return, life smiled down on you.

You were the link that held my weakened chain together, my lifesaver in deep waters. I can't honestly say where I'd be if it weren't for you. I don't think you ever realized the impact you had on me, our schoolmates, our teachers...even the world.

Please don't be upset, but when they close the lid to your coffin, when they lower you into the hole...I won't be watching. I can't bear to see your eyes closed and your mouth sewn shut with invisible thread in an unsmiling line. I don't want my last memory of you to be that casket disappearing from my sight.

I want it to be of you, doing what you did best--making me smile.

I promise it will get better

I promise all that is happening now will go away

I promise you will find someone someday who will love every part of you

I would give you the world if I could

You need to know you are worth every second we spend together

You need to know you deserve to get everything you have ever wanted

You need to know that someday, the pain will go away

Someday, they will realize how much they need you

You are absolutely amazing

Stop letting them make you think otherwise

I have never met anyone as funny or nice or as easy to be around as you

I am proud to call you my friend

I promise they are just jealous of your greatness

They could never be like you

You are special

You are unique

And no matter what is forced into your head, those are the best things you can be

So smile through it all

Tomorrow will be better

And if it isn’t

If you still feel broken and alone this time tomorrow,

I will still be there

I’m not going anywhere

I promise I will stay by your side no matter what

I will not let you go through this by yourself

We don’t need them

They aren’t worth all the tears you’ve shed

All we need is each other

Because you are my best friend

And I care about you more than anyone else ever will

So stay with me

Dry your eyes

Live another day

I know you won’t regret it

Remember that I love you

It’s going to be okay

He reminded you of a mayfly, always living for the moment, as though it could all fade away in the blink of an eye. You were not quite so carefree, but whenever he looked at you with those glinting, mischievous eyes, you questioned whether anything in the world could ever be so right. Your story could have lasted ten seconds, minutes, months, or years, but you can only describe them as moments.

Ten. He's leading you somewhere. You feel the beauty of the nature surrounding you, the leaves crunching under your foot, the birds chirping, perched up in the tall trees. You hike uphill; he gets there before you do, but turns around and grins at you, outstreching his hand. You smile, take it, and pull yourself up. You open your mouth to say something, but immediately forget what it was. The world never ceases to amaze you, and especially not now; the hills are covered in flowers of red, orange, yellow, and pink, becoming almost iridescent under the sun's golden rays. You can feel his eyes trained on you, and your smile only broadens as you gaze back at him and lean in.

Nine. All you see is purple, purple, purple. It surrounds you, as though coming towards you in silky waves. You cheer along with everyone else, then stand and throw your cap in the air, not caring where it lands, but looking around to find him. He's clapping along, but he only has eyes for you, and you can feel your lips turn up into a proud grin. He mouths those three words, and you feel your eyes filling with tears as you mouth them back.

Eight. You never now how he finds these places, these secluded parts of the world that only he seems to be aware of. You lie next to him in a meadow of daisies, closing your eyes as the sun beams down on your face, and opening them to see him twirling a lock of your crimson hair around his finger lazily. He is made of smiles and laughs and bold declarations; he reminds you of fire and wind and the ocean. You rest your hand on his shoulder, and he looks down at you with that charming grin of his. You grin back, lay your head on his chest again, and close your eyes. All you can think is, perfect.

Seven. You work tirelessly and compliantly, loving every second of it. He supports you, he always has, and he works just as hard. Sometimes he comes home only minutes before you need to wake up, and sometimes you arrive just as he's about to sleep. Your schedules conflict, but he assures you that it's the little moments that matter. You spend every spare minute you can with one another, but it's not enough, at least not for you. He always says that one moment can last a lifetime, but all you can think is that you miss him.

Six. He returns after being gone for two whole days, and that is when you let it out. You can't stand it, you know he has to work, but you need him, and can't he understand that? He comforts you and murmurs apologies and promises that it won't be like this forever, and finally, you know it's the truth, because he lives for the moment, and this one is certainly not pleasant. You exhale deeply, sigh, and nod. Then, without another word, you crawl back under your covers. As you feel the bed dip under his weight, all you can think is that it wasn't supposed to be like this.

Five. You try harder, both of you, to prevail under the circumstances. You visit his office and are greeted by his welcoming lips. He brings you pastries from your favorite bakery, and you eat them together, enjoying each other's company, even if only for thirty minutes. He lives for the moment, and he makes the smallest ones last forever. You take a bite out of your pastry, and all you can think is, you're making it work. That's enough to put you at ease.

Four. You visit your mother for an afternoon tea every Sunday, and every Sunday, as you take a sip from your steaming cup of tea, she does the same routine. She insists that he is perfect, and you are perfect, and together, you practically ooze with perfection. You smile and agree; he is perfect, and together, you feel perfect. She asks if you are happy, if you feel right, and you can only beam and nod. You take another sip of your tea, disregarding the burning heat on your tongue, and all you can think is that this is what happiness must feel like.

Three. He brings you to dinner with his parents. You've met them before, but it always gives you a bit of a shock to see how closely he resembles them. You notice little fragments of him in them; his father's strong jaw, his mother's bright eyes, the tall height that both of them had passed down. They treat you like their own daughter, and his mother's knowing gaze does not go unnoticed by you. You look at him, and he blushes slightly, shooting a pointed look toward his mother. His father chuckles, and all you can think is, home.

Two. You stand on a rooftop, looking down at the city below you, the streetlights twinkling like stars. He hugs you from behind and you lean into him slightly before pulling away and turning around. He takes something from his coat pocket, and before you even realize what he's doing, he gets down on one knee and says those four words, the ones you knew only he was ever meant to say. You laugh and nod, and as he slides the ring on your finger, all you can think is that no moment has ever been more eternal than this one.

One. You return to that forest trail, the one you hiked with him eternities earlier. A small hand curls around yours, and you look at your daughter, smile at her, and help her up to the edge of the cliff. You see her eyes become alight with childlike wonder, and she lets go of your hand, stepping forward, completely entranced. You feel another hand in yours, intertwining your fingers, but you don't need to turn around to know who it is. You lean into him, feeling your lips curve up, and all you can think is, life is beautiful.

He reminded you of a mayfly, always living for the moment, as though it could fade away in ten seconds. You could not help but succumb to his carefree, spontaneous lifestyle, because whenever you looked into those millenia-old, gleaming eyes, you knew without a doubt, that nothing in the world could ever be as right as this mayfly. Life goes on. Moments last. You endure, together.

A boy strumming a guitar and singing to someone he loves.

A woman laughing with her husband over video call.

A girl and her best friend getting coffee and chatting.

A little boy learning to ride a bike for the first time.

A group of girls having a heated pillow fight.

A mother singing happily to her little baby in her arms.

A sister smiling into her phone calling her college-aged brother.

A father going on a walk with his daughter in the autumn and collecting leaves.

A brother standing up for his sister on the playground.

A teacher helping a student find their confidence.

A teen texting a friend and laughing so loud the people in the coffee shop stare.

A student taking a test and feeling confident afterward that they aced it.

A person hugging a stranger when they see them crying.

A toddler holding out their hand to a stranger when they see they've fallen.

A baby getting kisses from someone's dog who happens to be very friendly.

A person dancing in public with headphones on and not giving a damn.

A lover writing a letter to their partner whose long-distance relationship is going strong.

A gay person feeling welcomed into their church after they've come out.

A mean girl realizing she should have been nicer to the other girls.

A girl loving other girls and boys.

A boy loving other boys and girls.

A person loving other people.

Everyone loving each other.

Because happiness comes from out hearts.

And without love, we are not happy.

So love with everything you have.

Especially now that the world is so full of hatred.

And we will be happy enough to smile.

On an ordinary day in May, I was delivering the mail to Dr. Kaplan, Endocrinologist, 5555 Nesconset Hwy.  As I picked up his outgoing mail, I also picked up my new best friend.

I'd seen her day after day and we had never said more than "Hi" as I dropped the mail in the designated receptacle, until the day I walked in and she was shedding tears all over her reception desk.

"What's wrong?" I asked.  Only a cold fish wouldn't have asked.  Thinking she would blow me off and say "nothing" wiping her tears, I was wrong.  She didn't.

"My boyfriend dumped me and told me to move out of his apartment.  I'm moving in with my grandmother."

Having been recently divorced and struggling with bouts of depression myself, most weekends when my kids were with their Dad I typically didn't even get out of my favorite spaghetti stained sweats, let alone my driveway.  After a work week filled with bouts of insomnia, sleep mattered more than my lack of a social life.  Looking upon another desperate soul I recognized her vulnerability and swooped in like a hawk on prey and boldly asked her, "Do you want to meet for coffee after work and talk about it?"

"Okay." She replied somewhat cautiously with a reluctant look in her eyes. Her desperation didn't turn me off.  It rather intrigued me.

Halfway through our cup of coffee, we were both hooked on our budding friendship in spite of the fact that I was ten years older and a single parent to teenagers. I'd experienced love at first sight and head over heals before with the opposite sex, but does this happen with platonic friends?

Nicknames may seem more appropriate in grammar school but we had no shame in calling each other by our given pet name that we came up with at one of our many happy hour outings.  She was my Sashi and I was her Bashi.  She could talk me into most anything, dragging me to places I'd never been.  When at one joint I experienced my first shot ever; Jagermeister.  We'd dance till our feet hurt, ocassioanally giving out our number to guys; usually a bogus number.  We never left anyplace without each other and we laughed on our ride home about the evening's shenanigans.  

We cooked together at my house with my kids, helping them with their homework, and afterwards we'd watch a mindless TV show;  Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, Blossom, Full House..., and my house was full of laughter and love.  Sleep came easy; I started exercising and felt and looked better than I had in years.

After two years of our together fun, my Sashi said out of the blue, "I'm such a loser.  I'm 27 years old, living in my grandmother's house with no prospects, working in a dead end job.  I'm going back to school."

It was the first time I heard her truly sound down in the dumps since the day we met.  It was then I realized I had never heard her complain about her circumstances much at all. She had given so much of herself to me, more then I realized I needed; so much laughter, so many smiles.

"Going back to school is a fantastic idea! Let's go out to celebrate."

I took hold of the evening's event reins.  

"Where are we going?" She asked.

"Leave the details up to me." I replied.  "Go pretty yourself up and meet me in my car."

When she got in the car I announced, "I'm not going to blindfold you, but I am going to give you instructions. This is what we are going to do. Tonight you are not Sashi and I am not Bashi.  Think of who you want to be.  Change everything; your profession; your history;  even your name. Let's improv and see where it takes us." 

We had little time to plan, so we meandered our way through the evening improvisationally, I as Melinda an anesthesiologist, she as Vivian a trial lawyer.  We navigated through the crowd at the club, Heffrons, each as an alter ego, side by side, pulling off this rouse to perfection and we left laughing out loud while recounting our performance all the way home.

The following semester my Sashi did go back to school.  She then landed a dream job and latter that year around the same time, both of us met our husbands to be.

Fast forward decades, she's now a happily married Mom of teenagers and I'm retired, but every now and then we make a Sashi and Bashi date, tearing it up as best we can one more time as happily ever after smiling old besties.