His shadow

Fiona was resting on the bench outside her parents’ place. She was enjoying the sunlight as it highlighted her blond hair. She was enjoying the warmth of the weather as she closed her eyes and thought of him, Adam, her one and only. She could see his ocean blue eyes and his messy brown hair. She was thinking of how good he looked today at school. How he passed by everyone just to tell her good morning, and how he managed to make her flush everyday just by being himself. She knew she was in love. She knew it ever since she was a child. After all, he was always there. He was there when she was 5 years old and felt shy when she was singing in a musical at school. He was there when she got good grades and encouraged her to work even better. He was there when she lost her way and he guided her to the right path. Adam has always been there; therefore, it was only natural that she would fall in love with him. It was only natural that she couldn’t think of anyone but him. It was only natural that she would see only him. But did he feel the same way? Despite all that he is, Adam has always been hard to figure out. You might think you understand him, or understand how he feels, but you’d be wrong. He’s like an ocean, you can see the surface, but there is a whole world hidden underneath. Fiona always pondered, would he ever feel the same way about her? Would he ever tell her? She sometimes would dream of him knocking on her window late at night or stoping her at school to tell her how he feels about her. She would imagine him telling her how he counts the minutes and seconds of everyday just to see her. He would tell here that it has always been her, just like it has always been him for her. He would make her his and he would be hers. “Fiona, lunch is ready,” her mother’s call wake her up for her daydream of the perfect romance. Despite being 17, Fiona couldn’t help it when she thought about Adam. She would imagine herself drawing a heart with their initials and the words “Forever and always”. She entered the house and she picked up her little sister Laila and gave her a kiss. Laila was 3 years old. She had the greenest eyes a child could have. They would shine beautifully in the dark and her smile showed the tiniest baby teeth that made her smile even cuter. Laila was like a cure for Fiona, whenever she felt sad about Adam, or whenever she felt lonely, all she had to do was play with Laila for a little bit and all would be good. Fiona sat on the table with Laila sitting on her lap. She informed Laila of how her day at school has gone. What she did and how her school schedule went. Fiona’s mother has always told her that Laila is too young to understand; however, Fiona believed that Laila enjoyed their talks as much as she did. She wasn’t an i***t, of course she knew that Laila couldn’t understand most of what she was saying, nevertheless, it felt good sharing it with her. After lunch, Fiona went upstairs to her room. She took out her cellphone and checked if anyone has texted her. She saw a message from Jen asking her to come by later for a movie night. She loved the idea, but she didn’t know how her mom would feel if she told her. After all, Fiona was supposed to stay home this weekend to help her mom in the house. Laila thought that she would ask her mom if she could go. She felt weighed down and depressed. She thought a movie could cheer her up, also good company. She went downstairs and called for her mother, “Mom, Jen is having a sleepover tonight, could I please go? This past week has been really tough on me and I could really use a break.” Mom looked at her thoroughly, “but Fiona you promised you help me out this weekend!” Fiona replied, “I know, mom, but I really need the break.” Fiona’s mom sighed and nodded, “Fine, Fiona, just take care and have fun.” Fiona kissed her mom on the cheek and thanked her for being the best mom ever. She went upstairs and texted Jen to tell that she was coming over. She gathered her stuff and went on her way. Fiona entered Jen’s house and she was surprised to see that there were plenty of people. There was almost 15 guys from school and about 10 girls. As her eyes skimmed the place she felt a hand hugging her from behind and a familiar scent hit her nose. She felt her body shiver as Adam’s favorite cologne tickled her nose while he hugged her and said something she couldn’t hear over the sound of her own heartbeats. Adam was here. He was hugging her and he was close to her. Her mind took a moment to understand what was going on because Adam has never touched her like that before. Maybe a small hug at school or maybe a small kiss on her cheek, but never this close and definitely never this intimate. She felt her body shiver beneath his touch and she tried to hide it by laughing and greeting him. His look was different, he looked at her in a way he has never done before. He looked at her with love and passion. There was something in his eyes that made her think what if?