Cloudy Days

 

I remember the clouds on that day being especially low in the sky. Pressing down, covering the little world I knew with an ashy gray. The trees rustling in the distance disrupted the silence fogging up the football field. The warm uncut grass itched my skin as we sat there with our backpacks and notebooks sprawled around us. My pencil traced the stem of a flower I was drawing and gracefully rooted it to the ground. Our conversations started and dropped, blotched with silence. But my eyes, gazing up at the ominous clouds, were filled with wonder because after all, I remembered cloudy days to be happy days.

“You seem happy today,” Bobo said in a monotone. “I thought you said you had a bad day.” Indeed, I had had a bad day but there was something in those clouds that reminded me that it could’ve been worse. I tilted to the side, meeting his dark, kind eyes and messy, chopped hair that radiated upwards. Bobo looked huggable except, ironically, he wouldn’t let anyone touch him. He was just that kind of an unreachable person, both physically and emotionally. Even I was still trying to break down his walls brick by brick, only to reveal yet another strong layer underneath. He had been my best friend since middle school, but whether or not I was his, was a topic we never dared touch. He looked like a troublemaker, his curious eyes contrasting with his calm expression. That day, he had on a medium hoodie that flattered his skinny body with clean jeans that enhanced his long legs. In fact, he did and wore everything effortlessly, but he was never the leader. Always going along with what other people said, he was naturally lovable. I had always admired that about him.

“Because even with those clouds, I’m happy. If clouds like those can’t bring me down, what can?” I replied.

“Maybe gravity? Since, after all, you did fall off the rock climbing wall during PE today.”

“That was not my fault. The guy who went before me left the rocks all sweaty and gross. How can I climb properly with that?”

“I did. I went after you remember? I also felt like the rocks were slippery. Maybe you too were nervous, eh?” Bobo was chuckling to himself.

“I was not! Also the helmet was too big so I couldn’t see where I was going,” I argued back.

“That’s what they all say… excuses, excuses.”

I looked at his gentle face and teased him: “Well, fine, maybe I’m just a little scared of heights. Remember that time when you, Kai, and me went on that Ferris Wheel ride …” I suddenly realized that I had touched upon a sensitive topic. It was enemy territory guarded by electrical wires and any discussion of it meant getting shocked.

“Kate, I told you to not bring him up,” Bobo said, without even looking up, plainly. Suddenly, the silence between us became deadly. I tried; I tried so hard to lead myself out of it since it was eating me from the inside out. With a chuckle, I stated, “What happened between you two wasn’t your fault, it was all mine. You shouldn’t be so caught up in it. It was all my selfish doing, so why are you so worked up?” I jokingly punched him on the shoulder, but his hand swiftly grabbed my wrist. His grip was strong and firm, commanding and tight. I never knew Bobo’s light hands could hold so much power.

“Kate, listen to me.” He looked me in the eyes with determined pierces, “You have no idea what you are talking about. Stop convincing yourself of that. Forget about it. Don’t stress yourself about topics you don’t understand, promise?” He let go of my wrist with a thump. “What’s important is that we are both relaxing and happy,” he said, but, aware that his previous statements seemed harsh, he added, “Maybe it’s time to go home.”

Slowly packing up, I wobbled from paper to pencil, retrieving them from the ground. My brain was now even more confused, not from his rare physical touch or bizarre firm voice, but rather from the sadness I saw there, deep inside his eyes when he was appeasing me.

We lived a few houses down from each other and after school, on warm spring days, we would stay after school and sit in the middle of the field. I would draw and pursue my architect career, while he would solve complicated math problems that I would never in my lifetime be able to understand.

As we were walking home, the clouds finally decided to let go. As my feet sloshed through the puddles, the sound of sharp pops against my umbrella drove my thinking. I loved the sound of early summer rain, so effortlessly gliding down. The hazy streetlights shined dimly in the muddy air, and shimmered like pixie dust.

I remembered the last time the sky sprinkled just like today. I recalled standing there, watching Kai duck into his car, driving away into the dark and disappearing into the blackness. However, Kai Ember did not blend in with the light drizzle. He was a tsunami, crashing violently against the rigid stones building up the shore. He was a hurricane, all tangled up in the mess that I was never allowed to mention. The mentioning of his name was a strong symbol of bad luck, because after all, Kai drowned himself in misfortune.

“You’re still thinking too much,” Bobo said without glancing up. “It’s not healthy. Just like your diet.”

“Oh come on, that joke is old,” I mumbled.

“But wait, it isn’t a joke,” he reminded me.

“It so is! I’m way too skinny.”

“Says who?”

“Says YOU. Remember, you used to call me twiggy until I asked you to stop as my birthday present. That was a rather sucky present,” I reminded him.

“Hey! I got you another present afterwards,” Bobo said.

“Well you shouldn’t be picking on me to go on a diet. Mr. Rinch is the one who needs to go on a diet. Gosh, he reminds me of a marshmallow.”

“You’re just bitter that he gave you an A minus in PE for not being able to climb the rock wall,” Bobo pointed out.

I started laughing. “Not THAT again.”

Talking to Bobo in such an innocent and affable way was somehow the greatest highlight of my day. I kicked a pebble as we continued down the sidewalk to my house. “Fine, I’ll stop. So how was your day at school? Last day before spring vacation, are you excited?”

“You bet I am. We have that camping trip next Tuesday, don’t forget,” I confirmed.

“Hey, I thought you were scared of bears?”

“I’m not scared if you’re coming. After all, I can run faster than you.”

“Woah, you just went from sweet to evil. What’s new?” Bobo insulted back.

“Hey, want to go to Pete’s?” I asked.

Bobo smiled. “Sure, I suppose we haven’t gone there in a long time.”

Pete’s was an old coffee shop on the corner of the block that we had gone to since we became friends. On the outside, it looked worn down and shabby from its years of beatings by the weather. However, the inside was beautifully polished and decorated with bright colors and stylistic furniture. While I entered, the smell of roasted coffee beans was awfully familiar. This shop stood as a nutshell of memories; it was where I first met Bobo and Kai. The day I met Bobo and Kai, my first real friends, was a day where the clouds were like thick gray cotton balls, glued down onto Earth. They filtered everything in gray, like a photographer lowering a picture’s saturation

I grabbed my hot chocolate and sat in a booth at the end. After getting a few sugar packets, Bobo slid into the seat in front of me.

“You should show me some things you drew.” He sipped his coffee and grinned at me.

“They’re not that good,” I responded. My fingers wrapped around my cup. My cheeks became as hot as the hot chocolate I was drinking.

“Are you kidding? They are fantastic!”

“But…”

“Oh, c’mon Kate. What am I going to do, rip it up?”

“How would I know that you wouldn’t?”

“Here, I’ll swear.” Bobo slapped his hand over his heart and stated, “I, Bobby Cane, swear to never destroy any one of Katherine Macy’s art work–”

“Promise to not laugh either,” I added.

“… and I promise not to laugh at any of her artworks even though that is clearly impossible.”

I unzipped my backpack and pulled out my thick sketchbook and handed it over to him. This was the first time I had shown anyone my sketchbook. Keeping my head lowered, I waited. After some time, I sneaked a glance at his expression. Bobo, with his eyes almost popping out, was starring dreamily at the book. Embarrassed, I quickly snatched it away.

“That’s enough,” I said.

“Wait, I wasn’t done…!”

“We never specified how long you would have the book for.”

“That’s true…”

I felt amazing and energetic. It was a Friday, and for a moment, I felt limitless.

We walked home. It was almost dusk when those erratic headlights penetrated through the mossy darkness. Directly in my eyes, the light blinded me for a quick second. After the headlights diminished and the car parked safely into his driveway, I glanced over at Bobo. His face was in knots, connecting confusion with fear with tension. At first I couldn’t understand the cause of such intense negativity. Then I saw those familiar black sneakers stepping out of the car. His face, still the same as ever, immediately reflected his menacing personality. His dark brown hair and hazel eyes playfully glanced over me. I stood there, dumbfounded.

“Kai,” Bobo said, strict and disgusted.

Kai looked the same, except his hair, which was shorter and choppier, making him look more intimidating. He had grown too, lifting him to almost a full head taller than me and half a head taller than Bobo. He had on his usual plaid, button-down shirt that was rolled up to the elbow with jeans folded at the ends. His dress shoes looked polished along with his smile. He still carried himself pompously and looked innocently nerdy, but in reality, he was the troublemaker. He arrogantly strolled over, watching us like we were raw bait.

“Kate, it’s been some time now, hasn’t it?” he said when he presented himself in front of me.

I stared up at the looming figure, and there were so many things I wanted to say. Bobo and I could never discuss any of this, let alone resolve it, because the matter was too fragile to even grasp. For starters, Bobo and I hadn’t even known we were in this mess until it was too late. We hadn’t been strong enough to take the betrayal head on, so we’d pushed it aside. And now, with his entertained smile and eager eyes, the problem had returned. I couldn’t help but bite my lip to stop spouting out resentful comments and keep my calm. I had to replace it with something more friendly and welcoming – something he would expect more because I was that kind of a forgiving person. The problem was, I could not find those words. Instead, Bobo spoke.

“Where have you been this entire time?” Bobo asked with more directness than he had thought, “You didn’t even tell us when you left. Not that we cared.”

“I asked the question first, Bobby Cane. Well if you really want to know, I have been enjoying myself for quite some time in prep school, because the education provided back here is barely enough to teach you the difference between a tree and a cow.” Kai laughed, gloating. “I bet you don’t even know the difference between a tree and a cow. Speaking of which, it’s glad to know that you are able to confront me now. Unlike back then… you practically worshipped me.”

“We don’t need you to point out the before and afters,” Bobo blurted.

Kai chuckled. “Whoa, sassy. Indeed, your attitude has changed, but I guess that’s only when you’re talking to me, right? When you’re with other people, you always stay in the outer circle, blending in and fading away. Well, you’ve always been that way and even the biggest makeover couldn’t hide your shy and timid self. No matter what, you’re not going to change the sadness inside of you.” Kai poked Bobo’s chest, his eyes challenging.

“What do you have against Bobo?” I suddenly asked. The words left a surprising taste in my mouth. I was never a defender. I liked my view from the bystander borders.

“Oh, finally, your turn to chime in. How have you been, Kate. My, you look a lot different. It’s your hair, I like it.” Kai commented with a hint of amusement. Suddenly, I felt a high-arching sense of bubbly warmness surround me. Kai always had his charm and elegance, and I couldn’t help but fall for his gentleness. We had left on good terms, unlike he and Bobo. His composed character and nonchalant essence made the world feel lighter.

“You hair is not bad either, it suits you,” I said without thinking, and playfully slapped him on the shoulder.

Bobo suddenly stormed off into the rain, leaving his umbrella tipping back and forth on the ground. Soon, his figure blended with the fog, fading.

I stood there watching the umbrella rock back and forth, filling up with water. I glanced at Kai and ran after Bobo. After a few seconds of sprinting through the piercing rain, I caught sight of his slim figure. He had lapsed to a walking pace.

“Good, maybe he has calmed down,” I thought and quickly dashed towards him. When I reached him, I gently placed my hand on top of his shoulder. Like an explosion, the little touch triggered sparks through my hand and down my back. I could almost feel his pain and torture, buried deep within his heart. “I’m sorry, Bobo. I really am,” I pleaded. Tears swarmed in my eyes. “I don’t know what caused that comment back there. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to flirt with him.”

Bobo brushed of my hand. Without looking at me, he replied, “Come on, Kate, you and I both know that you used to have feelings for Kai, so stop pretending that you didn’t realize that….”

“I did! But that doesn’t mean I still do! Look, that was then and this is now. I realized now that he is selfish and cares for nothing except for himself,” I argued back.

“Do you, do you really? I saw you smiling. I saw your smile, but more importantly, I felt you smile. How can I not be jealous of that?”  Bobo blankly stated.

“What do you mean jealous? I would never compare you with him…”

“But you already did, and he won! Do you not realize that? You still like him and you always will.” He was practically screaming. “I just don’t get it. What is there to like in a guy like him?”

I felt numb.

“What is so good about Kai? Huh? Maybe I’m mad. Maybe I’m sad. But the fact that you still like that demon is the most crazy and depressing thing of all.” With that, Bobo dashed away.

“Wait, stop!” I chased after him. This time, however, I couldn’t possibly catch up. He ran with almost a burning passion. And it was I, dripping wet in the freezing rain, who resembled a demon.

I decided to let Bobo blow off some steam, so I walked back to my house. This meant passing by Kai’s house again. I crossed the road early to avoid passing directly in front of it, and sloshed through the pouring rain, shivering. When I passed by his house, I glanced over to see if our umbrellas were still there, but both the umbrellas and Kai were gone.

Arriving home a lot later than my mom expected, she lectured me about curfews once more. Then I ate dinner, barely paying attention to what I stuffed in my mouth. All I cared about was what I could do to make things better for Bobo. After dinner, I decided to go to bed early, and got dressed in my comfy pajamas. After tossing and turning in the bed, it became clear that falling asleep was a lot harder than I had expected. I just lay there, starring up at the dimly shining stars that I had stuck on my bedroom ceiling in fourth grade. I kept wondering about what I could do about the situation. And then, almost like a shooting star, a feeling of great determination shone across me. I will confront Kai about everything he did to Bobo, and I will make him stop, I thought. I will show Kai that he can’t torture us anymore with his little shenanigans, and how he will treat us better.

“That’s right, Kai, I’ll show you who’s in charge now,” I thought. Then I fell asleep, smiling sourly.

I woke up the next day to a violent thunderstorm. I ate breakfast as if nothing had happened yesterday and did my chores early. Later in the afternoon, I knew it was time for me to activate my plan. I left the house and walked confidently through the pouring rain to Kai’s house. To my amazement, he was sitting on the porch reading a newspaper.

“How incredibly nerdy,” I thought, “Bobo is right, what do I see in this guy?” I approached the front of his house with caution.

“Look who’s back? Looking as wonderful as ever,” Kai commented without even looking up. “You came just in time. I was just about to ask for some company on this damp day.”

“I have something to say,” I said as I folded my arms. However, my knees were weak and I started to shiver.

“Say it, why are you so nervous?” Kai replied as he closed his newspaper and let it drop aimlessly on the ground. He patted the bench beside him, signaling me to come sit next to him.

I shook my head and kept the distance between us. I leaned against the beam of his house for support and lowered my head to keep him from seeing my expressions. “You really hurt Bobo, you know?” I stated. My voice was barely audible against the rustling trees.

“Oh? And what did I ever do to Bobo?” He asked innocently, blinking his eyes like a child begging for candy.

“You blackmailed him!” I yelled. “And that almost destroyed his family.”

Kai stood up suddenly with an intense force. “It was his fault anyway,” he said. “You should thank me because I made him realize how wrong it was.” He smiled obnoxiously. “He owed me for that favor, so naturally an award was necessary.”

“Bobo didn’t need you to realize that cheating on a test is wrong. He could’ve figured it out himself. Stop acting so arrogantly. What you did is more unacceptable.”

“But he still cheated on that test. And not just any test, but the final AP exam that was worth a sixth of his grade. How much worse can it get?” Kai calmly replied. He yawned and his expression was blank. “This is an awfully boring subject. Can we please move on to something else?”

I gripped my fist. “Boring? How can you say that? Bobo trusted you enough to confess to you about how he cheated, and then you went ahead and asked for money in exchange for your silence. What kind of friend are you?” I exploded. My warmth for Kai was long gone, replaced by a cold attitude.

“At least he trusted me enough to tell me. He never told you about it, now did he?”  he said, confidently. “It’s okay, Kate, just accept that I was a better friend to him than you have ever been. I cared about him and I can continue to, now that I’m back. But you left him yesterday in the rain. See, it takes me to fix things up. Now step aside, little girl.” Kai walked past me and down the steps. He had hit the nail on the head. I trembled with regret for what I said yesterday, but this wasn’t over yet. I grabbed his shoulder and turned in front of him, blocking his way down.

“But you, after you found out, made sure to ask for enough money to make Bobo’s family suffer. You knew that if he were caught, he would be expelled. You took advantage of that and demanded money. You took the money and you left. Why did you come back, to ask for more?” I yelled. I knew that I was asking this not only for me, but also for Bobo. It was my obligation to clear up what had happened. After all, it was my fault.

“I didn’t come back. I was forced back.” Kai said without meeting my eyes. “I was kicked out of prep school.”

“That’s to be expected,” I said. “What for?”

“That’s my business,” Kai said, and shook my hand off.

“Kai. You didn’t blackmail other students, did you?” I questioned, secretly hoping he didn’t. However, when he turned around and met my eyes, I knew that I had guessed the reason.

Then I did something completely unexpected. My hands, raging with anger cleanly slapped Kai across the face and left a red mark on his left cheek. His eyes reflected horror as they beamed right into mine. We stood there, until from the corner of my eye, I saw Bobo heading towards us.

“Bobo, what are you doing here?”

“I was running errands, but more importantly, what are you doing here? It’s dangerous outside.”

“I was getting some things straight with Kai,” I said without looking up.

Kai interrupted us. “That’s right, she came to me asking for answers.”

Bobo looked horrified, and shot me a glare almost as nasty as the one he was giving Kai. “I’m going to leave you alone with your boyfriend.” He turned to walk away.

“That was not what I was asking Kai! Believe me!” I yelled back earnestly.

“Don’t lie to me!”

“She’s not lying, Bobby. In fact, she slapped me way too that. I’m still feeling the pain,” Kai confirmed indifferently with his hands in his pockets.

Bobo turned around rapidly. “Kate, you did WHAT?”

I felt embarrassed. “I … I … ”

“Kate, why did you slap him? Why did you come to his house in the first place?”

I didn’t know where to start explaining. I wanted to confess and come clean. I wanted to explain that I knew about his situation with Kai the entire time – all the bribing and threatening. I just couldn’t find the words. I didn’t want to lose Bobo.

“What were you asking him, Kate?” Bobo asked once again.

“About what happened between you two….”

As if feeling my anxiety, Bobo snapped. “I told you not to get involved with what was between me and Kai. It’s good that you don’t know.”

“She does know.”

Kai said that with such force that it struck Bobo immediately.

“You know, Kate?” Bobo said with disbelief.

“Yes.” I was shaking. “I was going to tell you, I swear. I couldn’t find a right time. I mean how can I bring up something I’m not even suppose to know about?”

“You could’ve found a way!” Bobo yelled back. “Instead you just left me alone to suffer the stress. Kate, you could’ve helped. And here I thought I was the one protecting you from the truth…”

He started to walk away.

“Bobo, stay, listen to me.  I will explain.”

By now, we were all standing in the rain, off of Kai’s porch. Even Kai, who had worn his good shirt today, was taking the rain’s beating. He, I’m guessing, was probably amused by where this was going.

“I have one question,” Bobo said. “How did you find out?”

I bit my lip. “It was last January. We were hanging out at Pete’s after school when I overheard a conversation between you two about money. I was coming out of the bathroom. Kai had brought up the fact that you cheated on that test. I didn’t know what to do with that information, so afterwards when you left, I paid a visit to Kai’s house. Since I had already known too much, he explained the trade. I knew it was wrong but he managed to convince me. I don’t know how but I know now that it’s wrong so… I should have helped. I didn’t want to get involved and I thought that was the best solution. I’m sorry.” I cleanly confessed to everything.

Kai, stood there, adding nothing.

There was an alarming silence.

“Please say something,” I begged.

“Why didn’t you help me?” Bobo finally asked. “What am I to you?”

“You’re my best friend, Bobo, and nothing will change that. I’m sorry, but I really like being friends with you, so please forgive me?” I said.

“Oh, I see,” Bobo mumbled, and began to walk away.

“Wait! I yelled to him. “Was that apology not enough?”

“That’s not the point,” He replied. “You don’t understand.”

“Try me.”

But before any more words could escape his mouth, I started to scream. A medium sized pine tree started to fall towards him. Its long needle-shaped leaves rustled and shook with undeniable force, almost seeking for attention. The branches moved like hair being blown in the wind. The droplets of water resting on the tree came crashing down, like dropped marbles on the concrete sidewalk. I reached out my hand but couldn’t grasp him. I just watched as the tree came plunging down with a deafening crash.

It was a blur.

I shut my eyes tightly and began to sob. My body shaking, I was so confused about the devastating scene I had just witnessed. My hands grew cold and numb, and I felt almost dead. I had been standing in the rain for so long that I didn’t even realize my dripping hair and soggy jeans. It’s in that moment that I felt the waves of butterflies swallow me whole. Not the good kind of butterflies from a flirtatious comment, but rather the kind from breaking down with nervousness. The kind where it felt like the usual walls I built up broke down effortlessly. The kind where it felt like it left me vulnerable and open, searching for the slightest hint of balance. The kind where it felt like every raindrop could pierce me through. I waited and waited, and it felt like hours before I could sum up the courage to open my eyes again.

There he was, Bobo, completely okay with nothing but a few scratches on his arms and face standing next to the tree. He was trying to push the tree off of something.

I took a few steps forward.

With his good shirt tattered and shiny shoes ruined, Kai was lying on the ground. The tree’s trunk was on top of his waist, and he wasn’t moving.

My knees started shaking and sweat was almost pouring out of my hands. “Why was he under the tree?” I thought. “Am I seeing things?”

I tried to help Bobo push the tree off but it was useless. The tree was too heavy for us. Fumbling, I searched for my dropped phone on the ground. Praying that it still worked, I clumsily dialed 911.

“What have I done?” I thought.

Bobo didn’t say anything. I looked over and he was still trying to push the tree off.

“Stop, we can’t do it. It’s too heavy for us,” I said.

“And what? LEAVE him HERE? Are you crazy? You can’t run away from everything, Kate!” Bobo screamed. He looked up and let the raindrops embrace his face. However, I was sure that some of the droplets that trailed down his cheek were his tears.

Soon the flashes of blue and red appeared, and took Kai to the emergency room.

Bobo and I didn’t see Kai until a week later. During the time when he was recovering, Bobo and I rarely spoke, and kept our distance. When we occasionally saw each other while running errands, we avoided eye contact and departed after a bitter ‘hello’. I was miserable.

Then, a week later, Kai called us both personally for a visit. I sat in the car with Bobo, and we let the silence drown out our thoughts. I bit my nails while Bobo endlessly shook his leg, both looking out our own car windows. I watched as raindrops began to splatter against the window from the ever-ominous sky. “Why is it always cloudy?” I thought. “I swear the clouds are following me everywhere.”

When we got there, we walked by the reservation lady who was busy discussing her plans for that night.  We arrived in front of Kai’s room, and pushed open the heavy doors. He was sitting there, still wrapped in a few bandages around his waist and reading the newspaper. Even though he was only wearing a plain white t-shirt and not his usually preppy attire, he looked just fine to me. Glancing up, he flashed us a slight smile and said, “Sit, make yourselves at home.”

Bobo and I each grabbed a chair and pulled it next to Kai on opposite sides of the bed.

“I can almost smell the tension in this room. I see that you two haven’t solved anything,” Kai said.

“Why did you do it?” Bobo interrupted.

“Do what?”

“You know what I’m talking about. You pushed me out of the way when the tree fell.”

“Oh. I don’t know. I guess it was on a whim. Besides, I can’t imagine seeing a friend die right in front of me.”

I clutched the bed sheets and my breath became heavy.

“Still, why would you do that? I don’t understand…” Bobo continued.

“Well, I did. Call it as an apology for the blackmailing. No matter what, I just can’t let my first real friends die like that.” Kai’s face was bittersweet, regretful.

Bobo face unraveled. He paused and finally said with a grin, “Thank you”.

It would have been a great moment, like one of those miraculous photo-ops, but I was the one left in the corner. I stood up, and ran outside around the corner, crashing against a wall into a sitting position. From there, I began to cry. After a few minutes, I heard footsteps approaching. I sensed someone sitting next to me.

“Leave me alone,” I said.

“No,” Bobo responded.

“I… I don’t need you.”

“What do you mean?”

“No, not that. I need you. You don’t need me.”

“Of course I need you…”

“No you don’t. Even when your life is on the line, I don’t have the courage… the strength… to save you.”

“Look, Kate, I don’t need you to save me. I shouldn’t have put that much of a burden on you when you weren’t even involved. I’m sorry.”

My sobs had stopped.

“And I’m sorry for not always being there, like a best friend should. From now on, I will always be there.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

“Let’s go back.” He reached out his hand, and we returned to Kai’s room.

“Oh, the princess has returned!” Kai said sarcastically. “Oh, and I’m sorry about always insulting you guys. I’m grateful but I just let selfishness get the best of me. I’ll change.”

“Apology accepted,” I smiled at him.

“Oh, Kate, I was thinking that since I’m leaving the hospital on Friday, want to celebrate on Saturday at Pete’s? Just the two of us. We need to catch up.”

“Thanks, but no thanks. I was thinking about hanging with Bobo. Bobo, you in?”

He smiled the biggest smile I’ve ever seen and nodded.

“Okay, let’s go. I’ll catch up with you some other time, Kai. See you around.” Then we left.

On Saturday, Bobo and I were once again sitting on that football field after our quick jog around the neighborhood.

“Ha! I totally won that race,” Bobo exclaimed.

“I was sick! And I had to jog to your house before we started…”

“My house is like 3 houses down.”

“I know.”

We laughed and I took out a camera.

“What are you doing?” Bobo asked.

“I’m capturing the moment, since each moment has its own distinct beauty to it.”

“Woah, deep.”

“Or at least that’s somewhere along the lines of what my art teacher said.”

“What are you going to take a picture of?”

“I don’t know, something that supposedly captures the moment perfectly.”

“Let me try.”

I gave him the camera gently and said “Go ahead.” I lay back down on the grass, and closed my eyes. About a few minutes later, I heard the flickering of the camera shutter.

“Did you get a good picture?”

“A good picture? No… I got the perfect picture.”

“Who’s so full of himself now, eh?” I said. “Let me see.”

He handed it back to me and I checked the camera. On the screen, in high definition, showed an endless river of rain clouds, flowing in the sky. The darkness, the tension, the pressure, all captured into one snapshot. However, I don’t feel any negativities. I just see the grace and the simplicity, and I feel relieved. That relief, that lightness, had a disturbing beauty to it.

“You’re right, it is perfect.”