SO DISTANT YET SO CLOSE TO SAY GOODBYE
by
Arch DeNight
***
PUBLISHED BY:
So Distant Yet So Close To Say Goodbye
Copyright © 2013 by Arch DeNight
Your support and respect for the property of this author is deeply appreciated.
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to person, living or dead, places, or events is purely coincidental. The characters are productions of the author’s imagination.
***
This short story is dedicated to My Home. My Pink Bunny. The only one who always supports all my dreams and ideas, no matter how brief and incomplete they are. This is for you, Dear.
***
SO DISTANT YET SO CLOSE TO SAY GOODBYE
by Arch DeNight
I had never like family gatherings. All I could recall from past experiences attending such events were only hectic preparations, noisy chatters, faces of people I did not really know, and uncomfortable feeling of not wanting to be there. However, like many other Asian, family always has to come first—or so they told me. So, despite any unpleasantness I predicted will come, I still had to attend the event—to be polite and to appreciate the invitation, my parents said.
It was actually the wedding of a distant relatives of my mother. The wedding of the daughter of my mom’s cousin. I think that would make her my cousin, too—I was not really sure how to address anyone from the smaller branches at the edge of our family tree. They held the wedding at my hometown. My family had actually moved to another town about ten years ago. I just happened to be there for a short vacation—to see some old friends and such—when my parents called and informed me about the invitation. They would not be able to make it since my father was still in the hospital after breaking some bones falling from the roof in a failing effort to renovate the house by himself. Many times, the man just did not want to acknowledge how old he had become. So, here I am, struggling in a light color dress, make up, and high heels—that I would normally refuse to wear with all my might—trying to be a polite guest in behalf of my parents.
Since I did not think that I know any of the people there—though some claimed that they knew me and amazed at how time had changed me into a beautiful young woman—I did not expect to see any familiar faces. But, I was wrong, of course. After all, surprises are always life’s favorite game.
If I was following my instinct to just come, greet the happy couple, and leave as soon as possible, I would not see her. But, there I was, trapped between an older lady claimed to be another cousin of my mother and her husband, forced to have a small talk about how my parents were doing. I was just looking around, failed too focus on the lady’s retelling of how her children had already graduated from a famous university and were working in a big company, when I saw her. I did not recognize her at first since I only saw her back facing me. She was having a conversation with a couple of other guests. She wore a light blue dress with her hair down. A matching pair of high heels on her feet made her already tall figure became taller. I was just admiring how the light color of her skin made her look very nice in light blue, when she turned around. I could feel my jaw dropped a little as I saw how stunning she was, and even further, when I realized that I was very familiar with the face.
“Dee!”
I did not have to ask whether she remembered me. She came almost running after exclaiming my name. She hugged me so tight that I thought I would not be able to breath anymore.
“Well.., Hi.., Ellie...,” I managed to greet her in between the feelings of being choked to death.
She finally released me. Her face lighted up with joy and a wide smile on her face. I did not know what expression I had on my face. I was surprised seeing her for sure. But, I just did not know what to think or feel or say.
“You already know each other?” the older lady asked.
“Yes, of course, Mom. We went to the same junior high. She’s my senior, the one I used to tell you about. A lot,” she giggled, holding both of my hands in hers.
“Oh, I see,” the lady who turned out to be her mother smiled, “I thought you know that she is one of your cousins, too.”
Ellie smiled widened, “You are?”
I forced a smile, “Apparently so...”
By giving the confirmation, I sealed my fate to be her distant cousin forever. After knowing the truth we did not know before, she dragged me along happily as she met some friends and relatives I had never met. She proudly introduced me to each and everyone she talked to. Honestly, I did not really understand what to be proud of having myself as her cousin.
She was the beauty between the two of us. Her light skin, her tall and slim figure, her shiny long raven hair, her feminine gesture, everything was so perfect to be called beautiful. And me? I was just a clown. My hair was never been longer than shoulder length and it was irregularly wavy—made it hard to be done nicely. I had never felt suitable for any dresses, high heels, or make ups, so I could never make myself looks beautiful wearing them. My everyday attire were always shirts, jeans, and sport shoes. No wonder I hated family gatherings and formal events—there was no way I could wear my comfortable outfit to any of those. See? I just could not understand why anyone—especially her—would be so proud introducing me to her acquaintances. But, that was just her, I guessed.
As I later recalled in my hotel room that night, I realized that she did not changed much. Well, she was obviously taller than the girl I knew back in junior high. Her hair was also getting longer. But, she was always friendly and everything to everyone. And she was as beautiful as ever...
I had to admit that I had a crush on her back then. We met on her first day in the junior high. I helped giving her the direction to her new English class. She thought that I was very nice and we became friends ever since. But, to be honest, it was just because she was so attractive that I gave her the help and hang around her every now and then. She did not aware of that—or so I thought. She was just happy having an eight grader as a new friend. We would sit on the same table at lunch and she would introduced me to the classmates she had made friends with—making some new friends for me, too. Sometimes, she would talk about things she liked or disliked at school while we were waiting for her mom to picked her up. It felt nice hanging around her, talking with her, accompanying her waiting, even if it meant that I would be coming home late.
I noticed—as she and her friends also talked about it sometimes—that many boys seemed to be attracted to her. I did not feel annoyed for I thought it was very normal for the boys to like her since she was so nice and good looking. When I think about it now, maybe I was not annoyed because I did not quite understand the feeling I had for her at that moment of time. Maybe, it also because she never seemed to reciprocate any of their feelings. Maybe.
She did make me blushed one day when she asked whether I could take her to the eight grade dance. I remembered calling her ‘Silly,’ and said that whether I liked it or not, I had to go to the dance with a boy. I also said that maybe I would decide not to go after all since I did not like the idea of wearing a dress and going to a dance. Hearing that, she giggled and called me silly as well. She said that I should go for eight grade dance would only happened once in my life. Next thing I knew, the most popular boy in junior high accompanied me to the dance. It turned out that Ellie asked him to take me to the dance. The boy would actually take her instead if she let him, but she did not. On the other hand, she successfully made him promised to take me to the dance. Poor boy.
Ellie was always very nice. I guessed that part of her was the one that got me attracted—her beauty was just a huge bonus point. If it was not for my fa
ther’s job, I would probably have the chance to spend all my high school years being very close with her. Too bad, we had to move to another town far away at the very same year. My parents thought it was a perfect timing. They thought first year in senior high school was a new beginning, so it would not be a big problem for me having that new beginning somewhere entirely new for me. Well, they were actually wrong. But, I did not have a heart arguing with them about that.
One thing I regretted at that time was the fact that I did not have a chance to tell Ellie about the plan. We usually saw each other at school. Right after that, I always had to study in my room. My parents also made me took a piano