Fatin Ishteaaque, Period 1, 03/02/2022

One day somebody asked themself, “What is happiness?” There are many answers to such questions. Stability, wealth, freedom. Most people seem to have the same answers. Of course some people have different answers, people like Shira. She had a longing in her mind, but not a strive. There was nothing she wanted to pursue, but there was an expectation she constantly waited to be met. The world would bring her this expectation, and fill her hole, she knew it would one day, it was this philosophy that taught her to never say no. One day if she were to say no, if she were to make that choice on her own, she would miss the opportunity to satisfy her longing and would never reach her desire. She didn’t want to constantly go out, she didn’t want to have people crowd her wherever she went, but when you always say “yes”, you tend to become the center of social attention. Once Shira decided to go to a University away from her home, she realized it would be the perfect time to experiment. Using her social skills and wide tree of connections, she would find out what this craving she has is.


It seems the world might have finally reached that point in time for her. When that boy bumped into her, Shira felt something for a quick moment. Was it a spark? No it was different, but she couldn’t put her finger on it. Was the world giving her a sign of some sort? Whatever the case may be, she needed to follow through with it, and as if it truly was fate, she was given the chance to. After a while she felt it again, right when he spoke.

“Come on now, that's not how the world works…”

Those words made Shira feel the same thing she felt when she first ran into the boy. Speaking of which she never really picked up his name, or any information about him for that matter.

“Fumio!”

Well that answers that question, she realized. Wait a minute, why is Bria yelling? That childish idiot? She isn’t the type to do anything like that. Oh no, she had been too busy thinking about how she felt around Fumio, trying to figure out what it was. Her social reputation was on stake here, she could think about this later, she might even need to do some research anyways.

“Sorry you had to see me like that, you don’t have to listen to this idiot, for someone so smart you would never think he would be so dense about how the world really works.” Shira looks up, that was directed to her. Ok it’s recovery time. Start with a light chuckle, try to put these pieces together, what were they talking about? These were all the things Shira thought about. Shira may not be the smartest of people, but she was definitely one of the faster thinkers, she can pick up on just about anything with the minimum possible time.

Time slowed down, what felt like a few seconds to the world, was enough time for Shira to piece together everything she needed to respond. Bria was near crying, but was frantically wiping the tears, was it because she got mad, or did something happen with her brother? No, Fumio looked just as shocked as Shira was, it was more likely that he said something to offend her. Right, Shira overheard Bria asking about her Boyfriend, was it something about Bria’s relationships? Wait is it possible that her brother also, no it can’t be. Boyfriend, relationships, older sister, ok then Shira put everything together, but it was a big risk, she was only around 40% sure about this. Did Fumio mention the philosophy of following the world’s choices?

“Actually, I agree with him.” Bria’s face showed it all, Shira was spot on. No wait, saying you agree isn’t enough to be a response. Time caught back up to speed, as she elaborated. Bria’s expressions showed that Shira was correct with her assumptions, but Fumio’s showed something else. There was no shock or disbelief or anything. How was this person, so difficult for the social queen to read? That's it! Rationally it makes sense, he’s not showing any expression or response because that’s how dumbfounded he is. He is still young after all, he probably thought he was special, realizing he isn’t the only one was probably a bit hard on him. Right as Shira had made this deduction, Fumio had stood up and sprinted away. The instant it happened was so fast not even Shira was able to comprehend what had actually happened until he was far gone already.

Was he really that sensitive, he didn’t seem like that kind of person. It's not like she completely disregarded his feelings, did she?

“What the hell?” Bria spoke up first. “That kid is crazy I swear, he always does the weirdest things.” All Shira could muster was a light hearted chuckle. Bria did have a point though, it did seem weird. The eighteen year old boy who seemed like such a hardass acting that sensitive, and why wouldn’t his own sister know about his character like that? The only rational possibility was that it wasn’t sensitivity, but then what was it?

Wait a second. Something felt weird in Shira’s body. What was it? Her legs, her arms, her head? No none of those. Maybe her chest? No, that didn’t seem right, it seemed like something in her core. Her eyes widened when she realized what it was. It was her heart, but there was nothing unusual about it. All she felt was the common emptiness that she had always felt, but it was just now popping up for some reason. She never thought it would be possible, but it was also the only possible explanation as to why it started popping up again. It had been filled for the whole time until just now. Which would mean that, when she was with Fumio her emptiness was cleared. There’s no way, no matter where she went with her friends, no matter what she did the feeling never went away. How could a boy younger than her she just met do it? Right she was probably just too busy thinking about him bumping into him to notice the feeling, that’s all. Either way, she needed to find some way to learn more about this kid. No matter what was happening or why it was, he was definitely different.

After Fumio returned from his prolonged, bathroom trip, Shira seemed to subconsciously avoid conversation with him, and she also noticed that he seemed to be doing the same. It was quite the odd encounter, and the awkwardness seemed to drown out even Bria, who couldn’t stop looking back and forth between the two. The tension in the atmosphere between the two was so strong that even the aura of a New Yorker couldn’t make a choice of how to approach the situation. With her years of experience, she decided the best thing to do was to end it.

“Alright! Nice spree today gang, we’ll be doing this again next time I need new clothes. Also Fumio, here’s your card back.”

“My wha-” Fumio looks up to be startled by the sight of his wallet flying up towards him. He catches it instinctively and immediately opens it, to find his cash is all missing and his card jammed into the pocket for his ID card. If one were to listen very closely, you could almost hear the sound Fumio’s heart shattering. As his skin turns pale and his face gains a blue shade, Fumio turns his sadness into anger. Fumio jumps at his sister to grab her by the collar and lift her.

Fumio began to berate his sister as she blankly stared past the distance, sipping the can of Pepsi every now and then. Shira can’t make out exactly what he was saying, her light hearted laughter was overtaking her ears and her mind. The enjoyment she felt, the happiness, and the calmness she felt in her core was different then usual. It wasn’t forced, it was purely genuine. What are you supposed to do with such feelings, she wondered.

The group split up after Fumio confiscated his sister’s wallet and forced her to haul the insanely large shopping bags home herself. Hm, was she gonna stay with her brother, and what was that stuff she said about their parents? Shira physically shrugged her shoulders, earning her a few gazes from the strangers around her.