One Rainy Day

My name is Kal, Grade-11 student. Every day, same routine, go to school then home. Nothing more special, and I don't want to wish anymore, I love this simpleness. I don't like interacting with people, introvert in other words. But I believe that even I don't really want people to be around me, there is one person in this world destined into me. Now I just need to prepare myself for the day our destiny will come.

One rainy day, bad luck strikes, my bus suddenly broke and we change station. It was in the mall, 12 noon and waiting for the next bus and a woman approaches me. About the same age, long pitch-black hair and wearing glasses.

"Hey, are you pissed about the bus?", she asked.

I don't know what to do since I ain't used to talk with people, especially strangers.

I just smiled and said, "Maybe. I don't know.". I was nervous.

"You don't know? That's weird.", she replied.

For some reason I also feel weird about this girl, I stay away from her a little bit to avoid her. But she approaches me again.

"What is this girl wants from me?",I utterly stated in my mind.

"Hey mister, you hate me?", she quietly asked.

"S-sorry, did I offend you? I was...just...you know...not used to talk with people", I suddenly and nervously replied.

"Then you really don't hate me at all", she happily replied.

I get the situation; the bus is still not coming when the rain suddenly falls. We both moved a few meters away from our waiting area. She is beside me.

"Hey mister, do you like the rain?", she suddenly asked.

I'm not shocked at all since I think that this girl is just clearly opposite of me.

I just replied, "Nope, it seems like the sky is crying that it makes me sad."

After that she suddenly grab my hand and pull me in the inside of the mall, we are just a meter away from the entrance.

"Why? Why pulled me like that?", I angrily asked.

I was shocked, the girl is crying.

I stopped, "Why is she crying? Is it my fault?", confusedly uttering in my mind.

"I saw our car in that street, they gonna catch me.", that's what she said.

"What the hell is happening? I don't you, you're clearly crying, and you suddenly pulled me, and I'm so late on my class."

But even though I said that I don't have any plan on leaving her, because I know something here is not right. Then the girl suddenly poked my forehead with his two fingers.

"It's just a tears of joy mister. I ran from home; I've been choked in that house; I just want to see the world. Freedom and stuff. Then when we are in the bus, I stared you, in your earphones with a long look on the window, smiling. That's why I suddenly talk to you, and I want to ask what you are thinking in that moment, but it will be embarrassing."

"What the heck is with this girl?", confusedly, that what I thought.

"Then why are you crying??", I asked.

"It's just tears of joy! I just suddenly missed my grandpa. You know mister, he also said the exact word you said. "It seems like the sky is crying that it makes me sad."", she replied with a long look on her face staring at the entrance.

For some reason, I want to ask her why she ran away from their home but that will be rude, for what I see, she's not a bad girl at all and after that I probably made the greatest decision that will change my life as I asked her.

"Now what do you want to do?".

I'm curious about her, the courage to talk to a stranger and tells him a fraction of your feeling is something very touching. And for some reason I feel special about it, this girl's action.

"What will I do? Maybe it takes a matter of time before they catch me but if I can't go to that place then maybe I can enjoy the mall."

"Are you used to these kinds of stuff? Don't get me wrong, I just meant runaway like you are most likely wealthy, so, can you handle it?"

"I mean I can, but since I'm in pursuit then maybe I just need to be careful not to get caught easily."

As I watch this girl, there is some thought in my mind that for some reason worries me. The way she happily talks doesn't match with the expression of his eyes.

"Hey, miss, if you think you are in a timer, why might as well I help you to get that timer a little longer?"

"Wow, thanks. Can you show me the whole mall? I mean, your school is near here so you might know everything in here. But your class?"

"I can bunk a single day of my school year so, l-let's go?".

"Yeah! I appreciate it a lot, Mister. But after this can we go to the rooftop?".

"Rooftop, y-yeah but why?"

"Nothing at all, let's go!"

Then our little detour starts. Until we get to the rooftop of the mall.

***

I'm Levy, I'm an heir to a big family in this city. Well, pop culture surely portrays as good. Yes, we are in a cage. Every day we study, knowledge about everything, everything in our business. My life, some people want it, but not because you have everything it means you want it. I just simply want to be free, like normal people. Smile with the simplest things, which is not appropriate, or not appropriate for them. Since my grandpa died, nothing in our household is really close for me, except for my butler, but I know she is just doing it because it's her job. I just want to see the world, like in my grandpa's story. A beautiful, full of surprises and some weird experiences. I want that.

"Hey mister, can I go to that pool full of balls?", I ask him, the guy who's helping me right now in this mall.

"Well, you can but are you too old for that?"

"Who cares, it's once in my lifetime, help me sign in.", I replied as I pulled him into the counter.

"Do you need a guardian for this? You are old enough.", he asks why I wrote his name as my guardian.

"Why me?"

Well, I pull him up. I jump to the pool with these other kids, probably in grade school levels. After a half hour, I'm fully satisfied.

"So where are we going next mister?"

"We can go there...".

While doing those fun things with this stranger I suddenly felt so happy and jealous at the same time. Seeing the people around, happy with their friends, buddies, and families are so heartwarming for me. I've never experience any of these. They're happy even they don't have the things that I have. I've always hated my life, I feel like I'm Rapunzel in that mansion, home schooled, everything is up to our servants. That's why I'm so thankful when this guy said he will help me. Because to be honest, I can't do it. Roam in this mall. I want to thank him but it feels kinda weird in this situation.

"Hey, can we go to the bookstore, I just want to buy some books, since I'm here. That is if you don't mind.", he suddenly asked.

"Of course, I want to see, what's inside of a bookstore. Let's go."

As we walk to the bookstore, well I'm shocked, compare to the stores and stands we've enter it has the fewest costumers.

"So, this is a bookstore, our library is bigger than this."

"Wow, you have those, lucky of you, while me, I just need to buy some of this. But its okey."

"Hey mister, why this bookstore has few costumers? Do they have worst things here?"

"Well, people nowadays, for some reasons, they don't like books anymore."

"Why do you like books?"

"Well, I don't usually talk to people, so reading books filled that social part of me. I'm just simple."

For some reason, I felt awesome in this guy. Yeah, he is right, he is so simple. There's nothing fancy about him but even though he is like this, his happy. I'm so relieved.

After he buys the book, I ask him to go in the mall's rooftop.

"Why? It's raining, there's no one up there right now.", he asked.

"Well, I just want to go there, you have your umbrella, right? You're a student after all."

Then we are in the rooftop, using his umbrella I aggressively go to the edge, the corner of that rooftop.

"Hey, what are you doing? Don't tell you're goin to..."

"It's not what are you thinking mister, they said this mall's rooftop show the whole city. And I want to see it, especially when raining, this the best opportunity."

He approaches me, why bathing in the mild rain.

"I finally get it.", he said.

As he starts speaking, I'm confusedly burst in tears.

***

I get her now, this girl. He is alone just like me. I'm an honor student, but I always feel that everything in me doesn't makes sense.

My father is always working just to prove that he not worthless as trash like people talks about him and my mom, she hates me. Every mother loves their children, that's what I believe. My mom always calls me as her biggest mistake and now she left us.

I feel the same about this girl. Why she is like this. I get it why we don't hesitate on each other.

Because we are both alone.

"Hey, I get it now. You're alone, don't you?"

"Do you feel like you're empty? Do you feel like everything around you don't make any sense? Do you want people to understand you? Do you feel like you need to do something good to prove to them that you are worth it? Because if you do, I can understand now, why you ran away in. And the rain, yeah, I hate it because it seems like the sky is crying and it makes me feel sad. But it might be just an excuse, I am, always been sad. I just want to express it, in the rain, because I know, at a time like this, I'm not the only one who is sad and crying but also the sky is. I'm not alone in my sadness at all."

While drenched in that rain, I feel weird, embarrassed, sad and somewhat happy because finally, I said something so clearly about my emotions into someone. I'm really, happy.

***

I am the same as this guy. For somewhat, I feel relieved, that I'm not alone with this emotion at all. I'm crying yet so very happy. I didn't expect for a stranger to understand my emotions.

The rain huh, I've never realized that being in the rain in so good. That it is happy to be sad also. I closed his umbrella and raise my head in the pouring rain as it gets stronger, I look and point my palm in front of him, guess what, a high five?

"High five!", he didn't even hesitate to let our palms smack.

"But mister, I don't hate the rain."

"We can cry now, because no one will ever notice it, in this rain." As he laughs after that and me too.

In that rain, we talked more than we did in our little detour. We felt like it is the great time to showcase our emotions in each of our lives, sad and happy things with a smiling face in the middle of that rain.

***

"Lady Levy. Are you okey? We've been looking for you, let's go home."

As I hear a shout from a few meters away.

"Seems like your guys are here."

"Then, maybe next time, I guess?"

"Thanks for the spare time."

"I should be thanking you."

I'm sad yet fulfilled, it's my first-time in that kind of moment. But before she left...

"Hey, what's your name by the way?", we simultaneously asked.

We both laughed.

"Next time again, Levy."

***

"Yeah, Kal. Another time, if I get another chance. See ya'!"

I'm not sad because I know someday, we will meet again. And when that moment comes, I have a lot of stories to tell.

"The rain huh?", I whispered in my mind while looking at the dark sky as I take the stairs.

"Now I'm wet, and I'm surely not going to my class. But I'm happy. There still hope for me, I'm not alone in this world, I just simply didn't find them or meet them. For sure, we are going to meet again someday. And when that moment comes, I have a lot of stories to tell.", I happily whispered in my mind while looking at the beautiful city behind me.

"The rain, it stops.", as they both says while raising their palms in the sky.