Embracing

A girl finds a peaceful and almost mystical new home, but leaves with the intention of bringing her former love back with her.

Once upon a time there was a young boy and a young girl who were inseparable. They did everything together, and planned their lives around each other. The only difference between them was that they lived in different, yet adjacent towns. The towns were divided by a rushing river, but connected by the stone bridge above it.

One day the girl was walking to see the boy, but when she stepped in the very center of the bridge, it's old tired stones gave out and collapsed, and sent her falling down in to the rushing water.

When the girl finally opened her eyes again, she was surprised to see that she wasn't hurt. Not only that, she felt better than she ever had, and looked the most beautiful she ever had in her life. She was dressed in white clothing, and looked around and saw many others in white clothing as well. Some one must have rescued her and brought her to this beautiful place, she thought.

Immediately after realizing that everything was ok, her first instinct was to return home and let everyone know she was alright. However, she couldn't help but wonder what this lovely place was, so she asked another dressed in white when they walked by. The person didn't answer her question, but the two became engrossed in a long conversation, and the girl seemed to forget her desire to leave.

The more time passed, the more and more the girl became mesmerized by the overwhelming sense of peace and calm she felt in the white place, like she was simply drifting along without a care. She ended up spending days in the white place, more and more forgetting about her life before, as the days turned into weeks and months and years.

After what seemed like mere minutes spent in the white place, the anniversary of the girl's fourth year there came, and with it, the same year she would have been considered an adult back in her town. This event seemed to draw her thoughts more and more back to her life before she came to the white place. More and more she could not stop thinking about her former male companion, and the promises she had once made to him.

Feeling troubled, one of the gentle leaders of the white society asked her what was on her mind. She explained her situation, and then in that moment she was struck with inspiration. Though she could not bear to live away from the new family she had found, and could not continue to feel sorrow over the love of her youth, perhaps he could come to live in the white place as she had.

The leader seemed surprised and saddened when he heard this, but permitted her to go because he loved her as a daughter and wished her well. As she began to cross back over into the land of colors however, he bid her a sorrowful warning that the boy may not be able to accept her offer.

But the girl barely heard this warning as she crossed back over into the place of bright colors and loud noises she had left behind. She was so excited to see everything she loved again, and quickly ran over the old bridge she had often tread across to find her old love.

She finally found him walking down a street to his house, and she ran to embrace him. But much to the girl's heartbreak, he screamed and ran from her. Didn't he recognize her? Truly, he had grown tall and strong and handsome, but was she not also magnificently beautiful? In fact, in the white society she was highly admired and pursued by the other kind and beautiful people, who all drifted along together in harmony.

She thought that maybe he had been worrying about her all this time, or maybe even thought she had died, and that would explain his shock. So again she pursued him and, and again he was terrified by her. But the girl would not let this get her down. She refused to go back to the white place without him.

And so she met with him everyday, pleading with him to listen to her story. Very gradually he felt more comfortable being around her and she was able to explain to him in great detail everything that happened, although no one else in the town seemed to notice her at all.

Nevertheless, after countless efforts, she was finally successful in convincing him of the society's virtues, and to come back with her. And although for a very long time he would not let her come close to him, and seemed to be weary of her appearance, after truly being there for him and becoming his best friend again and all she was before she left, he was finally able to kiss and hold her like he'd done when they were children. So one day, after he was finally able to say goodbye to his world of colors, he embraced the girl and two of them were warmly welcomed back into the white place, where he was given the purest white clothing to match hers.

But back in the colorful world there was no such rejoicing. The boy's mother went to his room after not seeing him the entire day, and saw him lying motionless on his bed, holding a human skeleton in his arms.

His body was buried by the old bridge, one of his favorite spots, and as everyone mourned, dressed in black, two soft white clouds drifted by over head, without a care.

Author's Note

This is the 3rd installment to "No One Special Fairy Tales", and this piece was based on a dream I had. It's meant to be slightly vague and ambiguous.