Dark Days | short story ✓

1

The sun was stubborn. It wouldn't stop trying to brighten people's day. And so, the clouds were Blue's ally that day. They expertly concealed the rays of sun that tried yet again to stretch to the ground. There was not a patch of blue in the sky.

Blue was quick to grab her black hoodie sitting on a chair in the pile of clothes she didn't bother to wash or didn't have the heart to. Wearing black jeans and a pair of sneakers, she stepped out her front door after what felt like a year. She hadn't realized the grass on her front porch had grown greener in the long time she hadn't got out. It caught her attention the moment they all dried out when she got in their proximity.

She sighed.

She took the next few steps, and the previously green grass kept dying and turning black as she got near them. This time, she didn't pay heed to them. All she wanted to do was see the world a little better since the sky got darker. Even if the whole world around her crumbled to a torturous death, she wouldn't care. It was rare for her to get out during the day because cloudy dark days were rare.

She was like a vampire, who only emerged from the coffin once nightfall took over. She was the kind who stared out the windows on rainy nights, attracted to stars during a glorious sunset, stared at the bright moon in the dark. She was obsessed with darkness. She was cursed with it.

Her whole body shuddered when she passed by a stroller, and the baby started crying. She didn't notice the couple holding hands walking past her until she heard their sharp breath intakes. It shouldn't have bothered her. It was what she was born for; stealing light from people's lives. But it killed something inside her.

So, she turned into an empty street, hoping to avoid people. She kept walking with her head hung low. Every cobblestone turned dark from the path she'd choose to take. The vibrant colors of the world slowly faded away with the sound of her steps. She kept walking.

She felt the slight shift in the wind before the sound of the approaching footsteps neared her. She intended to turn around the other way, not wanting to encounter another human, but something caught her eye. The brightness from the source almost blinded her.

Was he a boy? Indeed, he was.

Was he staring at her? He definitely was.

Dressed in a yellow hoodie, a guy stood at a distance, mesmerized by the strange artifact that was Blue. He had stopped in his tracks after seeing her just as she had stopped after seeing him. She could see the vividness and positive vibes radiating off of him even in the dark weather. She noticed how his mere presence turned the previously dark street into a bright flowery garden. Blue stared back blankly, trying to decipher how someone could be so bright. Everything about the mysterious boy confused her.

So, she turned around and walked away. With her gone, the darkness faded away and got replaced by flowers that radiated themselves from the boy, who stood staring at her as she took away with her all her gloominess until she was out of sight.