Oh to be Mr Berry

send letters to loved ones

It was February - the trees were shivering from the cold, the feral cats were harmonising in the somewhat warm underpasses, the wind blew freezing enough to reach your skin even through multiple layers of jackets, scarfs and shirts and to top it all off - it was raining every couple of days. Whoever decided to put the romantic holiday in between all that mess was a weirdo and probably did it on purpose. But shit weather couldn't stop you, no matter how much you wish it did.

A valentines tradition is to send letters to loved ones, not necessarily only romantic interests, but just people you care about in general. In your school, the tradition was carried and continued by the theatre kids, of course. Not only did they organize a love-themed play, but they also put a box in the middle of the biggest hallway in school. The box read "love letters" and it allowed anyone in school to send a letter to anyone else in school.

- Well that's an amazing way to get bullied. - your friend Awis said as you both walked past it.

- I think it's kinda cute. Who knows, maybe we will get some letters this year... - you suggested, as neither one of you ever got any, other than the ones your girl friends wrote to each other.

- Yeah, right.

- I'm serious, come one. We had, like, a huge glow-up since last year!

- Anyways, did you see that they're putting up Romeo and Juliet in the auditorium?

- Again? Didn't they do that last year?

- And the year before that, and before that... come to think of it, it's the only play that is ever put on in this school.

- Why am I not surprised? - you rolled your eyes as you entered the classroom.

- Well... I signed up for an audition! - Awis said excitedly.

- Really? That's... wait why? School plays are usually embarrassing and you're not really... the type to...

- I know, I know, but it's our senior year! I wanted to do something. I'll probably get a lead, I mean, who even signed up for that?

- You definitely will! - you smiled at her and sat at your desk. 

This was an amazing opportunity for you and you were not going to give it up - writing a letter to your math teacher, that is. Now, should you make the letter actually honest and soaked in emotion or just write it light-heartedly and make it seem all friendly? Maybe better to not cause any scandals and dramas, but still, making it clear just how much you appreciate her would be the best way to go. Yes, the english class you have right now is important but forging a perfect string of words for your math teacher was far higher on the list of priorities. 

- So how should it begin? "Dear teacher?" No. "Dear Mrs Berry!"? Nope, that's way too formal. Maybe her actual first name? But that is way too informal, she isn't some friend of mine. God, this is hard... - you scribbled words down, just to cross them and write them again later.

To make the whole thing more appealing, you decided on using thicker paper and decorating it with all kinds of stickers, washi tape, drawings and to top it all off: a wax seal. Now that all sounds great in theory, but you still don't have anything for the actual letter, which is kinda more important than the envelope, per se. At home, you couldn't concentrate on the homework much more either, as all your thoughts were occupied and fully consumed with that letter.

- How will she react? What if she hates it? What if she throws it away? Should I even do this? - were just a fraction of the questions that were flooding your mind, and in that ocean of confusion, you had a difficult time managing to keep your head above the surface. 

Two days later, on the 12th, inspiration finally hit you, and you crafted that letter. It wasn't any grand love confession, but it rather sounded like a thank you for everything kind of letter. You did think about giving some subtle hints, but decided not to, not only could it get both of you in trouble, it could potentially make everything extremely awkward, and even tho it was your senior year, it was only February.