Blooming Flower ✔️

Chapter 17: Mystery Box

 The motorcycle ride back home was a rather depressing one. I usually loved the fact that the wind would flow through my hair, and especially since it was a hot August day, it was especially refreshing. 

This time, however, I felt it was used to blow away any tears that had formed throughout my last meeting with Manish. I just kept my focus on the road and not on the fact that I was having so much fun on my motorcycle. It was a once in a lifetime occurrence for sure.

When I got home, the first thing that I did was take that bag that had a bunch of Manish's gifts to me and place it right next to me as I flopped on the couch like a dead fish. I just wanted nothing more than a cold glass of soda and some relaxation. 

I opened my phone to watch some YouTube on the couch so that I could rebuild some lost energy. The first thing that I saw was a message from Jen that read, "This is a bad time, but I forgot to send some pictures of Irfan's reception. I'll see you soon." 

I smiled, remembering how fun of a time that was when Manish was still here to celebrate such events with us. I opened the file that Jen had sent me and  scrolled through the photos to see if there were any decent ones. I kind of disregarded the ones in which I looked like a bloated seal, because I wanted to find the good shots. 

Surely enough, there was a shot that was not only good, but memorable. In that shot was the moment in which the photographer perfectly captured the moment in which both of us were at a perfectly graceful position. We were both smiling at each other, as he had his hand gently on my waist, while I had mine on his shoulder, and our other hands were clasped together. 

We were immersed into each others' ocean of eyes. I smiled, and made sure to save that into my camera roll. I pressed my phone screen to my chest, remembering the pure joy and surprise I had felt just a few days prior when Manish asked me to dance with him, as he had been preparing to dance with me only. 

Just remembering that incident made my heart ache for his departure. Then, at that moment, I remembered the bag that Manish had given me before he had entered security. Open it when you start to miss me. Those words rang throughout my head, as my hand lifted itself and snatched the bag. 

I opened it, and then lifted the tissue paper off to see a number of items resting comfortably in there. Open the envelope first. I looked into the bag to find an envelope, and it didn't take long before I found a long envelope in there. I ripped the top open to see the paper that was inside. I pulled it out like a kid pulling out their gift on Christmas Day, and I found a two page letter that was stapled together. 

I started to read it, and it wasn't anything that I was expecting. "Jaya," it read. "From what I've told you, you're reading this because you're missing me after I've left. You know how I feel about you being sad. I don't want you to be sad. I want you to look back at the entirety of our friendship and remember all the good times. So I gave you this. For the best results, I'd say you should follow the directions in order. Trust me, it'll be worth it. 1. Open your locket and see what's inside. 2. Open the huge book and look through it. 3. Take the item from the plastic bag out. 4. Read the second page of this letter. I hope that all these items will lighten your mood and won't make you as sad anymore. Always shining on you, Sunny."

I smiled, with my heart melting to nothing knowing that Manish specifically wrote this to cheer me up. I knew that Manish was sweet, but this was almost like a whole sugarcane field. I looked down at my locket, and then found the little latch that's used to open it. I opened it, and because my neck is about the same size as a pig's, I opened my phone to the camera to see what was inside the locket. 

I pointed it at my locket, and when I saw what was inside, my heart melted. On one side of the locket, there was a picture from when I was 15 and he was 17. I was still breaking out from my acne, so my face looked like a volcanic island, and Manish had just gotten his braces off, so his teeth looked like someone had decided to polish them.