Mr. Storyteller (On HOLD)

ii. Yellow

October 4, 2010;

Telling Sai to sit still on the bench was like telling water not to flow. She completed her homework early, so she would get permission to go to the park a little earlier than usual, because what if Mr. Storyteller comes early today? And what if he leaves if he couldn't find her? 

Her father was curious and asked her the reason behind her excitement. She couldn't tell the truth, the truth that she asked a stranger to tell her a story- the truth that she's afraid to ask her parents to do that- afraid that she might be disturbing them. So, she said, "I made a new friend." 

"Tell me the story, now! I thought you'd never come in the first place," those are the first words that came out of her mouth when she saw Mr. Storyteller walking towards her direction.

He was amused by the excitement of Sai while he found himself worrying whether he had planted a seed of something that he can't take care of. 

"Someone seems too excited, what if the story isn't good enough?" 

"I will decide that after the story ends," Sai said, pushing her glasses upward the bridge of her nose, "... And since you decided to tell it then it's probably cause it's good, right?" 

"I-" He stuttered as he looked at her, he came here to be healed from the guilt but now his mind is pulling it back within his confines and permitting it to roam. "Yeah, of course."

"Then tell me!" Sai said while grinning and that was the most honest thing that he had seen, it was innocent and vibrant which was contagious enough to make him smile too.

"So, once upon a time... in a kingdom far away in the mountains-"

"I'm not a five-year old."

"...There lived two eighteen year old princes named, um- Kai and... Adi," he paused and looked at her irritated expression, couldn't help but break into a smile.

"What are you smiling about?"

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head. "It's been only one year since Kai joined the royal academy where Adi was already a student-"

"I don't like being the new kid," Sai said. 

"Yeah? Me neither." 

"Are Kai and Adi going to fall in love?" Sai questioned with a smile.

"Why would you ask that?"

"You said this is a story of two princes and in the stories of prince and princess, they always fall in love at the end, so I thought in this story of prince and prince they are going to as well..." she trailed off.

She watched Mr. Storyteller as he nodded, understanding her point, "...well, to know that you have to wait till the story ends," he said.

"And don't you think it's bad? The two princes falling in love?" 

She paused swinging her legs to think for a moment before answering, "No... It's different." 

"Ma says, anything that is different, it doesn't have to be bad. When I moved to a different school my friends here were different from my previous school, but they are not bad," she said looking back at him as he nodded and looked away.

Mr. Storyteller hides behind his words and is afraid to be proven wrong but only in some rare scenarios would he find himself completely at the loss of words and not in a bitter way. 

"Adi would always have so many friends- without trying, and he felt lucky about it and so was Kai, even though he joined just a year ago. Kai was really helpful and people really liked him because of it-"

"Did Kai help Adi too?" Sai asked, interrupting him.

"You're too eager, aren't you?" he said with a chuckle. "And yes! Kai helped Adi too...a lot." 

Sai smiled and nodded somewhat proudly, a smile that was directed towards him, and he was the reason for it. He was the source of those lit up eyes and dimpled cheeks, it made him feel warmth in the cold weather.

"Adi always found Kai stealing glances at him, and he couldn't understand why? As Kai never made any effort to talk to him so Adi didn't understand what Kai wanted-"

"Maybe Kai just wanted to be friends?" 

"Maybe yes, but Adi was a little stupid to understand that. Despite being in the same class they never talked to each other... So, how did they start talking?" Mr. Storyteller questioned, receiving a shrug in answer.

"On the first day of the new session, they both came late to the academy, and they had to stand outside the class for the first period as a punishment," Getting an audible gasp from her side, he continued the story.

"Guess who was the first one to speak..."

"I think Kai?"

"It was Adi." 

Sai was interested to know how Adi started the conversation but her excitement was disturbed by the rude watch on her wrist. She let out a disappointed sigh and looked up at Mr. Storyteller, wishing he could do something, but he just shrugged.

"To be continued, tomorrow?" he said, and she nodded as she stood up from her seat.

"Bye, Mr. Storyteller!"