Part 1
The sound of my steps echoed in my ears. With each step, memories coursed through my head. Nostalgia washed over me, as if I could still hear the rustling and bustling of my schoolmates in the corridors, as if I could still hear teachers yelling at students for making too much noise...
Unfortunately, the building was empty.
The building was abandoned. It was no longer my school. It had been shut down due to a tragedy — a huge fire broke out and injured many. I’ve heard that some even died.
As I walked further into the building, every memory came flooding back. I stopped near a particular room — my old classroom. I still remembered my seat — fourth seat of the second row.
It’s been almost five years since I left my hometown — Bridgedale Town.
It was a small town with only a few schools and colleges. I left Bridgedale when I was sixteen. Now, after five years, I’m back to meet my mom.
So many things have changed since then — my parents got divorced, I moved to Westlyn City with my dad, my brother moved out... Life seemed to be in grayscale.
As I walked further, my head filled with thoughts of a certain person — Kai Ryder.
My childhood friend, and my biggest crush.
Though honestly, I still feel the same way about him.
I wonder what he’s been up to these days... Is he still single? Probably not. Given his looks, he’s probably dating some blonde chick. I wonder what he’s doing in college… Knowing him, it’s probably something related to computers. That guy was neck-deep into tech.
One thing I deeply regret is not telling him how I felt about him... Just a small confession that I liked him — no expectations, no drama.
But unfortunately, I didn’t.
Well, I was going to, but then we had that stupid fight and stopped talking.
I did try to reconcile, but I had no contact information. His old number was no longer in service. I even visited his house — but no one lived there anymore.
It’s like he vanished into thin air...
My feet carried me out of the abandoned building. That’s when I spotted her —
Miss Larinson, my math teacher.
“Good evening, Miss Larinson. How are you?”
She squinted her eyes, as if trying to recognize me.
“I’m Zoey... Zoey James. You used to teach me math.”
“Ah, Zoey! Karl James’s daughter! You've grown so much!” she said as her memory clicked into place.
“So, what are you up to these days?” she asked.
“Enrolled in medical school.”
“That’s quite something. I heard you moved to Westlyn?”
“Ah, yeah... I have. Miss Larinson, do you have any contact information for Kai Ryder?”
“Kai Ryder of Class 10—A?”
“Yes…”
“Oh dear, didn’t you hear about the tragedy?”
“You mean the fire breakout?”
“Yeah… poor lad passed away during that incident.”
That one sentence had my whole world crashing down.
My eyes were immediately filled with tears.
“You… didn’t know about it?”
I shook my head.
She sighed and gave me his parents’ number.
I took the number and rushed home, fresh tears streaming down my eyes. I couldn’t believe it… I couldn’t digest his death at all.
I reached home and stared at my phone’s screen. My teary eyes looked at the number… I couldn’t bring myself to press the call button.
I threw my phone on the bed and buried my face into the pillow, as it got soaked with tears.
Through my tears, I wished only one thing…
“If I could go back in time… I’d confess my love to him.”
