It was a last minute flurry of plans. We were deciding and contemplating the possibility of this trip till the last conscious second of the previous night before our eyes shut and we slept. Transport options were limited and we weren’t sure how to reach our destination. In the morning, some unique power seemed to seize us and we sprang to life, deciding on the spot that we would go. We all agreed to meet up at the park. With its lush green grass and crisp air, it suited us perfectly, right down to the sand tickling our feet.
Cyan had set upon searching for some means of transport and had succeeded. The two of us conversed, exchanged whoops of delight and then called our still sleepy friend, Emily, the loud ring of the telephone causing her to finally wake up. We found out that Emily was to arrive separately while Cyan and I set off in the same car. When I got into the car, the first thing I noticed was that Cyan was wearing black eyeliner. With a twinkle in her eyes, she looked at me.
“It’s been so long, how are you?” she questioned, almost screaming.
“I’m fine, just super excited,” I replied with a grin.
The car roared to life and we were off. Probably owing to the long amount of time we spent apart, we didn’t seem to have much to say and it was a silent, slightly weird, almost nervous ride, with me thinking that the day would be dreadful if we spent the entire time like this. With her black eyeliner bordered eyes, Cyan sent glances my way, comforting, polite, almost customary glances, and we both started laughing out awkwardly.
The car pulled into the parking lot and we sat with the door open, with an ever growing confusion on whether we should just get out and walk to the park or wait in the car for Emily to arrive so that we could all enter the park together. Ultimately, being the excited duo that we were, we decided to get into the park as soon as possible and then wait for Emily.
Many calls later, Emily agreed that she would buy pizza, because the two of us in the park were hungry and we decided that her penalty for being late would be to stop to pick up the pizzas. That would technically make her even more late, but hey, I and Cyan were all for waiting a little more for the delicious food. After Emily arrived, we finished the pizzas in a jiffy. As time went on, the awkwardness dissolved and we got louder and louder, laughing at all the stories that we had to catch up on.
We ran through the park and plonked ourselves on some rocks, lying on our backs contently.
“Let’s go slide man, it’s been so freaking long,” I said, pulling the other two to their feet.
With squeals, we slid down the slide like schoolchildren on a picnic, reliving fond memories and taking us back to high school days, where our younger selves did the exact same things.
“Just one more pic, I promise,” said Cyan.
“How much longer”, I whined, drawing out the r’s.
“Don’t whine and pose, man,” said Emily.
After endless photo taking, I convinced the two of my friends to get on the swing set. All three of us decided to go the whole hog and decided to have a competition on who could swing the highest, with squeals and indignant claims of winning, we play-argued with each other, people staring at us strangely the whole time.
“Oh my God, you really did that?” asked Emily, laughing till the tears ran down.
“Of course, I was so fed up,” I said, joining them on the bench.
“Oh my God, I can imagine their reaction, that is epic bro,” laughed Cyan, throwing her head back and forth.
Our voices trailed off as we sat there under the orange light of the street lamps, enjoying the quiet companionship. The night was cold, windy and peaceful, with the only sounds coming from the chirping birds. Even with the moon and the street lights, it was dark, a comforting dark, the kind that made you nostalgic, all of us realizing that this was where we wanted to be. Friends forever and ever.
