stay in touch // a short story

Instructions

Title: Stay In Touch Word Count: 1,125 P.S. Words in ** mean they’re like emphasized :3 Story was inspired by Words I Used - The Backseat Lovers Aiden's POV “Promise we’ll stay in touch?” "I promise Aiden." Akina, the love of my life, was leaving me for New York. She had just gotten the opportunity to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. I was proud of her. Of course, why wouldn't I be? Still, I couldn't imagine what life would be like without her. I gave her my brightest smile. "Is there *any* way I could convince you to stay?" She chuckled. "My love, we've been over this. You've asked me this every single day." "Multiple times a day..." I mumbled under my breath. Akina still heard it though. She responded by wrapping her arms around her waist. I melted like a marshmallow over a campfire. I wish this hug could’ve lasted forever. "I love you." I sighed. "Love you too Aki. Call when you get off your flight?" "Of course." “Good, now go! New York’s calling for you darling!” She rolled her eyes playfully, gave a quick peck on the cheek, and squeezed my hand reassuringly. "Things are going to be just fine." And just like that, Akina boarded her plane, and I let out the tears I was holding in for far too long. I tried to let her last words sink in, but it didn’t work. How does she always stay so strong? How could she be so sure of all of this working out? Akina's POV The 5 hour flight was nothing but torture. I couldn't stop thinking of Aiden. What if we grew apart? What if the long distance wouldn't work out? I tried pushing the thoughts out of my mind, but they kept kicking down the door. Before I knew it, I was crying ugly tears, as I got flashbacks of our memories together. I remembered the first time I met Aiden, I couldn't help but stare. His captivating ocean eyes and sandy hair reminded me of the ocean back in California. The only place I felt truly at peace. On our first date, he surprised me with a trip to his favorite beach. We collected seashells to make matching lucky charms, made sand-angels, and went surfing. Although he'd never admit it, he got wiped out by the waves more times than I could count on my fingers. It was adorable. I remembered the quiet moments. Just the two of us sitting on a patch of grass. Aiden would pull out his guitar, and sing. Think of all of your favorite sounds. The birds chirping on an early morning, or a mom humming while cooking. His voice was just like that. "Why do you love singing so much?" I asked. He sighed, before looking at the stars watching us from above. "It makes me feel closer to my dad." He didn't elaborate after that, and I didn't push him to. Instead, I just leaned on his shoulder, as we gazed upon the stars. On our six month anniversary, he brought me to the same beach. "I uh..." he halted. "I wrote you a song." As expected, the song was beautiful. But the last verse took me off guard. "So keep your hand in mine, my darling You're my dream come true I love you more than little tunes Do you love me too?" I snapped back to reality, and held the lucky charm to my chest. I wanted to turn the plane back. I wanted to see Aiden one last time. "I love you too," I breathed. This long distance thing was *going* to work out. Wasn't it? 5 Years Later… Aiden's POV I couldn't control my nerves. My leg was bouncing up and down, and my breathing was unsteady. I never thought that one song would lead to this. My very first concert. And out of all of the cities in the world, I was performing in New York. *Her* city. I held tears back from my eyes. I couldn't think of her now. Just the mention of her name was enough to make me cry. Even after years, I still waited for her to call. Hardly five months had gone by before the long distance caught up to us. The arguments were getting more intense. Day by day, we were drifting apart. In the end, the promise she made me at that airport was left behind. Oh how I wished I could take back the things I said during out last conversation. "Are you ready?" My stage manager asked. I nodded, but all I wanted was to ditch this place and allow the tears to sink into my pillow. But I knew I couldn't let my fans down. When I hit the stage, and the spotlight was on me, the sadness faded. Seeing the crowds of people coming to just hear my voice filled me with joy I haven't felt in a while. "How's everybody doing today?!" I screamed. The concert went way better than I expected. Hearing the audience sing and cry along to *my* songs warmed my heart. The whole thing felt magical. Finally, it was time for the last song. I took a deep breath. "This song was written to a girl I once knew. And even if we're not in touch anymore, I love you Akina. I always..." I let the tears fall to the floor. "I always will." The audience gasped, as the music started; I began singing the lyrics to "Words I Used." And maybe I was just really *in* the moment, but it was as if Akina was there in the crowd, cheering me on.