A/N: Okay, personally I think this way too short, it's because I'm submitting this to the newspaper (I mentioned earlier) but it has a word limit. 1200 words. This entry itself is already 200 words past it, but I still think it's lacking a lot. Maybe I'll elaborate more when I have the time. Mid-year exams coming up so yeah- Enjoy <3

Original Story by Yilixia.
Title: Winter Snow

The crisp autumn air was taken over by chilly winter winds. Leaves have all fallen and gone with the wind, leaving behind bare trees.

The coffee shop is my favourite place to visit during the winter, because the strong aroma of coffee tickles my senses, and the warmth of a nice cup of cappuccino never fails to make my day. I sit at my usual spot in the coffee shop, ‘Hansel&Gretel’, watching the passer-bys through the glass window as I sip on my coffee, indulging the scent.

Someone familiar passes by, and I do a double take, not believing my very own eyes. I must have been hallucinating again, because he couldn’t have been alive, I’ve visited his grave. I shake my head, smiling at how silly I was. Maybe it was someone who looked alike from his side profile.

“Good morning.” Someone chirps and I splutter after choking on coffee.

I look up and manage to suppress a scream after catching sight of whoever who was sitting in front of me. There were not many people around me, so after I took a quick glance of everyone in the shop – a snuggling elderly couple, a group of gossiping teenagers, and two colleagues having breakfast, I hold my breath and gaze right into his eyes.

“You’re an illusion, right?” I half-whisper, in case people might think I was insane.

“I’m not. It’s me, Eric.”

“That’s impossible, like, what am I doing, talking to a hallucination?”

“Listen. Just calm down and hear me out.” He waits for me to take deep breaths before continuing. “I know, I’ve died, but I’ve made a request. This might seem so surreal, but you have to believe me. So, I’ve asked to return to this earthly world for a short period of time, because I’ve gave you so many promises, yet I wasn’t able to fulfill them.”

“Wait, how do I know if you’re not a real person?”

He stretches out his arm, and I reach out for it, only to find myself grabbing the air. I stare at him in shock as he gives an assuring, well-known smile.

“You’re an illusion.” I laugh silently.

This time, he grabs a spoon, takes a sugar cube, and adds it into my coffee. He smiles again when my jaw drops.

“So how long do you have left?” I question, collecting my thoughts again.

“Twenty days.”

*

It takes a while for me to accept the fact that I wasn’t going insane.

“Eric.” The feeling of his name rolling off my tongue feels weird. “Where are we going?”

“You said you wanted to celebrate proper Christmas. We’re going Christmas shopping. Tomorrow we’ll go buy a nice little Christmas tree with ornaments and maybe some decorations for the house too. It’s a pity it’s not snowing, or we’d go skiing.”

I smile; glad to know that he still remembers it all.

“Can anyone else see you?” I ask as we walk across the busy street.

“No. It’s just you.” I watch as he walks through everyone else. It was as if he was there, but then again, he wasn’t.

“Is that a requirement for your request for returning?”

He doesn’t answer, and in that split moment of waiting for his reply, someone bumps into me and I fall to the ground. The lady doesn’t apologize; she’s too busy talking on her mobile phone. I glance up at Eric, who is in a position of trying to catch me, but of course, I just fell through him. He stares at his empty hands, then back at me, with an apologetic expression and deep sorrow in his eyes.

“I’m fine.”

*

Christmas draws near. 13 more days, and counting.

We have breakfast at ‘Hansel&Gretel’, but I’m the only one eating. He might seem like he’s not there at all, but his presence comforts me by a little. Even if it’s just for another twenty more days, he has helped me crossed out a few things on my To-do list. Most of it were things we wanted to do together, but never had the chance to do so.

I munch on my potato salad, and from my peripheral vision, I see Eric gazing at me.

“Is there anything you want to say?”

“Nothing, I just want to look at you for a bit longer.” He reaches out and tries to my face with his thumb; neither one of us surprised when we don’t feel anything.

“You don’t blame me for leaving without saying a word then?” He asks; his gaze lingering long enough to force an answer out of me.

“What’s done has already been done. We’ll have to let go of the past, cherish the present, and embrace the future. I don’t blame you.”

He smiles and remains silent. For a few seconds, there were only the clinking noises of my spoon knocking against the ceramic bowl, until something crossed my mind.

“Eric? About the time capsule… what’s in it?”

“Hm, that’s for me to know, and for you to find out.” He teases.

“Eric.” I glare, and my tone turns serious. I was still eager to know.

“There’s 365 handwritten letters; one for each day of the year. It was supposed to create a distraction from you in case you ponder over me too much.” He was being his conceited self again, a side of him I haven’t seen for some time.

Oh how I wish I could poke him in the side like I always did.

*

Days fly past like hours. A blink of an eye and there’s a week left.

“The lake is frozen, how about ice skating later?” Eric suggests.

“No one will catch me if I fall, and it is way too cold outside.”

“Excuses shmuses. You’re just lazy. Then, how about going to home to cozy up in front of a roaring fire and complete that 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle we’ve never came about to finish?”

“Sounds great.”

We end up having a movie marathon after that, watching all the Christmas related films and movies we had, from ‘The Nightmare before Christmas’ to ‘Rise of the Guardians.’

I fall asleep right next to him.

*

It’s Christmas’ Eve. The weather turns chillier than ever, and there is a glimpse of hope that it might snow. Every year, I would go back to visit my parents during Christmas, and this year wasn’t an exception. Eric tags along, excited, although it is his last day around.

Both of us don’t talk on the journey back to our hometown; having the presence of the other is sufficient. He hums to my favourite song, tapping his foot to the rhythm but the sound is almost inaudible. After approximately three hours, we arrived at our destination and decided to visit the park before visiting my parents. The sky is a dark shade of grey, the dim moonlight illuminating the darkness.

He sits next to me on the bench, and as he looks up into the heavens, a snowflake makes it way to the tip of my nose and I sneeze. His laugh echoes in the silence as the snow continues to fall. We both stare in awe at the breathtaking sight; wishing time would stop for that brief moment. With the drop of every snowflake, time ticks away; there’s not much time for Eric left.

“Claire.”

I wait for him to continue.

“I don’t know if coming back was the right thing to do, but I just want to tell you this: It’s time for you to move on. Let go of the past, forget about me and look for someone better who deserves you-“

My tears fall as I cup my hands over my ears, refusing to listen.

“-someone who can make you happy, someone who will love you for a lifetime. We don’t embrace the future, Claire, we create it. So go and create yours. This is my last request.”

“But I just can’t imagine myself living with someone else that’s not you!”

His smile is bitter, as parts of him slowly turn into wisps of smoke, fading away like melted snow. He mouths goodbye, and I know that his time is up. My tears are dry, and I feel alone again.  He has moved on to a better place, and I think I should do the same.

Till death do us part; and now that we’ve parted, I will create a future of my own.