It was a cold afternoon. The autumn leaves are falling gracefully from the trees. The red, orange, yellow and brown colored leaves falling in contrast complementing each other’s colors. The park was rather quiet. The only noise that you would hear are the ducks and swans in the pond. The birds chirping, singing. And some children, playing from the nearby playground.

A man was taking a stroll near the pond. After minutes of walking around, he decided to take a rest on the bench under a tree. He got really tired and decided to take a short nap. After a while, he woke up. As he looked around, he saw a lady sitting next to him. She was wearing a light pink blouse with a white skirt and then some white sneakers. She was reading a book while listening to music with her earphones on. He didn’t tried to talk with the stranger beside him. He just sat silently next to her.

The next day, the man took a stroll again at the park. And again, rested at the bench he sat on yesterday. Minutes later, the same lady came and sat down beside him. So close, yet so far. It was becoming a weird atmosphere between him and the lady. So he tried talking to her. “Hey…” but she didn’t responded. He looked closely and saw her with earphones on. He felt so stupid and got really embarrassed, so he went ahead early.

Five days passed. The same things just happened at the park. Him, taking a stroll then trying to have courage to speak to the beautiful lady that always sat beside him but eventually fails to do so every time.

The next day, he waited at the bench for the lady. And as expected, she came. She was still listening to music with her earphones. But now, instead of reading a book, she was now writing at some journal she had bought. She kept writing and writing then finally took a break then ate a sandwich. While she was eating the sandwich, her pen fell down without her noticing it. He noticed it and picked it up. He tapped the lady’s shoulder then gave her the pen. She just took it without saying thanks then continued writing after putting away her sandwich. He thought that she was a rude girl for not saying thanks and just sulked away, taking out his phone to play.

Suddenly, he felt someone tap his shoulder. He looked and saw the lady holding her journal out to him. He looked at her then at her journal. There was a writing. It said “Thank You…” He then looked back at the girl, blinking quite confused. The lady just smiled at him. And it made him smile too. “No problem.” He replied. The girl tilted her head. He didn’t heard what the man said because of her earphones. So she gave the pen and her journal to the man. But before she did, she first wrote something. “What did you say earlier?” she wrote then finally gave the journal to the boy for him to write on. He was clueless at first, but caught up. He wrote the same thing he said earlier. After reading, the girl just smiled. She then looked at her wrist watch then started writing again.

“I have to go now.” She wrote then let him read it. The man was a bit surprised to see what she wrote. It was a still a bit early. Because, he would always leave first than her. He then asked to borrow the pen and the journal. The lady reluctantly gave it to him.

She noticed he was writing something. As soon as he finished, she read “Why do you have to leave so early?” she took the journal and the pen then wrote something. “I have an appointment today. But don’t worry, I’ll be here next time.” He read then looked at the girl who was smiling at him. The man just nodded his head with a smile. Finally, the lady got up to her feet then waved goodbye to the man and left.

The next day, he waited at the exact bench he sat on yesterday, waiting for the lady to arrive. He wanted to get to know her more. He looked at his wristwatch and saw that it was still too early for her to arrive so he took a nap first.

Minutes later, his nose started to itch like someone was playing with him. As he opened his eyes, he saw the lady’s face close at his own face while giggling at him. He sat up straight. The lady backed up, still giggling. His face turned red for a minute because of embarrassment. But also, he felt something. His face started to feel hot while the lady’s face was so close to him. But then, he snapped back to reality.

It became a bit quiet for a moment, when he noticed the lady writing something again. As she finished up, he showed to the man for him to read. “Nice seeing you here again.” He borrowed the journal then replied, “nice seeing you here too.” He smiled at her in which, she too, smiled back. Eventually, they talked, wrote to be precise, for hours. All random topics.

Later on, it was getting a bit dark. They lost track of time while talking with each other. “I have to go now.” The lady wrote. “Ohh… I forgot about that. Sorry.” He wrote as reply. “No… It’s okay.” She smiled at him. He smiled back. “Well, I really have to go now. Nice talking to you. I mean writing.”

“My pleasure. Oh wait. I haven’t even learned what your name is.”

“I’m Suzume. Takahashi Suzume.”

“Ohh… What a pretty name. Suzume. Suits you. Your name is as beautiful as you.” He wrote down. She blushed at his compliment.

“How about you? What’s your name?” she wrote down.

“The name’s Aoki. Aoki Haruyuki. It’s kind of a weird name.” he said. She giggled at his embarrassment about his name. “Not really. It’s cute. Aoki-san.” She wrote. His face flushed in embarrassment. “Anyways, I really have to go now. See you next time?” She wrote down. Aoki just nodded in agreement.

Days passed like always, writing to each other in a notebook. It all seems pretty normal until Aoki noticed that they kept talking with a piece of paper. He wanted to open the topic to her, but he’s afraid.

“Maybe Suzume tried to hide her voice from him. It can’t possibly be like that.” He thought to himself. “But maybe she really did have a weird voice. No… No… That possibly can’t be it.” Again, he kept thinking about it. It’s about to make him nuts, trying to find the answer to his own question. With all much contemplating with his own self, he mustered all his courage to ask Suzume the reason to it. On why they kept writing to each other, not talking with each other.

The following day that they met, they wrote about random things. Then, Aoki finally changed the topic, so that he may now know the answer to why they kept writing with each other. “Hey~ aren’t you bothered that we kept writing in this journal, instead of just talking with each other?” he wrote down then went back to look at Suzume’s reaction.

As she read it, she looked up to Aoki with a smile, then wrote back. “Not at all~ I’m very comfortable with writing~”

“Ohhh~ I see…” Aoki couldn’t ask for more about that. Maybe she would hate him if he kept asking. So he tried asking another topic. “You keep listening to music. I always saw you with earphones on. What are you listening to right now??”

“Wanna know?” she wrote back. Then took one of the earpiece for her to share to Aoki. She was about to come close to his face so that she can put the earpiece for him. Aoki got flustered all of a sudden, as he backed away, he took the earpiece from her, trying not to startle her. She just looked at him, thinking what just happened all of a sudden.

As he put on the earpiece, there was no sound coming out. He found it strange. “Maybe it’s just not yet.” He thought. He looked back to Suzume, as he saw her facing the sun, eyes closed. Like feeling the rays through her face. It was quiet all of a sudden. Suzume looked angelic as the sun shines at her pale skin. Aoki couldn’t help it but fall for her. Until he came back to reality as she opened her eyes and looked back at him. She started writing again in her journal then gave it to him as she finished. “So? What do you think?” she said, indicating the earpiece she gave for him to listen. Aoki was so confused. There was no music coming out. Maybe she didn’t realize. No, she must have realized it from the start. Clearly, there wasn’t any music coming out. He took the pen then wrote at the journal too. “But there was no sound coming out.” He wrote down.

Again she just smiled at her. “There weren’t any sounds in the first place.”

Aoki was shocked at her response. There was no sound coming out of her earphones since the start? How could that happen? Clearly, she doesn’t hear him when he’s talking in the first place. He thought that her music was too loud for her to hear him. But he thought wrong. There was no music in the first place, as she said.

He noticed that Suzume was still writing. He waited for her to finish. It was clearly a long one as she she wrote for several seconds before finishing. She gave it to him to read.

“I actually liked you from when I first saw you Aoki-san. I was a bit shy so I just sat there beside you at first without talking to you. You mught even say that I just ignored you at first. But then I was surprised that you actually kept going at the same park, at the same bench. Then you started talking to me. You started noticing me for the first time. I was so happy. But then again, fear started crawling back. I was so scared that you might not like me back because of my flaw.”

Aoki, again, was confused. What could that flaw be? So he asked “Why is that? Why were you so scared? Actually, I liked you too Suzume-san. You were so beautiful from second day that I saw you. You were glowing like you were an angel. Why were you so scared?”

“The reason why I kept leaving a bit early was because I was not allowed to stay out for a long time. My parents are so scared that something might happen to me. The truth is…”

Aoki waited for her to write some more. What could it be? Could it be that she’s…?

“I’m deaf…” a tear fell out as she wrote. She put it up in front of Aoki’s face. Tears rolling down bit by bit as she force a smile.

Aoki was surprised. His thought was right. She was deaf.

She started writing again as she saw his reaction.

“Now… Will you still love me for who I am?” again, she held in front.

He went back to his senses. Yes she was deaf… But that doesn’t mean that she could not love a person. And that doesn’t also mean, that no one can love her for who she really is. He grabbed the journal and wrote something. Suzume was dumbfounded at his actions. Maybe she will be rejected, she thought. Still, there was something holding her back to wait for his answer.

He kept writing and writing. Trying to express what he really felt. As he finished, he gave it to her with a smile on his face, making her not to worry much.

“I hate you. Not because your deaf, but because you do not believe in me. You were scared because I wouldn’t like you that you are deaf? You were wrong… Even if you are deaf, blind, mute or have any other disease, I still would like you. No… I love you already Suzume Takahashi… And nothing will make me change my mind on that fact that I already love you. If you are thinking that this about sympathy. You are wrong. I love how you smile, how you laugh. I love how playful you are. I love how you always look. Again, I told you that you were always glowing, like you were sent down from heaven. No matter who you are… I will always love you Suzume…”

Tears rolled down as she read every word. She couldn’t believe it. Someone actually accepted her for who she really is. She felt really special at the moment. She couldn’t let her tears stop flowing down. As she felt a warm touch on her cheek. Aoki was wiping of the tears as he smiles to her. She was really happy, she couldn’t care less. She gave him a big, tight hug, as she whispers to his ears. “Thank you very much Aoki-san. You accepted me for who I am. I am really grateful. I also love you… Please take good care of me.”

He hugged back as he nodded.

And that’s how they both found true love….

 

 

 

 

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So I finally posted it~ Hope you like it guys~
Please do comment on your thoughts about the story~
Again no plagiarizing.

The names of the characters are just my thoughts. Any on who has the same name are just pure coincidence.~