Every smile does not indicate happiness or contentment. Sometimes it is a shadow that you wanted to cast over your true feelings to avoid the judging eyes of people around you. You always tell everyone that you are okay.

That is what she always does – SMILE.

Every smile she shows indicates something else. Sometimes she does not even know if she’s really smiling or not. All she knows that it had been a long time since she truly smiled – that ever genuine smile. She truly misses that feeling.

She leaves the things that will remind her of home. She stands before the door of her house, taking one last look of it, before switching off the lights, letting out a huge sigh, and locking the door for the last time.

“There’s nothing left for me here.”

And every street light she’ll leave behind will now shine without her.

She does not know where to go. All she knows is this isn’t home anymore.

With only a few bucks in her pocket and a few clothes in her duffle bag, she takes her first step in finding what is missing in her life. It feels liberating.

She rides the first bus that she saw. It does not even matter where it is heading.

After a few hours, the bus passes thru a bridge that shows a beautiful sight of the city. She is so amazed by the view that she waited for the next bus stop, and decides to walk back that certain bridge.

When she reaches the bridge, she is so engrossed with the view of the city that she doesn’t even notice that she is been standing there for hours. All that her mind and heart are saying “Welcome to your new life.” She lets out a small smile and chuckles.

-x-

Few months have passed

She settled in her new home. It is small compared to her old abode. What is important now is that she felt at home, a feeling that she thought she will never feel again.

She got a job in a small diner, earning a decent pay. It is owned by a lovely couple that treats her as one of their children. Everyone there accepted her that way she is.  She does not need to pretend to be somebody else anymore.

Here, she feels comfortable. Here, being girl who has short side-swept hair, and sports a tomboyish look does not stand out. Here, no one mistakes her for a guy. No one encourages her to change her style. Here, she is accepted for who she really is.

It has been a routine for her after her shift in the diner that every night she will go the bridge that she saw the first night that she came to the city. She always draws the view in her sketch pad.

One night, she heard someone singing at the right end of the bridge. He had a very beautiful voice, peaceful and soothing. His voice sounded lovely and lonely at the same time. She felt sad for him. She just listened to him singing for hours and watched his silhouette in the corner her eye.

It felt peaceful.

Every night, she listens to him singing the same old song that he always sings. And she ends up humming it until the next day at the diner.

-x-

“It has been a year. Move on.” He says to himself.  He finds himself singing a certain song that means so much to him. He feels lost and alone.

One gloomy night, he stops by the bridge like he always does this past year. He almost always ends up standing to the same spot they always meet up and have long talks. But while walking to his usual spot, he heard someone singing his song.

He smiles for the first time again in a very long time.

He is not alone anymore. That gives him hope. He felt an instant connection.

-x-

While walking to the bridge, she doesn't even notice that she is singing his song. She developed a certain fondness to the song, she realizes.

“Hmmm….” She says, while looking for the ever so familiar voice and silhouette standing near the bridge.

“I guess he did not come today. Hope he’s okay.” She concludes with a worried expression.

She feels disappointed not hearing him sing that night. And first time in months, she leaves early that night.

The next two nights, he chooses not to stand to his usual spot at the bridge. And again, she ends up singing his song. She feels like she will be the one singing his song for him, to take his sadness away, and ended up drawing his silhouette in her sketch pad and writing the lyrics of his song - a certain line.

The past two nights, he ended up listening to the girl who sings his song. 

He wants to see her face, but all he can see is her L.A cap. He doesn’t even notice that he always ends up smiling while listening to her beautiful voice.

The next night, he arrives there a little late than he used to. And notices the girl is not there. He decides to wait for her for a while, hoping she is just late too, wanting to hear her voice again, but she didn’t come that night.

Once again, he feels alone.

The next night, he goes to the bridge a bit early; he doesn’t stop at his usual spot. Instead, he waits at her usual spot, for hours. But no one came. “I miss you”  

She’s been busy lately. She was not able to go the bridge and see him, and hear his voice. She suddenly felt lonely. She misses his sad song. “I miss you,” while looking at her silhouette drawing of him.

-x-

Months later

He got a job as a composer for certain Music Company. Most of his lyrics are about the girl who sang his song for him, the girl whom he misses so much.

Every time, he needed inspiration for a new song, he always sing that particular song but not to his ex-girlfriend anymore, but to her, the girl that makes him smile again.

He sings it more passionately like he is singing it right in front of her.

“How could I miss you? How could I miss hearing your voice? I do not even know your name.” He always says to himself.

The old couple left the diner to her. Under her management, the diner has opened many branches downtown and upstate. It is a huge success. She is living a very comfortable life compared to life that she had before. But something is still missing.

She keeps a sketch of him in her office table that serves as a reminder that there is someone out there, someone like her, someone that is lonely like her.

“How could I miss you? How do I end up singing your song every day? I did not even get the chance to know your name.” She utters to herself.

That night, he decides to go the bridge. He wants to see her again, and hear her voice – her sweet angelic voice.

He waits for her on her usual spot, singing the song.

He was disappointed that he didn’t see her, and decided to go home. Then, suddenly he hears a familiar voice… her voice.

She was waiting at his usual spot. Hoping he still goes to the bridge. Hoping she will finally hear him singing his song again.

Then she sees someone walking towards her, looking straight at her.

“It’s him!” 

He hugs her so tight. “You came back. I finally met you.”

She hugs him back, her face turning crimson.  

“I’m Henry by the way,” still hugging her.

“Amber.”

“I don’t need to miss you anymore.” Henry said.

“Me too”

They felt comfortable in each other’s arms, smiling.

-x-