Why Not Us?

The exchange program list had come. It might as well be a dream. Anita thought. She didn't only want to go for an exchange program for learning. It was past the time when she "wanted" a change, now she needed it. Being the only daughter, she was of course loved...a lot. And when a loved child meets a heartbreak, maybe that child is broken in a very unexplainable way. She was not running away, she was heading towards something better. She had to leave her town and go somewhere where she could start fresh. She was all packed. Mr. Parker was running late to office but he decided that he will drive to the airport himself. Mrs. Parker gave her last minute reminders, which were always needed because their Ani had a habit of leaving something or the other unpacked. This time it was her phone.

"Ani!" she called.

"Ya mom?" answered Anita.

"Packed everything?"

"Aye Aye Captain!"

"Captain suggests you check again."

"2 Bags, 1 handbag, candy bar, charger, wallet, ah..ya everything's here!"

"Don't call us once you reach."

"Okay I will, love you..ahhh wait what? Don't? Why do you say that?"

Anita goes near her mom and hugs her.

"Mom, don't worry, I'm gonna' be fine. Don't be upset, I'll call you okay?"

"Ya sure you will...."

Mrs. Parker gave her an I-know-it-all smile and took out the phone from her handbag.."from airport booth I guess?" Mr. Parker laughed and Anita stared at both of them and nodded at their last minute joke. When they weren't looking, she looked at them with a look of adoration. The flight was on time. It was a sunny day in New York. They waved a goodbye and turned before Anita could see the tears in her father's eyes or before he could see the fears in his daughter's eyes. This was the first time she was going to be all alone.

A new place. A fresh start.

Today too, as always..she didn't know if she wanted it, she didn't know if she was doing the right thing...but then, when did she ever know for sure? Dissolving these imaginary thought bubbles in air, she stepped towards a new beginning. She didn't talk much during the journey. She was not a person who would strike a conversation easily. And anyway it was "just" 14 hours. Anita used this time to watch her favourite classics and slept in the remaining time...which was only some 3 hours for she had seen four favourites in a row; back to back. The flight landed. And as she was hoping...this was new. New faces, new places. She booked a cab to the Tokyo University. Sleep-deprived, Anita felt like the little 5-year old Ani Parker who used to sit behind in her parents car and sleep. But somehow, she couldn't sleep there. Maybe it was the feeling of newness, which was both exciting and scary at the same time. It was late at night and she just wanted to fall on the ground like it'll automatically convert into a cosy warm bed...

'After all it is Japan!' She wasn't making sense and she knew it so she decided to not think for sometime, which proved to be a good decision because she had to get to her room without falling asleep. And this needed effort because her eyelids became another luggage (maybe the heaviest) for her by the time she reached the room. As soon as she entered, she fell on the bed, landed on her stomach and fell asleep. It was 7 in the morning. And she was surprised to see her bags maintained in one corner of the room when she so clearly remembered how she had come last night. As she got up and looked around she saw someone eating breakfast at the table.

"They said they have an induction program starting at 9, I don't think you should be late on your first day." He said.

"Who are you?"

"Oh! I'm so sorry...I'm Emilio. You can call me Leo."

"And what exactly are you doing here Emilio?" Anita asked with a perplexed yet sure-of-herself look.

"For the same reason as yours. I'm also here for the exchange program tha..'

Anita cut his sentence in between "I mean what are you doing here in my room?"

Emilio gave her a bright smile and handed her a key which had "207" and the other which had "213" written on it.

"I think your room is the one in front of this one. It was dark at night and I had gone to the bathroom. I guess you came at that time."

Embarrassment poured upon Anita and her this-is-my-room look. For some moments she didn't know what to say but she was really hungry so she decided food could help her here.

"Can I have something too? I haven't had my dinner."

"Ya ya sure please help yourself. I'd better get going" said Emilio.

She ate and got ready. Emilio had left the key at the table. What kind of a guy was he? No

taunts? No blaming or telling who was wrong and who was right? And there was still time for the induction program to start...where did he go so early? But she didn't have so much time to spend on a total stranger, she thought. She moved her luggage to her room and adjusted her stuff. There was no sign of Emilio even at 9 and she thought of it as her responsibility to lock his room too. She saw him once at the induction program. For a few days, that's all she saw of her friendly neighbour.

Whenever she saw him, he was near the river, scribbling something in a diary.

The course was getting busier and busier and Ani and Leo had become friends. They had become for each other, the friend that they never had and that they always wanted. They shared details about their projects and their day. Leo had gotten used to the American accent Anita carried just like she had become used to his Italian accent, which at first she had not notice at all. One funny coincidence which made them friends was their mobile phones. They both had the same mobile

phone models. They looked alike and out of respect for this coincidence, they put the same picture of theirs as the wallpaper. Anita was enjoying her stay so much that she had forgotten her worries about "tomorrow."

One day, out of curiosity, Anita took Leo's dairy. Leo had told her that he writes. He had told just this much. But when she read his diary...she instantly understood Leo was modest. Too modest and way too simple to brag about the talented gem he was. She loved every word she read and wanted to read it again and again. Leo had been called by his teacher to discuss his project and he had asked Anita to wait. Anita had this excitement to give those words more than just meaning and feelings..she wanted to give those words expressions. She enacted a piece several times and thought to record it so she could see how much of justice she did to it. Leo had come back and he had no idea how happy and respectful Anita had gotten in that half an hour. The same evening, she thought of watching her video and it was not there. She panicked because she thought she lost it..but the next morning had a better panic plan for her. What she hadn't realised was that it was Leo's phone she used instead of hers to record. As she woke up in the morning, she didn't remember when she fell asleep but something ringed in her ears. "..and rain storms down..and sun pours down..and it doesn't matter anymore which of them is the greener one..because you are on my side..."

She ran to see what was happening and students were gathered in the screening hall. The voice became more audible as she went near the hall. And there it was, on the screen. She acting Leo's writing. It took her some time to process what had actually happened but her eyes were already searching Leo. Leo was standing close to the screen near his teacher. He waved and smiled at her but she turned back and went. When Leo came out, she didn't talk to him..and not just that day..for the next three months Anita never smiled back but Leo never stopped smiling at her. For Anita, a girl who was hidden for so long in her shell that it was hard to break even by herself, she was embarrassed that people saw who she was. She didn't know how to react and felt cheated.

It was in middle of winters when one day Anita just came and sat quietly before Leo where he always used to sit, which was where they always sat when they were still friends. Anita thought of words. But she didn't know if she wanted to be angry or to be sorry. Leo remained calm. He kept his eyes fixed on the grass leaves he had in his hands.

"I thought it was a surprise from you..I wanted to surprise you too, so I went to my teacher later that evening and asked if I could screen this in my project the next day...Expressive Arts" he said.

"Leo..I, I didn't..it was just a trial..I liked your writing" said Anita.

"Why past tense? Has it degraded?"

"I haven't read..."

"Would you like to?"

Before Anita could say yes, the happiness on her face did. Maybe it was the happiness of

listening to Leo with his Italian accent...or maybe, it was the relief of knowing that she had not lost him.

Time went by as Leo read his poetry, his articles and his stories. Anita looked at him.

"Can I ask something Leo?" she asked.

"I guess you already did!" Leo smiled.

Anita smiled back...after such a long time, she finally smiled back.

"Who do you write for?"

Emilio remained silent for some time before finally speaking. At those moment, he unintentionally looked at her and withdrew his gaze back to his leaves of grass.

"I write for life."

"And what is life?" she asked.

"I don't know. Maybe it's a person, maybe a goal, maybe a stupidity."

"Emilio...I don't know how to go on. I don't know what I want to do in life."

"Me neither."

"You're crazy...you write so well, of course you want to be a writer."

"That is something what I am Anita. I bleed words when my heart hurts. And it's not a choice, it just happens because paper has been the most trustworthy friend of all for me."

"So...you don't know too?"

"No."

"And how do you feel about that?"

"Normal."

"Normal??"

"Aren't you worried what's going to happen? What if we never figure this out?"

"We will."

"How're you so sure?"

"I'm not. But why are we always supposed to be sure? I'm just sure of now. That I want to be where I'm. Right next to you. We can't live in terror of the future, can we?"

"But.."

"This is not our story to sit and write. It's our story to go out there and live."

It was the last month and they both had made memories that would stay with them for a long long time. They had been to famous places, quiet places, it felt like Japan had started to know them too. And soon..the end of winters, the end of the exchange program came. Both of them decided to make their farewell a special and memorable day. Anita took Leo to a place in Tokyo they both had loved. It had a huge cherry tree...although it was freezing, the big tree covered with snow looked beautiful. This time, she had a surprise planned and she gave Leo his phone which she had kept with her during the journey. For the first time, it looked like Leo didn't have words.

Anita had enacted his writings as a farewell. And it meant so much to him that words fell short to the writer in him. They had an amazing day and all the good times swirled in front of them like it was a movie. How much they lived in just 6 months...Leo kissed Anita on the cheek. They went to airport together and never left each other's hand till then. Neither of them wanted to leave that place. But soon they both had to, they didn't have a choice. The flights were to leave soon and they went without a final goodbye because goodbyes are hard...maybe the hardest of all. Their goodbye was supposed to be in winter. But it never happened.

It was the charming Japan again.

And a coffee shop.

And Ani and Leo.

Just..in 2020.

They were meeting after one long year. It was spring. And the big old cherry tree was just as beautiful as it was when they last saw it. They had so much to catch up on but didn't know where to start from.

In this one year they had not been in regular touch. Life had gotten really busy. But they

certainly remembered what having a great friend felt like.

"Hey guess what!" said Anita.

Leo looked at her and gave a smile.

"What?" he asked.

"I've been taking dance classes too along with my acting classes!"

"Really? That's so great, and do you know what I've been up to?"

"Writing...I guess Mr. Secretive?"

"Yes..but what am I writing?"

"Tell me...can't take the suspense Leo, you know me, now tell!"

"I've been writing songs...after Japan, I started travelling to nearby places near my town and I met a lot of people who knew how to play instruments. Some old CD Shop owners, some old band fans..they liked my words and I, their music."

Anita's eyes were sparkling with the same excitement. She was happy for him and it just

occurred to her that it was a coincidence again.

"Hey, did you notice Leo?" she said.

"Noticed what?" Leo asked.

"Have you noticed how funny this is..it's another coincidence...you wrote, I acted, I dance, you write songs..funny, isn't it?!"

"Whoa..hadn't seen that coming..that's so cool!"

"Ya..tell me about it!"

Leo looked at Anita again.

"So..did you work things out with your "it's complicated"?" he asked.

"Well..you know, after I went back, I thought it through. You were right all along. He isn't right

for me..and moreover that jerk doesn't deserve me" she said and gave Leo a high five.

"Funny enough, not exactly a coincident...but something similar had happened with me."

"Really? What?"

"Remember the girl I told you about? My neighbour?"

"Yes..the one you thought was "the one" I guess?" she mocked.

Leo gave a little laugh and then continued.

"Ya ya I got it, you remember. So I thought she was into me too and you know how I am, I won't just go out with anybody until I find a connect.."

"Yes, I know because this is the problem with both of us."

"I guess so."

"Then what happened?"

"Well..turns out that like normal people, she could go out with anybody."

"Ohh Leo, I'm so sorry. Whom did she go with?"

"Me."

"Wait. What? Did I miss something here?"

"Well..like you said about thinking it through..she wasn't interested in me. She just wanted to be interested in someone. No matter whom. So I called it off and as expected she didn't care, which hurt a little..well, okay, a lot."

"You kidding me? You asked her out and called it off? And that's sad? Leo...you should not be a writer. People should be writing a book on you my friend!" she laughed.

They both told about their lives when they were away and how phone never had that personal connect they had when they were together. Both of them told about their weird dates where the next person was too drunk or too shy to talk to, too talkative to let the other person talk. Just when Leo was telling another story of a hilarious date he had back in Italy..an old man who was sitting at the table behind theirs came to them as if he knew them really well and said "Oh

common you two...can't you give this a chance?! Been listening to you like crazy to know if you were ever gonna' say this...does the storyteller looks good interrupting the story like this?"

Both looked at the old man for one moment in confusion.

"Just kidding I'm not God but since you believe in stories so much..why not write yours? "They fell silent and looked at each other. Anita's hand touched Leo's and she smiled and said

"Oh no..we'll like to live ours."

As they stepped out of the coffee shop, Anita held Leo's hand who held it back with equal

warmth.

"But seriously Leo, why didn't we think this before...why not us?"