Story Is Based On Ripples (Game)
Keith Elric supreme pessimist, I hate people who think they can change the world. I pretty much hate people all together. I live in a city that isn't very large. There are many hidden places when I explore. Today, I found a small park with a fountain, tucked away between a row of trees and an old school building. There doesn't seem to be much here worth photographing but at least there aren't any people. Checking the lighting I aim my camera at a nearby bush.
Something moved. I creep forward. I use my camera as a shield hoping that nothing will jump out. Considering how much this camera cost, I'd probably be better off if I took the hit.
It's... a girl... What's she doing here? Is she... crying? I step backwards. If some girl is using this place as her secret crying spot, I want no part of it. But the sound of crying sounds more like pleading cats.
"Oh, hello!"
The girl looks at me calmly whilst stroking a small kitten. Two more kittens are rolling around on the ground beside her.
"Uh… Hey," I say. "Sorry to bother you. I'm just gonna… go."
"You're not a bother. Stay," she says smiling. "My name's Sayu Clemens."
"Keith."
"It's nice to meet you Keith."
The kitten that she's stroking yawns lazily and paws at her hand.
"Oh, here you go."
She pulls out something and holds it above the kitten's mouth. It bats at it before clamping with its tiny teeth.
"What are you feeding them?" I ask.
"Cookies. I baked them this morning," she replies.
"Sure seems like a waste to give them to strays."
"No, it's worth it" she says.
"They're just gonna die anyway. Strays rarely live long on the streets," I say.
"So?"
"So why bother feeding them?" I ask.
"They're hungry. Do I need anymore reason than that?" she asks.
"I guess not. But.. Why cookies?"
"Because they're the only ones who will eat it…"
"What?"
"I'm sorry, I need to go now," she says.
She gives the kitten in her arms a fond pat on the head before leaving. She didn't even say goodbye to me. I don't know if I should be offended or not. It doesn't really matter anyway. It's getting too dark to get any decent shots. I guess I won't be taking any pictures today.
After school, I came back to the park. I don't know why though...
"Ah, you came back."
I turn to the source of the voice. It's that girl with the kittens.
"I just wanted to take a couple of pictures," I lied.
"I'll get out of the way then."
I snap a few half-hearted shots before looking at the girl and the kittens swarming around her.
"What are you feeding them today?" I ask.
"Donuts," she replies.
"When did you make them?"
"This morning before school. I had to get up early to make them," she says happily.
"Why?"
"Well, the dough needs time to rise properly-"
"That's not what I meant," I say shaking my head. "Why work so hard to make food for stray cats?"
"I told you, it's because they eat it!" she says. "I've always loved baking you know. The best thing about it is being able to share it with others."
I stay silent, listening to every word of her story.
"There was a point in time where I wanted to own my own bakery," she says.
"So?"
"Last year, I baked muffins for the entire class," she explains. "All the girls wouldn't try them, claiming they had strict diets. I was so happy when some boys took a couple but they just threw them at each other."
"I even gave some to the teachers, who seemed to appreciate them but after school, I found them in the trash." she says sadly.
"Well, yeah. People never appreciate things like that. It's a waste of time," I say.
"Maybe..." she says. "Afterwards, I came here. I wanted to cry but these little guys came and cheered me up."
"I gave them the muffins and without hesitation, they ate them. Ever since then, I've brought them something everyday. As a way of saying thanks."
"What I like more than anything else is seeing people smile when they eat what I bake. I want to cheer people up and make the world a better place." she says, determination in her eyes.
"That's stupid," I say.
"Stupid?"
She looks at me in an annoyed manner.
"Cheering people up is pointless. They'll just get depressed again anyway."
"... Do you really think that?" she asks.
"Yeah."
"I see. That's awfully nihilistic of you," she says.
"Don't tell me your gonna go all philosophy on me," I say backing away slightly.
"No. Well, I need to go now. I'll see you tomorrow Keith."
"Whatever."
She smiles at me and leaves. The kittens turn their attention to me but I don't bother taking pictures of them. It's too dark to take pictures anyway.
I came back after school to the park. Walking past the fountain, I spot the girl with the kittens again.
"Hey..."
"Hello," she says. "Here. This is for you."
She hands me a small plastic bag tied up with a thin red ribbon.
"What is it?" I ask.
"Cookies. You want some right?"
"What makes you think that?" I ask.
"You came back didn't you?" she says.
"Yeah. For taking pictures."
With a sigh, I open the package. I'm greeted with the sweet smell of chocolate. I take one out and bite it. It's not that bad. After a moment of silence, Sayu spoke.
"I'm sorry..."
"For what?"
"You're not smiling. It must not be very good..."
"It's not bad," I say.
"Smile then," she says.
"No. Why are you trying so hard to get me to smile?"
"You don't look like a happy person," she replies.
Now I'm getting mad.
"So what! If I want to stay this way then I will! It's my life and smiling isn't part of it!" I yell. "It's none of your business anyway!"
"It is my business if you're coming here to see me," she says.
"I never said anything like that!"
"You didn't have to."
"Who cares anyway? I'll be depressed again tomorrow!" I yell.
"Then I'll bring you more tomorrow," she says.
"Do you really want to see me smile that badly?"
"I want to see everyone smile!" she says.
"Great. Another impossible dream. This is why I hate people."
"You don't like people?" she asks.
"Of course not! They always ruin things!" I exclaim. "They leap into pictures when I don't want them to or obsess over how they look as if it really makes a difference! I can't stand it! They're all so annoying!"
"Am I annoying?" she asks.
"… I-I don't know…" I say. "Besides, I hate people who think they can change the world."
"Why?"
"Because it's dumb! One persons life is like a drop in a bucket anyway!"
"...Do you really believe that?" she asks.
"Yes I do!" I say. "It better than believing that I actually change anything!"
"Then why are you here?" she asks.
Wh-what?
"You want to believe it but you're just afraid to! You're afraid that you can't make a difference so you don't try!" she yells.
"That's not-"
I can't bring myself to deny her statement.
"Hey.. Keith?"
"Yeah?"
"Even if my life is just a single drop, every drop of water leaves ripples."
She leaves before I can respond. I don't have a response anyway. She says what she believes in strongly. She believes she can change the world with nothing more than a cookie and a smile. Honestly... I don't know if she can or not...
But I do know she managed to change me...
This is my first story that I have ever published so please give me good feedback. I'd appreciate it if there are no flames. I'm new to this writing thing so if my stories are crap, forgive me. Please Review so I can get good feedback and usernames to look at (I wanna read your stories too!). If you noticed in this story, I love writing dialogues so sorry if it bores you.
Natsuki56 (Natsu 4 short) signing out! ~ ^-^
btw I used this story as my short story English assignment :D