a/n: Based on "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupéry. Yeah, THAT story.
Let me tell you about my life.
I am a prince who lives here in this planet. It is always snowing and cold in this place I call my home: the Soviet Union. Nothing had grown in this land, except for a gloomy volcano that I clean on a daily basis, and some baobab spouts I often pull uproot lest it would bring my small, insignificant planet to destruction.
No, I am not lonely here.
I would whisper to myself.
I am alone, but not lonely.
I proved that lie correct when miraculously, a single, beautiful flower grew on the Soviet Union. Golden petals, Green leaves, Midnight black hair and Amber-colored eyes.
He was a Sunflower.
And he was my very first companion.
Starting from that day, with Yao around, the Soviet Union became a brighter, warmer place to live in. Both of us shared the same belief of how to rule the planet (which is quite silly since we were but two in this place. Three, if you count the volcano as a grumpy citizen) and sometimes, we share the same theories of what was out there, beyond this planet.
My curious violet eyes would shine brightly at the other stars, but they lit up the most when I look at the beautiful porcelain-skinned Yao, who gracefully took care of his petals and kept his leaves as lush green as possible.
"I will never leave YaoYao alone here." I stated with such firmness, it caused the said flower to turn to me oddly.
It just made me smile brighter. "Da. Never ever."
Yao would smile a small, timid smile. He would nod and say nothing for a while, then let his eyes wander out.
"I would never leave Yi-wan alone in this place as well."
"Is that a promise?" I held my pinky out for him to take.
For a moment, he stared at my hand, contemplating. Then, he reached out and entwined his own pinky with mine, that genuine, world-shaking smile on his face.
"Yes, it's a Promise, Yi-wan."
But he was lying.
My beautiful, warm sunflower wanted me away from him.
I wonder why that is…
My innocent mind would think.
Why? I have given YaoYao my planet, food, shelter and my heart. Why… Why do his eyes flash a split-second fear when he looks at me?
I stare at Yao. He flees, Amber eyes darting to anywhere but my violet ones. He would tremble when I am near.
What did I do wrong?
"I am leaving, Yao."
His beautiful eyes looked startled as it met mine, for the first time in a long time that we've been together.
"What?" He replied with an open mouth. "W-why, Yi-wan?"
"You do not like me." I answered coldly, feeling my heart freeze by the minute.
He blinked twice, mouth frozen for a moment before moving to his default reaction. "No, Yi-wan, Of course I want you here. Why—"
I looked away. Not only did he lie to me, he tries to deceive me as well.
You'll leave the next chance you'll get, right? Right, Yao? Don't look at me like that.
His eyes were wide in fear, hands were up to shield his face from me.
DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT! YAO!
"Y-Yi wan!" He shouted, true fear lacing his voice.
It caused me to blink, snapping from my thoughts. My glittering, violet eyes trailed down slowly and found themselves stuck on my cold, cold hands…
Wrapped around his stem, ready to pluck his weak body out of the ground like a baobab sprout.
I gasped, took my hands away and stumbled my body far from him. "Y-yao… YaoYao… I'm… I'm so sorry…" I stuttered.
The flower only looked down, a little wilted, as it held its bruised stem gently.
It froze, as if it pained him to move even a little bit.
And of course, it did.
Now, was that why he was scared of me? Such a view I gave him, murderous glint present on the ever adoring eyes that gazed upon him, a sneer replacing the smile I always gave him and the hands that caressed his petals as if frail glass had gripped his body, ready to kill him.
Ah.
So that's how it is.
I laughed bitterly, covering my face.
I am meant…to be alone after all.
That very day, I decided to leave the Soviet Union for good, not even sparing Yao a glance. The planet started to snow again, instead of the warmth that lingered when everything was still right with me and my flower. Before I went away though, I unwrapped the scarf around my neck and gave it to him.
"It's cold, Yao." The last words I uttered before I left.
Oh yes, he pleaded for me to stay. And even though I wanted so much to do so, I cannot.
I didn't want to hurt him anymore, which is why I left.
A journey alone wouldn't be so bad.
Right?
Travelling alone wasn't as fun as hoped it would be. Something empty grew inside my heart while I roamed. Perhaps it is where Yao was supposed to be, and now, it is nothing but a void and barren wasteland.
So this is what a broken heart is.
But I feel like my heart is frozen and cold, not broken.
My little ship came across several beautiful asteroids before it finally landed on a planet ruled by a king. He was a cold and cruel royal, and his planet was snowing as well, but the blizzard was harsher than mine could ever be.
People often call him General winter, instead of King Winter. I see as well that he preferred it that way.
The General grew fond of me, or so the citizens' rumors said. Maybe it was because he saw the similarity between us, the cold exterior hiding a hideous monster.
Or maybe because of the empty space in my heart. It also served as the basis for the king to choose another ruler. He needed someone harsh, unmerciful and stoic to rule so one may gain the respect of the people. This did not sit well with me.
Yao, no matter how hard it is to speak about him, had taught me equality between individuals was most crucial when you rule. You must give voice to the people, or you cannot hold the most important part of the kingdom: the people's heart. It is equal to everything, their cooperation, their trust and their satisfaction with the taxes. This theory I hold close in my heart. I may be just a prince, but I see now that adults are overrated.
Adults are strange.
"Stay and be my heir." He told me one day. I can certainly sense bitterness there, but also a hidden loneliness…
I wonder if Yao feels lonely and cold, like the king right now?
I snapped out of my reverie a moment later and smiled an empty smile. This has already become my habit, smiling as such.
"Nyet, but thank you." Was my reply, and out I went again to discover the rest of the universe.
Or simply…to just drown my loneliness away.
After another long while, I arrived at another planet. That planet was inhabited by utterly narcissistic people, but not as much as the ruler of that place was.
"Ah, Mon dieu! Look! Another admirer has come to bask himself in my handsome presence!" he exclaimed the moment he saw me. Almost immediately, my lips turned up in disgust.
"Nyet, I am simply here to visit your planet. I am on a journey, you see…"
"A journey, you say?" he took out a bottle of some sort and poured red liquid, almost like blood, in one of his glass cups. "Pardon, but I see you are too young for wine."
"Wine…" I echoed in confusion as my brows furrowed.
He roared in laughter. "Ah, young naiveté. It makes everything so innocent, I am almost jealous."
I gave him another annoyed and confused look before he continued on.
"So, this girl you left behind… she is lonely without you, non?"
I tilted my head. "What girl? I do not have a female back in my planet. All I have are baobab spouts I pull out every day…"
"Ah! Baobab! Such horrible, horrible things…" he sipped his 'wine' and smirked. I almost sensed mock, but I let it be.
"I also have snow there… a grumpy, inactive volcano… and my—a flower. Da. A sunflower named Yao." My voice sounded strange when I spoke his name. It's as if for a moment, he would spring up from this alien ground and smile his beautiful smile…
"Ah! I knew it. L'amour!" He exclaimed. "The beautiful me couldn't help but notice that you are in love, oui?"
"…Love?" I echoed again. Such strange words they use, these adults. "Explain."
"Love," he said, "is when one adores another with all his heart. It is when one thinks of the other every day, and each passing minute, falls deeper into realization that, 'Ah, she is the one for me. No one is more beautiful than my cherie.' " His eyes went far away after that, almost like he's thinking of someone as he explained.
For me though, instantly, I thought of Yao. Beautiful, slender Yao… and the mistake he did.
"Da, but he lied to me." I stated flatly.
He waved a hand. "True love forgives, mon ami. Even if they have done the greatest betrayal, true love still stays and loves and forgives."
I shook my head. He confuses me. His words confuses me, this conceited man.
"Da. I must leave now. Thank you for your time." I turned and started to walk away towards my small ship.
Before I departed though, I heard him call out, "Come visit and adore me next time, oui?"
I couldn't help but laugh.
They are odd creatures indeed.
If the last visit was bizarre to me, this next one surely tops it. I came to another planet after a short time of traveling, and a short time I spent there.
"B-Bloody 'ell! Who're you?" came a roaring voice from a man all alone in the vast planet.
He was sitting on a table, bottles and bottles surrounded him. It didn't resemble much of that bearded man's 'wine', since this was labeled , 'Beer'.
"Excuse me, I just came here to rest, I am on a journey—"
"The bloody 'ell I care, you wanker!" he wailed and swigged the bottle of beer on his hand. "Tell Alfred I'm sick of his games!"
"Alfred?" I asked yet again in confusion. I suppose it was someone he knew. "Sir, why are you drinking?"
"To forget." He answered.
"Forget what?"
"Him. I want to forget everything about him. His smile... His voice… His love." Yet again, he gulped the horrible-smelling liquid from the brown bottle. "Might as well kill'im."
I gasped. Almost immediately, I remembered that day when I almost killed Yao. Did he want to forget me as well? Did he drink this… this… beer just to erase my existence in his memory?
My heart ached at the thought.
Silently, leaving the man who mumbled to himself (and to thin air), I went on with my journey , carrying a heavy heart.
Another long while passed after I arrived at the next planet. It was a very quiet planet, and I doubted anybody lived in such solitude.
Except of course, a man who vigorously scribbled and mumbled to himself.
"Privyet!" I greeted, but he didn't even bat an eyelash and continued on his mumbling.
"Eight and two make ten, seven and six make thirteen. Ja, Hello. Two and one make three, five and four make nine." His blue eyes went on scanning the paper. "Ja. Eight billion, seventy-eight million—"
I was intrigued. "Eight billion, seventy-eight million what?"
He looked up as if he saw the most annoying thing on the planet. "You're still here?"
"Da, but what were you referring to?" I asked, wanting my curiosity to be quenched.
He sighed and looked at his paper. "Did you know that I was only disturbed thrice? First was by a very annoying, self-loving man who preached of love."
Ah, he must be referring to that bearded man. I suppressed a smile.
"The second, a loud, crying drunkard who lamented his unrequited love. This is the third and I made a mathematical mistake."
I blinked, not quite getting what this vexed man was talking about. "D-da… but what was the eight billion, seventy—"
He rubbed his face in an exasperated manner. "They are stars, happy?"
Alas, I blinked in confusion again. It seemed that whenever I am around these adults, I always get perplexed. "The Stars? Why ever are you counting the stars for?"
"Because I own them, dummkopf." He huffed.
That seemed rude, even though I had no idea what that meant. "But no one owns the stars."
"Unfortunately, I do. Because I wrote them here, which means I already own them."
"Interesting! So it means if I wrote something on a sheet of paper, I shall own it myself?" I asked excitedly.
"Ja. More or less."
In happiness, I took a paper that flew from his desk, grabbed an extra pen from his penholder and decided to write.
He looked at me quizzically. "You know it's rude to use other people's pen and paper like that."
I ignored him and looked my list over.
The things I own:
• One inactive volcano
• Baobab spouts
• Snow
• One Sunflower
I stared at the paper for the longest time. Then I went on to crumple the paper and walk back to my ship.
"H-hey!" The man called out in surprise. "Aren't you going to write what you own on a paper again?"
I didn't answer, but gave him a sad smile before departing.
I do not own Yao now, not after what I did and what he did. If I didn't own him, nothing seemed of value anymore.
The next planet was rather small, just enough for a street and a single lamp to stand on a short sidewalk. I met a man there who seemed to whine that he is tired every two seconds, and that he craves for pasta.
"Why don't you take a break?" I ask while sitting beside that single lamp.
He looked ready to cry, that curl sticking out from his hair strangely wilting with his face. "I can't, ve! Orders are orders." He proceeded to put the light off. "Good morning!"
"Orders? You mean you are ordered to turn the light off and on every minute? But no one is even here!"
"It doesn't matter, ve? I follow the orders, even though I want to take a nap or eat pasta." He puts on the light. "Good evening."
I decided he was a strange man, but seemingly admirable out of all of them, who have selfish point of views. He does something not for himself and is faithful to his orders. I salute him greatly for it.
If only Yao would be faithful to me and our promise as well.
A moment later, I bid the man goodbye and went on my way.
At the next destination, I found my forehead meeting the point of a shotgun.
"Who are you and why are you here?" Growled the short man who wore a funny hat. I found myself blinking innocently.
"Eh? What is this thing pointed to my head? I am a prince from my planet, the Soviet Union—"
"Never heard of it." I heard a clicking sound. "Leave immediately."
"But I only want to know what your profession is, and also to see this beautiful, vast planet as well.
He seemed to like the comment and lowered his gun. "Are you an explorer?" He asked, sitting on his table filled with books and opened maps and compasses.
"Nyet, I am not. Are you?"
He shook his head. "I am a geographer."
"What is a geographer?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.
"It is someone who lists the eternal things on this world, like mountains and rivers—"
"Ah! I have a volcano at home, list that down!" I smiled at him as he quickly took a pen and started scribbling. "I also have baobab sprouts—"
"We don't list things that are ethereal." He cut in.
I cocked my head to the side. "What does ethereal mean?"
"It means things that die quickly, like plants and flowers—"
My eyes widened. "Flowers! Do you mean to say that Yao will die if I stay away too long?"
"Who is—"
He didn't get to finish his words when I ran all the way to my ship, heading home was my only goal.
Somehow I found myself on earth instead of my planet. My ship crashed and it would a while before I could fix it to work again.
Then, the strangest thing happened. I wandered in this big, big planet and caught myself amidst such many, many flowers!
Sunflowers.
I greeted the sunflowers, they greeted me back. It seemed like I saw Yao everywhere, but then again, he is not here as well.
"Isn't it strange?" said my friend, the fox. "Here you are surrounded by a million flowers, but still, all you think about is that one, single Sunflower back at your home. Dude, you need to go back and be with him."
He flashed a smile, and then I was sure, I needed Yao more than ever. The time apart only made me forgive him, and my love the sweeter.
I looked up at the sky and found that beautiful, white star I reckon as my planet.
Our planet.
"I wonder how many light years it will take to go back home…" I asked myself, and the fox gladly obliged to answer.
"Dude, you'll never now 'till you start."