Where ever you go
What ever you do
I will be right here
Waiting for you.
She sat quietly on the swing, in her hands a single yellow rose.
From where your standing you don't understand, why she's there. Doesn't she have something better to do? Maybe not. But of course in your simple 6 year old mind, there are a lot of other, much more entertaining things to do.
A single tear trails down her cheek and now your really confused. Why is she crying? You want to go immediately to her and investigate but you hear your older sister calling your name. The girl on the swing is older than you, maybe your sisters age. She's around 16 or 17. Of course you don't know for sure.
Your sister takes your hand and leads you to the sidewalk, to go home. But your eyes are on that girl, she's crying openly now, the rose lay on the ground forgotten. Her head is in her hands but you don't know what's wrong.
She rises from the swing and wipes her tears away. Her pale yellow sundress is a bit wrinkled from where she sat, her hair tied back with a yellow ribbon. The mystery girl turns on her heel and you see that she has forgotten the rose behind.
Your sister is becoming impatient. She tells you to hurry, but your mind is elsewhere. You turn to her and ask her what time it is. She's irritated but tells you anyway. Its 6:15. You allow your sister to take your hand and lead you away from the neighborhood park.
The girl is momentarily forgotten as you get home and your father takes you in his arms and showers you with hugs and tickles. But later that night you lie awake and think about that girl, what was she doing there and more importantly who is she.
2 years later
She's still there. You've spent 2 years going to that park everyday, just to see her sitting in that swing everyday until 6:15. Everyday she has a different colored rose, and everyday it lays forgotten on the gravel by the swing. And everyday you pick it up and lay it on the swing once she leave.
Now that your older, your 8 now, you start to wonder if she's waiting for someone. Maybe she is and maybe she just likes the park, but that wouldn't make much sense seeing as she cries everyday. Her dark hair becomes unforgettable in your mind, her chocolate colored eyes are branded into your mind. From your sister you learn that her name is Mitchie. But your prefer mystery girl.
Your sister doesn't understand why you drag her to the park everyday, but she takes you anyways. You are her little sister after all. Everyday it's the same thing, mystery girl shows up and sits at the swing with a rose in her hand. When she first arrives there's a slight smile on her face but as the time ticks by it slowly disappears, her shoulders slump with time and her eyes grow watery. Her rose is forgotten everyday. Your sister, Dianna, calls your name telling you that its time to leave. You see the mystery girl get up, the rose on the ground. She leaves the park quickly and disappears around a corner. You rush to the swing and pick up the rose laying it on the swing. Quickly you run to Dianna and walk home together. Today, you noticed, the rose was white.
4 years later
You've been watching her, your 12 now and you realize that most of your childhood was spent on this girl. She's probably 23 now, seeing as Dianna is 23 now. She left for college a few years back but she stills comes to visit. You begin to wonder if this girl goes to college, she probably does seeing as everyday for the past 2 years she shows up an hour later. But she always leaves at 6:15. You've never gotten the nerve to talk to her and ask her why she's here everyday.
The girl looks older but of course she does. Her brown eyes are darker, and hollow. Her hair is the same shade but its longer. Her hands still hold that rose. Her smile isn't the same though. Its almost as if she finally realizes that what ever she's waiting for isn't coming.
You began to notice that she was always there, even when the ground has hard and covered in snow, even when the leaves have fallen of the nearby trees, when the flowers begin to bloom and when the sun is practically smothering you with its heat. This girl doesn't have a life, you've concluded.
You begin to wonder what's missing from her life and maybe, just maybe you'll get the courage to ask her.
2 years later
Dianna's getting married, and for once your attention is pulled away from the mystery girl but you still see her at the park each day.
You've gotten the opportunity to meet Dianna's fiancé, Lea. You've grown up wondering what love is and when you see these to look at each other you understand what it is, well you sort of do. Love is wanting to be with that person, loving them unconditionally and not being able to live without them. Maybe that's what mystery girl has lost, the love of her life.
But then again, your 14. What could you know about love?
10 years later
You've moved away from where you grew up. Only an hour away of course, but still you moved. Everyday you cant help but wonder if mystery girl is still there, but you have more important things on your mind. College is a big one, romance is another but in the back of your mind you wonder, and you become curious.
Surely, she wouldn't be there still. Would she? She would have gotten married, had kids. Right?
Your curiosity drives you to find out. You call your mom, she's delighted to hear your coming home. Dianna is going to, with Lea of course. And they have news, Lea's pregnant.
After the news of the pregnancy, you detach yourself away from the house and look at your watch. 5:45. Mystery girl should be there.
You walk to the park, your shoes make a soft crunch noise on the fresh snow. As you round the corner you begin to think that its preposterous that she would be there.
But sure enough there she is. Sitting on that swing, with a red rose in her hand. You make your way towards her and sit down in the swing next to her.
She doesn't even notice.
You ask her what she's doing.
No answer.
You try again.
And this time she tells you one word 'waiting'.
You sit silently next to her, after 18 years of observing her, you don't know what to ask.
She doesn't have a jacket on, and you notice she's shivering slightly. You take of your hoodie and slip it around her shoulders.
You notice that her hair is graying slightly, her eyes look worn down and her hands are still around the rose.
You ask her what she's waiting for.
'Alex' She responds.
You don't understand, but then again you never have.
Slowly you rise from the swing and smile at her, you turn and make your way back home.
The next morning you find the rose and your hoodie on the swing.
25 years later
You've lived your life, you've gotten married to a wonderful young man. Well he's not so young anymore. You've had kids together and you've seen them grow up. Even with your life marching forward, the mystery girl is always in the back of your mind.
After some research of town records, you finally find out who 'Alex' is.
Alexandra Marie Russo.
She was 16 when she was killed by a drunk driver on her way to meet a friend at the park. You've pieced together enough information to know that she was walking to the park to meet up with mystery girl, or Mitchie, seeing as that's her name. From accounts of old classmates, they all tell you that the two girls were together, they had been dating for 2 or so years. Mitchie was devastated. She had tried to kill herself but her parents had always stopped her.
Even now, once your older and know what's going on you cant help but wonder if Mitchie's still their waiting. Maybe she always will be, because even after all this time. Some part of her wants Alex to round the corner and show that she's alright. Maybe she's still sitting on the swing waiting for her lover to come and take her hand. To lift her up from that swing and spin her in their arms. Maybe she's their right now hoping, just hoping that Alex will come to her after all these years.
What ever it takes
Or how my heart breaks
I will be right here
Waiting for you
