He was late.

Pacing back and forth rapidly on the grass, the girl flicked up her wrist to examine her watch. He really was late. A good ten minutes. She sighed heavily and continued to pace, wheeling around every few seconds. Her shoes produced a rhythmic squeaking sound against the wet grass. It had rained as the evening had drew near, and the branches of the trees that lined the small, secluded little park in which she paced still dripped with moisture.

Where was he? They'd agreed on eight o' clock. It was almost a quarter past now. It was risky enough coming out to meet him at this time. If her mother happened to enter her bedroom and discover the room empty and the window open, her life would experience a serious drop in quality.

Not that it mattered. She just wanted to see him. And he'd said he wanted to see her, to talk about something important.

So, all that being said, where was he?

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

Wheeling around again, she glanced down at her watch. It was officially a quarter past eight now. It was the first time he'd ever showed up late. She told herself to relax, and stopped pacing. It wasn't doing her any good.

There was a small bench – their bench – behind her. She brushed the worst of the rainwater from the wood with her hands, shook them to dry them, and then sat down. A grimace crossed her face. It was still cold and damp, but at least she wasn't stalking up and down like a caged animal any more.

The park was beautiful at this time of day, just on the cusp of nightfall. This particular area, accessible only from a steep stone staircase nestled between a pair of tall trees, was especially wonderful. You could see rooftops stretching on for miles, all the way to the horizon, where the sun was slowly descending, illuminating the sky with a magnificent pink hue. This was her place.

In all the years she had been coming here, she had never seen another person. It was odd – even a secluded place is not entirely invisible – but she couldn't recall another face ever having been there. There were occasionally birds in the trees, and a cute white cat with a bald patch showed up every now and again, usually on the prowl for a tuna sandwich. But no people.

She scanned the little area. Her trees. Her grass. Her bench. Her sky.

Of course, it wasn't just hers any more. She had brought her boyfriend up here, shortly after they had met. It had become their place from that moment on. Her cheeks flushed red as she recalled their many dates at this very spot. Laying out a little blanket on the grass and enjoying a picnic, holding hands while sitting on the bench and staring out at the sky, talking for hours about everything that mattered, and more importantly, everything that didn't.

She had heard that the first love was the most intense, but she had never imagined it would be this wonderful. He was wonderful. He was also late.

She stood up again and resumed her brisk pace, back and forth in front of the bench.

"Shizuka?" came a voice from behind her.

She span around, startled. Her heels squealed. A smile crossed her face as she saw the owner of the voice, and she clasped her hands together, holding them in front of her chest.

"Yukio!" she sighed, relief coursing through her. He'd finally shown up. A little late, perhaps, but that didn't matter. She was sure he'd have a reason. Maybe he'd brought her a present! She did her best to calm herself and stepped over to him, taking his hands in hers. They were cold. She rubbed the backs of them with her thumbs and smiled up into his face. He didn't return it, and his deep brown eyes broke contact with hers.

"Sorry I'm late," he said, his tone difficult to pinpoint. Shizuka shrugged. "That's okay! I didn't even notice!" she lied. He stared down at her blankly for a moment, and then loosened his hands from hers and turned, heading towards their bench. She watched as he sat down, her smile diminishing a little. He was acting strange tonight. First he'd been late, and now he was barely speaking.

Slightly concerned, she walked over and sat beside him. He didn't seem to notice. He was staring out at the row of houses, like skipping stones to the sun, as she had done a few minutes earlier. He seemed to be deep in thought. Shizuka waited for him to say something. He didn't, and after a minute or so, when she was convinced he was not going to begin the conversation, she spoke.

"Yukio… is something wrong?"

His head slowly turned to face her. Their eyes met. There was something heavy in his gaze. It worried her even more. After a moment or so, he turned his head away again. Only when his eyes were firmly trained on the distant horizon did he speak. His voice was low, and he spoke slowly, as if choosing each word very carefully.

"Shizuka… I asked to see you tonight because there's something we need to discuss."

She nodded. He'd said that on the phone, earlier. Now that she thought about it, he'd sounded strange on the phone, too, although it hadn't registered with her until just now. She waited for him to continue, and after a few moments of protracted silence, he did so.

"It's…" he said, before falling silent again.

Shizuka's concern grew. Whatever he had to talk about, it was clearly very difficult for him.

"You know you can talk to me," she said comfortingly. "About anything."

"It's about us."

She frowned, confused. The smallest shred of fear crept into her mind, but she pushed it away. "What do you mean?" she pressed. To her chagrin, a little of that anxiety had made it into her voice, too. She waited for his reply.

"We… I…" he murmured. "I don't think we should date any more."

The next few minutes were hazy, like some kind of horrible dream. There was an apology, a hastily worded explanation as to why they should no longer see one another, and then he was gone. Shizuka didn't really recall any of it. She had just sat on the damp bench with wide eyes and her hands twisted together like the knotted roots of an ancient tree.

When the shock subsided, she found herself lying on her stomach on the sodden grass before the bench with her head in her hands, weeping. The sun continued to sink, and the light began to flee the sky. The breeze quickened, shaking the tops of the trees. The groaning branches mingled with her sobs, creating a terrible song of sorrow that filled the little hidden area.

Shizuka...

The crying girl, startled, almost choked on her sobs. Coughing, she twisted around on the grass to locate the source of the sound. She thought it had been a voice. Perhaps it had just been the wind? Nobody had ever been up here. She wiped her red, puffy eyes with her sleeves. She imagined her clothes were in a terrible state by now, but it was the least of her concerns. She scanned the small area. It was empty. She was still alone. It must have been the wind after all.

"Shizuka…"

This time, she knew she had heard it. She craned forward, looking for the figure. She could see it now. It was standing at the top of the stone staircase that led back down to the main area of the park. It was hidden by the deep shadow of the trees on either side, and the dwindling light in the sky enhanced the camouflage.

"W-who are you?" Shizuka asked, her voice shaky and unstable.

"Is… your heart… broken?" asked the shadow. Shizuka shuddered. It was an unpleasant voice. It sounded like a moan, like the wind in the trees.

"Your heart…" groaned the voice again. "Is it… broken?"

"I…" replied Shizuka, before dissolving into a fresh wave of tears. Of course it was broken. Her first love had just left her, alone on a cold evening. She hadn't even heard his reasons. She'd never even kissed him. Not ever. She'd been sure he was the one. Her one true love. And now she was alone.

"There, there… child…" creaked the voice, in a tone that was supposed to be comforting. "I know a way… to make it all better… I know a way to… make the pain… go away…"

Shizuka looked up at the shadow through tear-streaked eyes. "H-how?" she croaked.

"Are you… sure you want… to know?"

Shizuka nodded, the movement dislodging teardrops from her cheeks that were lost in the wet grass. She'd never felt pain like this. It felt like her heart was going to physically smash into a million pieces.

"Then all you have to do…" said the shadow, "is open your heart to me…"

The last of the light left the sky, and night descended upon the little hidden place.