Those Eyes.

Have you ever sat down quietly on a bench and watched the red sun set and thought, will this all be forgotten?

 

Have you ever turned to that boy next to you as you sit on that secluded bench and wonder if you’ll know each other in twenty years time? Will you remember his milk chocolate eyes?

 

This time, when you yearn to be older, to drink alcohol, to get a tattoo or to go to University, is wasted and abused. You later realise this in two decades time when you dream of being young again.

Walking through my home-town of Porthcawl several days ago, pre-adolescent girls, no older than eleven and no younger than nine, raced past me to relay burning information to their fellow over-excited friend who squealed at the knowledge that a boy has asked their friend to be his girlfriend and they are holding hands in the street!

These girls made me smile to myself as I realised that five years ago, I was no different.

My first and only long-term relationship in year six with Tom was talk of the playground because other than Dan and Lauren, we were the only one’s who actually kissed when the bottle landed on us. It wasn’t really kissing, more just facing each other touching lips with the constant dilemma of “eyes open or eyes closed?”. The more times the bottle landed on you, the longer you had to kiss for and if my information is correct, we still hold the record for longest time in Nottage Primary.

But back then, instead of imaginary friends and dirty knees, we had boyfriends and mobile phones. Instead of learning to ride a bike and playing football, we had homework and make-up. Clearly, my life hasn’t changed much, I still long for the comfort of a constant friend, to go out and run through the fields not worrying about dirtying my jeans and ride my bike to my cousins house, who’d teach me how to finally do more than three keep-ups in a row.

Only, I can’t. Because now I have to work to earn money to pay my phone, Sky and make-up bills. I need to spend the rest of my time revising in my free lessons and at home to achieve those three A’s to make my parents proud.

But the other day, I went for a walk with my close friend. We sat quietly on a bench and together watched the sun set and I pondered, will this all be forgotten?

And I realised, no it won’t. Maybe I’ll forget all the jokes that made me laugh until my stomach ached. Maybe I’ll forget all the insults and all the compliments, but as I turn and look at him sat next to me and feel the warmth of his arm around my shoulders, I know that in twenty, thirty and forty years time-

I’ll remember those eyes.

 

 

S.E.M