The Four Seasons

The Four Seasons

Written and Illustrated

By Lily Blake

This book is dedicated to

Rasta my old cat who I won't ever forget.

Mapleleaf Writing project

Brattleboro, Vermont

2019

Part 1 a touching snowfall

As you open your eyes you see nothing but white and everything is… cold. You look around you and the wet white material falls down around you and you realize... it’s snow. You look around and see the trees are blanketed with snow. You shiver as you stand up beginning to make your way home. The stars in the night sky look like flakes of snow themself.

When you get to your door you reach into your pocket and take out the keys to open up your door, and as you do some snow follows you inside. You take off your shoes and slide a pair of slippers onto your feet then you head straight to your room and plop down on your bed. You reach over to your bedside table and grab your phone you then begin to text your best friend.

You: Hey James are you busy this Friday?

James: Yeah sorry. Alexa asked me if I would go see a movie with her on Friday at 7:00 and before that I’m hanging out with my mom. I would hang out with you but as you know I rarely ever get to hang out with my mom.

You: I understand...maybe some other time?

James: That sounds good!

You: Ok bye!

James: Bye!

You set your phone down and think to yourself no it’s not “good”! Ever since Alexa came to your school she’s been trying to hang out with James all the time!

You let out a sigh, snuggle up under your blankets and shut your eyes as you feel yourself slowly drifting away into sleep.

The next day, Thursday, you wake up at 6:30 and you slowly get out of bed.

You walk over to the bathroom, pick up a hair brush and begin to brush your long curly dark brown hair. When you finish brushing your hair you set down the brush and look at the mirror and gaze into your misty blue eyes and then you break your gaze and look down to your mouth. Your mouth that when you open words will never come out, ever because… you’re mute.

On your way to school you hear from behind you “HEY! Vicie wait!”

You stop and before you turn around you know immediately who it is.

It’s James, he’s the only one who’s ever called you Vicie, your real name is Victoria but James came up with something shorter, Vicie.

You then turn around and see him running towards you waving his right hand.

You stand still and wave back until he reaches your side then you resume walking to school together.

As snow begins to falls down around you you grab onto james’s arm and shiver a bit.

You then turn your head and see him unzip his hoodie and slip it over your shoulders.

Then he says “are you warm now?”.

You blush a little look away and say in sign language...yes…

He smiles and says “good! Now come on lets run the rest of the way or we’ll be late!’

You smile and say in sign language ok!

When you get to school you go straight towards your classroom. You nod good morning to your teacher and walk to the side of the room where your desk is.

You then sit down,lay your head on the desk and look out the window at the falling snow.

The snow is falling harder than it was just a moment ago. Weather does that sometimes… “weather is weird” you think to yourself.

At lunch time you make your way up to the rooftop because no one really goes up there other that you and James.

You look down and that when you realize that you forgot your lunch… and all your other school stuff for that matter.

You then see James walk up to where you’re sitting with a grin on his face.

For a second you don't know why he's grinning but then you know.

You look away flustered as he says “so you forgot you lunch? Ha is just like first grade all over again!. “Don’t worry! I have some extra food but try to bring your lunch tomorrow cuz I wont have extras next time!”

You smile and nod your head.

After lunch you stop James before he leaves the rooftop and ask in sign language James is it ok if I keep this hoodie?.

He look at you and says “Sure it was getting to small for me anyway”

You look at him blushing and say in sign language Thanks... are you calling short?!?

He quickly says “No way! Last time I said that, you slapped me! I’ve learned my lesson!”

You smile give him thumbs up and begin to make you way to class.

Part 2 Jealousy

The next day you made sure to pack a lunch and put all your stuff inside your bag then you start walking to school.

On the way to school you see in front of you James walking with Alexa.

Even though you know she can’t see you from behind, you give her a death glare then look away.

When you get to class you see that Alexa is asking to switch her seat.

The teacher says yes because she always gets good grades and he sees no problem with it.Alexa makes her way over to the only other empty seat… the one next to James.

You feel your head filling up with anger.

You’ve never really admitted to the thought of being in love with James… but now in the place you’re in you have no choice.

It's Friday now and you watch as Alexa reminds James that there going to a movie at 7:00.

You feel forgotten… it… it hurts!

As you walk home from school you think to yourself what if James falls in love with Alexa? Do I even have a chance? Is it because I can’t talk? Am I becoming nonexistent?

All of these questions swirl in your head like the snow around you until you come to the conclusion that… you need to learn how to talk! And if you can’t you at least have to try.

Days passed as you tried learning to talk these days turned into weeks and those weeks to months. You can say what you want to… but only in your head. James comes up to you many times but each time you run or walk away with a pain in your heart.

It’s spring now the snow is melting and small green sprouts are busting out of the ground and there are little buds appearing all over the trees. As you walk to school you see Alexa run up to James and start walking to school as well and you think to yourself have I really been forgotten? You answer your own question by saying to yourself yes… yes it

You answer your own question by saying to yourself yes… yes it I have.

In class all you can seem to think about is learning to say those few words that mean so much to you. You keep repeating them over and over inside your head. In class, at home you find yourself trying to say those words where ever you go. The days seem fast and whenever you stop trying to speak… you feel… heartbroken.

And so you don't. You don't stop trying to speak. And before you know it, just like that it’s no longer spring. It’s fall. And at this point… you feel like giving up… because you know you can't speak. You were born like this. You have no more hope. And so… you give up.

Part 3 Motivation

Normally with James around all of the bullies in your school find other victims to bully. But now that James is hardly ever hanging out with you… well… now you are one of their targets again. On your way to lunch one of the school's biggest bullies stops you on your way up the stairs and says.

“HEY! Dumb little mouse! Where's your parents?! Aren't you blind, deaf and mute?! Don't you need to stick around them?!”

Hearing this makes you start to cry.Your parents died in a plane crash when you were four. They were on their way home from their honeymoon. You where at your grandma's house at the time. She died when you were 15. And somehow you lived on your own ever since, well one of your grandmas friends pay for you to stay in a little house next to them but other then that you’re not really connected.

You’re sobbing as the bully just stands there laughing, blurting out insults. You wish you could just vanish, sink into the flour or pull some kind of disappearing act like how the winter snow melts in the spring , like it is are now, slowly melting away and making the ground damp... totally free.

The bully shoves you into the wall, you slide down it doing your best to try and disappear. They laugh at you.

Then James comes walking down the stairs with Alexa. James see this and shouts “HEY! LEAVE HER ALONE!” drawing the attention of some of the near by teachers. With that the bully runs away but gets stopped by one of the teachers and hauled to the principal's office.

James walks over, looks down at you and says “ Hey… Vicie are… are you ok?” he extends his arm out to help you up off the floor. While Alexa is rushing over to make sure your ok, You take James’s hand and get up. You then say in sign language Thank you… but I’m fine. Quite clearly lying.

Alexa asks “ What did she say?”

James says back “ she said she’s fine…”.

Then Alexa moves forward… and hugs you. She pulls James into the hug as well. James says to you, “Vicie please remember I’m your best friend,

I’ll always be here for you!”

Alexa says “ even though I don’t know you too well I’ll be here too! Let me know if you ever need a hug!”

With this you no longer see Alexa as “in the way” or “the replacement of you”. She seems more like a friend now. More importantly hearing this from James and from Alexa gives you back your motive to say those words you had given up on. No longer for love… but for friendship. And all you can do right now is nod the best you can. Even though you're currently trapped in a big hug.

Part 4 A New Friend

It’s summer now and the students are free from school just like all the the flowers of the summer that were trapped under the ground and snow.

Free like the new summer leaves that were encased in a spring bud.

And now as you sit alone in the fresh green grass feeling the rays of sun on your face, you get a phone call. This is strange because normally you don’t have anyone contacting you during the summer. Because the only one who knows you… and your number, is James. And well you can’t talk so there's really no use for it.

Still you pick up the phone and the second you do you hear…

“Hey! This is Vicie or Victoria right? Well I was wondering if you would like it go hang out at the pool?”... There’s silence on your half of the phone, after all you can’t say anything anyway … “Hello are you there- OH! Right I’m so sorry I forgot you can’t speak! Well anyway if you want to hang out at the pool just meet me there as soon as you can! I really want to become friends with you! Come if you can!”

The phone call ends and you find yourself just sitting there in the summer sunlight, completely shook.

No One's ever wanted or even tried to become friends with you! Well except for James. Even though you had strongly disliked Alexa before… but that was before she showed you any compassion.

And your not letting this chance go by. You get up and rush inside quickly grabbing all of your stuff that you would need for going to a pool and run there as fast as you can.

When you get there you look around and see Alexa waving to you.

You rush over to her, still a little surprised that someone reached out to you. After all you're just that girl who can’t talk, however Alexa just smiles, hands you a notebook and a pen and says, “Here since you can’t talk I got you something to write on so we can communicate!”

Feeling touched you open the notebook and see that there's a necklace that looks like the middle of a heart with the letter “F”.

You glance up at Alexa with a puzzled look, she laughs and says,“ It’s a friendship necklace! I’ve got the one with the “B”. She says pointing the third of a heart around her neck. “And James has the one with the other “F”! Cool right?”

You nod and start walking into the pool building, your hatred for Alexa fading away like the leaves wilt in the fall.

And in the fall school will start and you’ll be going back, You, James, and your new friend.

The End