Misunderstood Eyes | Short Short #UnrequitedLoveLiteratureClub

The sea breeze blows gently, as if passing right through my entire body.

I was sitting on a bench at the train station near the coast, gazing at the sparkling sea spread out before me.

My high school is three stops away, but I love the sea that can be seen from here, so I leave home early every morning and get off at this station.

However, there is one more reason now.

It happened two weeks ago.

I had boarded the train early as usual, but perhaps due to exhaustion from studying for final exams, I started to feel dizzy and lost consciousness the moment I stepped onto the platform at this station.

“...Are you okay? Can you hear my voice?”

I hear a gentle voice near my ear.
Ah, my heart is soothed.

When I suddenly realized my situation, I was lying on the bench where I sit every morning.

“Thank goodness—you’re awake.”

A boy about my age in high school was peering into my face, wearing an expression of relief.

“Um, that...”

Suddenly, a wave of embarrassment washed over me, and I couldn't find the words.
Ignoring my flustered state, the boy said,

“It looks like you don't need me to call a station attendant. I'm in a bit of a hurry, so I'm going to catch my train.”

The boy hopped onto the train that had just pulled in, and as he looked at me standing there blankly, he gave me a gentle smile.

Even after the train departed, I remained standing there, but once it disappeared from my sight, I finally came to my senses.

Oh no! I didn't thank him properly!

As I was tormented by regret, I simultaneously realized a certain feeling.

Is this love at first sight?

Yes. The moment I made eye contact with that boy, I looked down, my face flushing as I tried to suppress something welling up inside me because of his eyes, which were as clear as a tropical sea, but there is no mistake about this feeling.

I want to get to know him!

From the next day on, I left the house even earlier than usual and waited for the train at my usual bench at the station with a view of the sea.

My plan was to board the same train if that boy was on it, but I didn't know which car he usually rode in, and besides, he might have just happened to be on that train by chance. I didn't recognize his uniform.

But I don't want to give up!
I'm sure the sea god will grant my wish!

Every time a train arrived, I would stare intently at the faces of the passengers standing on the platform side.

He might not be standing on the platform side, or he might be sitting down; when I think about it, the probability feels quite low, but regardless, I believed I would be able to meet him again.

A week of this continued until one day, when something strange began to happen.

"Um..."

While I was sitting on the bench as usual, thinking about my crush and watching the trains pull in, a boy I didn't recognize called out to me.

"You're here every morning, aren't you?"
"Yes."
"That... um..."

The boy started fidgeting while blushing.

"Every morning, as our eyes met, I fell in love with you! Would you go out with me?"

"Huh?"

After a few seconds of staring blankly at the sudden confession, I finally gave my answer.

I'm sorry! There is someone else I like!

Ever since then, it has become a strange daily routine to be suddenly confessed to by various people every morning, all of whom I have to turn down.

It's not just boys, either. Eventually...

Hey there, young lady.
Yes?
We make eye contact so often every morning that I thought you might have fallen for me. I've come to like you too, young lady.
Excuse me?
I may be an old man now, but back in my youth, I was a well-known playboy in these parts. I was always being chased by all the young girls.

I-I'm sorry for making you misunderstand!

The moment I stepped onto the stopped train, the doors closed.
Looking outside, I saw the old man from before watching the train leave with a sad expression on his face.

Including this old man, I have been confessed to by ten people just this week alone.

It seems that my habit of staring intently at many men's faces while searching for that one boy was a mistake.

It appears my passionate gaze has been causing them to misunderstand.

I suddenly became afraid of my own eyes, and from the following week on, I found myself unable to look at anyone on the train.

The morning of the closing ceremony.

Since summer vacation starts tomorrow, the chances of meeting again will disappear even more.

Sigh...

While letting out a heavy sigh, I was looking at the sea from my usual station bench when a train stopped in front of me, and I felt the presence of one of the passengers who got off coming toward me.

I was scared, so I started fiddling with my smartphone on purpose, but those footsteps stopped right in front of me.

"Um, by any chance"

"I'm sorry for making you misunderstand!!"

To me, who started running toward the train without even looking back,

"Ah, wait a second! You were sitting on the bench, so I thought you might have been feeling unwell again."

!?

I stopped in my tracks upon hearing that voice.

The soothing voice I felt at that time
It hasn't been that long, but somehow it's a nostalgic voice

I didn't board the train and slowly turned to face the owner of the voice.

The sea breeze was the same as always.

But for the two of us, the wind blowing at this moment was dry and refreshing, carrying the premonition that a new story was about to begin.

(1,972 characters)

■ This short short is included in the following magazine 😌

■ I am participating in a magazine specializing in novels and short shorts ✨️

This article is a submission for Naru-san's project [Unrequited Love Literature Club].
The theme this time was [Sea Breeze].

When I was in junior high school, there was a girl I fell in love with at first sight. We made eye contact so often that I thought our feelings were mutual, but when I told a friend, he said something unromantic like, 'That's just because you're looking at her all the time,' and I strangely accepted it, thinking, 'That's true!', so I couldn't confess my feelings 💧

I regretted for several years that I should have confessed even if it was a long shot 🥲

Perhaps as a reaction to that, when I was a university student, I kept misunderstanding every time we made eye contact and got rejected ten times in a row, which is now a good? memory 🙄

Come to think of it, I feel like I've written this story somewhere before, but I've forgotten (lol).

Thank you for reading this far 🍀

Click here for previous entries in the [Unrequited Love Literature Club] ▽