Returning to my childhood neighborhood after years felt like stepping into a time machine. The basketball court, once the battleground of epic showdowns, now echoed with distant laughs. The playground, where I constantly fell off the swing, bruising my knee but still played football. The place I used to call home, the old yellow house where I spent 17 years. It felt different, cozy but not like I used to remember.
This old town is filled with so many memories. As I passed through the streets, I felt like I was five again. I thought deeply. I remembered the path to the house and recalled the games I used to play to avoid getting bored on the way. I realized that as I grew up, a different Selina had walked the same street. The Selina who played games at the age of 3 or 4 was now walking with her boyfriend at the age of 15. This town gave me lots of things like good friends, unforgettable values, some scars, and the chance to meet Peter(my best friend since 3) but especially my boyfriend Bruce.
With his blonde hair and tall figure, always give me the feeling of being in a fairy tale. His eyes, shifting between green and blue, seem ready to steal my heart at any moment. We were a fresh page on the desk filling, in the blanks as we go. When we started dating, we were just 14. We grew up together with him. Now we are 24. Time flew away; I should have caught it and stopped it.
The reason I visited my neighborhood again is that I’m about to turn 25, and I want to reminisce about everything I’ve been through. But as I thought about all these happenings, I realized I might have walked a bit too much, as I was quite exhausted. My eyes were searching for a place to sit. The first thing that caught my eye was the sign I had made at the age of 12, pointing towards the park just outside the town. When I saw it, I couldn’t help but smile. It had ‘escape from here’ written in my messy handwriting. I directly went there.
I saw the place where I first tried beer. It was with Bruce. We had a little talk afterward, but it’s really blurry. I remember I said, ‘And I hope I never lose you, hope it never ends. That would be the kind of heartbreak time could never mend.’ And then we laughed.
I get mystified by how this town screams his name. Such good memories to remember. I love this little town. I love this coziness. I love how it feels.