CHAPTER 7 THE WAITING

Three months had passed since Moises Laurent disappeared.

Three months since Miyaka had heard his voice.

Three months since she had seen him walk through the classroom door.

Three months since he had made one simple promise.

I’ll come back.

And somehow, Miyaka was still holding on to those words.

Every morning, she still looked at the school gate.

Every afternoon, she still glanced at the empty seat beside her.

And every time a black car stopped outside the school, her heart betrayed her.

Maybe today.

Maybe it was him.

Maybe Moises had finally come back.

But every time, it was someone else.

Until one afternoon, Jason finally asked the question he had been afraid to ask.

“Miyaka.”

She looked up from her notebook.

“What?”

“Are you still waiting for him?”

Miyaka stared at him.

“Who?”

Jason raised an eyebrow.

“You know who.”

She looked away.

“Moises.”

Jason nodded.

“Yeah.”

Miyaka closed her notebook.

“Of course.”

“You've been waiting for three months.”

“So?”

“So…”

Jason hesitated.

“What if he doesn't come back?”

Miyaka's expression changed.

For a moment, she looked hurt.

Then she smiled.

“He will.”

“You don't know that.”

“He promised.”

“Miyaka—”

“I know what you're going to say.”

Jason crossed his arms.

“Then tell me.”

She looked toward the school gate.

“You're going to tell me to stop waiting.”

Jason remained silent.

“Or you're going to tell me that maybe Moises has forgotten us.”

Still nothing.

“Or maybe…”

Her voice became quieter.

“He has a new life now.”

Jason looked at her.

“You're afraid of that.”

Miyaka swallowed.

“I'm afraid of a lot of things.”

“What?”

She looked down at her hands.

“What if he comes back and doesn't remember me?”

Jason's expression softened.

“He'll remember.”

“How do you know?”

“Because you're impossible to forget.”

Miyaka laughed softly.

“You're just saying that.”

“No. I'm serious.”

She looked at him.

Jason smiled.

“Besides, if he forgets you, I'll remind him.”

Miyaka smiled.

“Thank you.”

“But…”

“What?”

“You don't have to spend your whole life waiting.”

Miyaka's smile disappeared.

She knew Jason was trying to help.

But those words still hurt.

“I know.”

“Then why are you doing this?”

She looked toward the old tree outside the school window.

“Because I don't want to give up on him.”

Jason sighed.

“You really love him, don't you?”

Miyaka froze.

She didn't answer.

Jason didn't ask again.

He already knew.

---

At home that evening, Miyaka sat beside her bedroom window.

The sunset painted the sky orange.

She held the photograph of the three of them.

Her finger slowly traced Moises' face.

“You're probably laughing at me.”

She smiled sadly.

“Still waiting for you.”

She looked outside.

“What are you doing right now?”

She imagined him sitting somewhere far away.

Maybe studying.

Maybe making new friends.

Maybe eating dinner with his family.

Maybe thinking about her.

She hugged the photograph against her chest.

“Do you miss me?”

A tear fell onto the picture.

She quickly wiped it away.

“No.”

She shook her head.

“I'm not going to cry.”

Another tear fell.

“Okay…”

She laughed quietly.

“Maybe just a little.”

Her mother entered the room.

“Miyaka?”

Miyaka quickly hid the photograph.

“Yes, Ma?”

Her mother noticed her red eyes.

“You've been crying again.”

“No.”

“Miyaka.”

She sighed.

“Maybe.”

Her mother sat beside her.

“Do you want to talk about him?”

Miyaka looked down.

“I don't know where he is.”

“I know.”

“I don't know if he's okay.”

“I know.”

“I don't know if he'll come back.”

Her mother gently held her hand.

“You don't have to have all the answers.”

“But I want them.”

“I understand.”

Miyaka leaned against her mother's shoulder.

“Why does missing someone hurt this much?”

Her mother smiled sadly.

“Because they mattered.”

“What if missing someone doesn't mean they'll come back?”

“Then you learn how to carry the memory.”

Miyaka looked at her.

“But I don't want a memory.”

Her mother waited.

“I want him.”

The words came out so quietly that even Miyaka almost didn't hear them.

Her mother kissed her forehead.

“Then keep living your life.”

“How?”

“Don't stop being Miyaka.”

She smiled faintly.

“What does that mean?”

“Laugh. Study. Make mistakes. Chase your dreams.”

“My dreams?”

“Yes.”

“I don't know what my dreams are anymore.”

Her mother looked toward the window.

“Then maybe it's time to find them.”

---

The following weeks changed Miyaka.

She still waited.

But she began doing other things too.

She started spending more time outdoors.

She discovered that she loved the feeling of wind against her face.

She loved running.

She loved riding.

She loved anything that made her heart beat faster.

One afternoon, Jason found her staring at a group of motorcycles passing along the road.

“You like motorcycles now?”

Miyaka's eyes followed them.

“I think they're amazing.”

Jason laughed.

“You're going to get yourself killed.”

“Maybe.”

“Miyaka!”

She laughed.

“I'm joking.”

Jason shook his head.

“You're becoming more reckless.”

“Maybe I'm just bored.”

“Or maybe you're trying to forget.”

She looked at him.

“Forget what?”

Jason didn't answer.

Miyaka smiled.

“You're getting too serious.”

“Someone has to be.”

She turned back toward the road.

A motorcycle disappeared into the distance.

For some reason, Miyaka imagined herself riding one.

Fast.

Faster.

Until everything else disappeared.

Including the ache in her chest.

---

A few days later, Jason brought her to a small local racing track.

Miyaka's eyes widened.

“You've been here before?”

Jason nodded.

“My cousin races here.”

She looked around.

Engines roared.

People shouted.

The smell of gasoline filled the air.

Miyaka smiled.

“This is…”

She struggled to find the right word.

“Crazy?”

“Amazing.”

Jason laughed.

“I knew you'd say that.”

She watched a racer speed around the track.

The sound of the engine echoed in her chest.

For the first time in months, she wasn't thinking about Moises.

She wasn't thinking about his empty chair.

She wasn't thinking about whether he would return.

She was simply watching.

Feeling.

Living.

Then Jason nudged her.

“You want to try?”

Miyaka looked at him.

“What?”

“Driving.”

She laughed.

“Are you crazy?”

“You just said this place is amazing.”

“I didn't say I wanted to die.”

“It's a controlled track.”

She looked at the cars.

Then at Jason.

“You're serious?”

“Very.”

Miyaka smiled.

“Maybe someday.”

Jason grinned.

“I knew it.”

---

That night, Miyaka returned to the tree.

The sky was dark.

The school grounds were quiet.

She sat beneath the branches and looked at the stars.

“Moises.”

She smiled.

“I found something I like.”

She looked down at her hands.

“Racing.”

She laughed softly.

“You'd probably tell me I'm crazy.”

The wind moved through the leaves.

“But I think you'd understand.”

She closed her eyes.

For a moment, she could hear his voice.

“Miyaka, slow down!”

She laughed.

“You always said that.”

Her smile faded.

“I miss you.”

Silence.

She looked up.

“What if…”

She stopped.

The question felt too painful to finish.

But eventually, she whispered it.

“What if you never come back?”

Her eyes filled with tears.

“What if your promise was just something you said because you didn't know what else to say?”

She hugged her knees.

“What if I'm waiting for someone who's already moved on?”

She looked at the stars.

For the first time, Miyaka allowed herself to consider the possibility.

Maybe Jason was right.

Maybe waiting forever wasn't a promise.

Maybe it was a choice.

And maybe one day, she would have to choose herself.

But not tonight.

Tonight, she still believed.

She reached toward the tree trunk and placed her palm against it.

“I'll wait a little longer.”

She smiled through her tears.

“Just a little longer.”

---

Far away, in another city, a young boy sat alone in a room.

Moises was older now.

His room was unfamiliar.

His school was unfamiliar.

His life was unfamiliar.

But one thing remained the same.

He still had the photograph.

He opened a drawer and pulled it out.

The picture was slightly worn from being held too many times.

He stared at Miyaka.

Then Jason.

Then himself.

He whispered,

“I wonder if you're still waiting.”

His eyes became wet.

“I hope you aren't.”

He looked down.

“But I hope you haven't forgotten me either.”

A man knocked on the door.

“Moises.”

Moises quickly hid the photograph.

“Yes?”

“Your father wants you downstairs.”

“I'll be there.”

The man left.

Moises waited until he heard the footsteps disappear.

Then he took the photograph out again.

He stared at Miyaka.

“I'll come back.”

He whispered the words like a prayer.

“One day.”

---

Years would pass before that promise could be tested.

Miyaka would grow.

She would become faster.

Braver.

More fearless.

She would discover racing, horses, motorcycles, and the thrill of living without fear.

But beneath all of it, there would always be a small part of the little girl who sat beneath the old tree.

The girl who believed promises mattered.

The girl who refused to forget.

And somewhere far away, Moises would grow into a man who had everything—

except the one person he had never stopped searching for.

Neither knew it yet.

But their waiting had already begun to shape the people they would become.

And one day…

their paths would cross again.

Not as children.

Not as best friends.

But as two people carrying the same unfinished promise.

I’ll come back.

And when that day came, Miyaka would finally discover whether some promises were truly meant to last forever.