The streetscape is littered with people everywhere, they seem to be in a hurry.

People are on their phones, either looking at them or talking into them.

They seem lost, like they don’t know their way without the phone in hand.

The ones with no phone, let their eyes wander but no one looks at the sky, it’s like they’ve seen it all before.

They don’t appreciate the nature that they pass by, they scurry and don’t notice the passerby’s.

The sun beams, it is hot and the warmth of the rays can be felt from afar.

The shopkeepers stare into the distance, they don’t seem worried or disturbed.

The local deli man sits behind his counter, he smiles whilst his thoughts wander.

He stops to greet the customers, you can tell he loves his job, speaking with people makes his day.

His granddaughter helps him serve the people their cheese and pasta.

She also greets with a smile, no phone is seen in her hand.

The lonely lady on the bench, looks like she just wants someone to talk to.

It makes you wonder what life for her, could be like.

Is she happy?

Or is she sad?

You’ll never know unless you stop to ask.

I take a seat beside her and start talking about the things in life that got us here.

It’s good to have company, even for a little while.

Feathers greet us as we speak, and we gaze at what nature’s got for us.

We say our goodbyes and we retreat, I think to myself what a beautiful lady, someone who isn’t afraid to speak.

I sometimes forget how easy it is to say hello to a stranger.

One year ago . . .

“Mom!” I call running down the driveway as she starts backing out of the garage. “Mom!”

I pant as I stop next to her window, watching as the clear glass slides down. Mom smiles out at me, her blue eyes tired from all day at work.

“Maisie,” she leans out the window. “Did you need something?”

I did . . . I mean I do. Every day Mom comes home from work, cleans up, which I guess would be brushing her hair and stuff. Then she goes out to pick up grocery’s. Every single day.

Why would she need to do that so much? Just stop at the store once a week and get all the food. That’s what I wanted to tell her after the first few times she came home and left. But then it became obvious to me that maybe someone is what she’s after. Maybe she met someone.

“Can I come?” I hint, hoping she’ll just tell me she’s not actually going to the store. She never lies, and she can tell when I know she is.

Mom parts her lips brushing a loose strand of her hair behind her ear. “Maisie,” Mom looks me right in the eyes. “It’s just the store . . . Nothing interesting.”

My heart sinks, so what is this? Mom can’t love going to the store this much, no one can. I nod sighing. “Yeah, I know.”

Mom gives me a tired smile. “I’ll be back soon,” she reaches out touching my cheek gently before the window rolls up and our silver car vanishes.

. . .

I wait a couple fo hours for Mom to come back. It’s never been this long of a wait before. Never. There’s defiantly someone, a guy that works there maybe.

I don’t know why this is crushing me so hard. I never got to meet my real dad. He died when I was three, I dont’ have any memories of him besides the one’s I’ve created in my head. So shouldn’t I be okay with Mom dating?

Wow . . . Dating. That doesn’t sound right. Why couldn’t Dad have just stayed away from his work? If he hadn’t stayed late that night, then the fire . . . It wouldn’t have killed him, it wouldn’t have destroyed my life.

. . .

Today . . .

I’ve been arguing with myself about weather or not I should tell Davian about my scar. It’s so personal something that only I know about. It scares me to have it be out in the open. To have him know I’m messed up on the inside more than he thinks.

A knock on the door startles me as I sit up on the couch, staring at the shut door. I grab the remote on the foot rest and pause the show that Aunt Trish and I started a couple nights ago.

Maybe it’s Davian? I think as I look over at Aunt Trish. He does know where I live . . . I think.

“I can get it?” I offer as Aunt Trish gives me a kind smile.

“Thanks, kid,” she pats my arm as we both rise of the warm couch. “I’ll refill this.” She holds uo the huge bowl of popcorn that we both devoured in minutes.

I walk slowly towards the door as another knock bangs against the wood. Maybe it’s not Davian, this guy or girl seems to be impatient. And I know Davian is someone who only asks once for something. He never asks twice. Which is bad and good at the same time.

I unlock the door twisting the knob as a tall man comes into view from the other side.

In his hands he has a blue baseball cap that he’s nervously twisting around.

“Are you . . . Maisie Bowden?” He asks, his voice trembling. As I look over him, I notice that his face is streaming with tears.

He seems about my mom’s age, maybe they were friends, or . . . Something like that.

I nod once, staring at his bare legs. It’s freezing out here for shorts, but I guess some habits are hard to break. “Yeah,” I say strongly. “That’s me.”

He smiles quickly motioning at me with his cap. “I . . . I knew your mom.” He licks his lips. “I . . .I was sorry to hear that she . . .”

“Thanks,” I cut him off before he can say passed away or left. I know it’s true and I’ve accepted it but I don’t like to be reminded. I have a feeling it’ll always be like that for me.

He gives me another nervous smile. “So . . . I just wanted to . . . Talk to you . . . About the funeral and all.”

What? Why would this random guy I’ve never even seen want to talk to me about my mom’s funeral?

“I’d like to help out,” he explains still fidgeting with his cap. “If that’s alright.”

I nod slowly, trying to understand what’s going on here. Did Mom really know this guy? Like good enough for him to offer to help at her funeral— Oh!

The store guy! The one Mom met up with every night last year until . . . Well until she couldn’t anymore.

“I’m sorry,” I apologize. “But who are you?”

The man gasps, throwing his hands out to his side. “Of course,” he chuckles. “I forgot . . . Your mom never told you about me . . . I’m Rae.”

He puts his base ball hat on backwards as we holds a hand out to me.

I take it, shaking it slowly. “Were you a friend of my mom’s”

Rae shakes his head, smiling sweetly at me. It’s the first time I’ve noticed all night that he’s actually really handsome. His black hair is combed nicely, and his pale, pale blue eyes are glowing in the darkness. It feels really weird to think that . . . He’s my mom’s guy. Which also feels weird.

“Kind of,” Rae licks his lips again. “We knew each other in high school but lost touch for a long time. We met again last year and started hanging out . . . I was going to ask her to marry me.”

His words echo through my mind. Marry her? Marry my mom. How could he? I had a dad, I hadn’t even met him. I wonder what Mom would have said. Yes? I mean she seemed happy when she’d come back from the “store” or wherever it was she met up with . . . Rae.

“Oh,” I sigh, looking down at the ground. Suddenly I want to slam the door in his face, shouting “Goodbye Rae, never come back!”

But I don’t. I stand still, watching his closely. “I should go.” I finally say when he parts his lips. I don’t really want to hear what excuse he has for me. It couldn’t be good, nothing he’s said all night has been good.

“Right,” Rae motions to the TV that’s far behind me. “Sorry to bother you.”

I shake my head, as Rae steps back. “You didn’t.”

Rae nods once before he starts backing down the porch steps. “Good.”

“You can come,” I call after him. What! We don’t like him remeber. I think as Rae smiles at me. What are you doing?

“I’ll be there,” he promises his white eyes glowing with happiness and sadness at the same time. He reminds me of Mom, but I don’t know what it is. He looks nothing like her . . .Wait!

It’s not Mom he reminds me of . . .It’s me. The way he acts, the anxiety I can practically see floating around him.

I take a deep breath, realaxing on the threashold. “I know Mom will be happy.” I tell him, smiling as he walks to his car.

She will be . . . And maybe I will be too.

Pain seared through her body as a paw hit her side. Her eyes blurred and she was barely breathing.

A voice beyond her whispered something. "You're just as pathetic as every other wolfperson we've come across. Heh." The hunter behind the voice came over to her, bent down, and lifted her chin. "Good luck without your pups." He let her chin fall and walked off.

She desperately tried to pull herself toward him, but he was long gone, and the fire around her seared her fur. She carefully pulled herself up into a sitting posture.

"Ow."

She pulled her arm away from a tiny flame and gently picked up a small portrait of three teenage wolfpeople. She leaned her head back and cried, holding it close. In the blink of an eye, her world came crashing down for the second time.

"Ma'am! Ma'am, are you okay?" A voice shouted.

She moved her head toward the voice and coughed a bit from the smoke. Tears stung her eyes. Her vision was still blurred from pain.

A man came through the smoke and spotted her. He rushed to her side and began checking all over her body for scraps and burns.

She just continued crying. Eventually, he turned his head and waved to two other guys. They rushed forward and helped him hoist her up and out of the fire. They got her to a soft grassy area and stood her up.

"What's your name, ma'am?" One guy asked.

She coughed and sighed. "It's Seashell."

The guys glanced at each other.

"I would like to know the name of my saviors," Seashell whispered, throat dry.

"My name is Sear." The guy to her left said.

"Mine's Droplet." The one to her right said.

The final wolfperson in front of her cleared his throat before her spoke. "Mine name is Mudfish. But you can call me Mud."

End of the world they said, Our phones and television would be at their demise. No Facebook or instagram, To spread their white lies.

Humanity would collapse they said, Leaving people distraught and in panic. Not watching their Netflix, Will leave them immobile and frantic.

No one will know how to communicate they said, An uproar will ignite. Darkness will surround us, And you will clearly see the stars at night.

Walking down the street they said, Would put you in imminent danger. But I sometimes forget how easy it is To talk to a stranger.

In the realm of innocence, where trust was pure, Lies a tale of longing, of a heart unsure. "I sometimes forget," she whispered with a sigh, "How easy it was, to say hello to a stranger passing by."

Once upon a time, she viewed the world with grace, Believing in the goodness, in every stranger's face. Her heart, an open book, ready to be read, A canvas of love, where friendships were spread.

But as time went on, and wounds began to scar, Her trust was shattered, like a fallen star. The ones she loved, turned out to be untrue, Leaving her skeptical, of the friendships she once knew.

Oh, how she longed, for that innocence again, To believe in the goodness, to trust without pain. But the scars ran deep, etched into her soul, A reminder of the hurt, that took its toll.

She learned the hard way, that not all is as it seems, That love can be deceptive, like a twisted dream. Yet in the midst of her skepticism's hold, A glimmer of hope, a story yet untold.

For in the depths of her heart, a flicker remained, A longing to connect, to trust once again. To find the courage, to say hello to a stranger, And embrace the possibility, of a friendship's danger.

For in the beauty of vulnerability's embrace, Lies the chance for connection, in this human race. To let go of the past, and open up anew, To find the strength to trust, in the chosen few.

So let her heart be cautious, but not closed, To navigate the waters, where friendships are composed. For in the dance of love, there's always a chance, To find the ones who'll stay, and make her heart dance.

And as she looks back, on the journey she's been through, She'll remember the lessons, both old and new. "I sometimes forget," she'll say with a glow, "How easy it was, to say hello to a stranger, and let love grow."

Soft whispers of the butterflies slide across her mind; flying the distance of passion and romance, destined to become her rhyme...

She was fragile in his fingers. Around his kiss, her shuddered bliss lingered. Touching skies in forgotten throes. Glowing perspectives of never let go prose...

But open mouths and closed hearts never mix. They’re paths decay, after a lifetime tryst. Her tongue screams dry, his stone front withers in his eyes...

Where do strangers sleep, while nightmares trace their dreams...?

Lies end and begin, with this thin line of danger. “I sometimes forget how easy it was to say hello to strangers.”…

-HMG

Much of the time, I get in my own way It seems like I am shy, When really I’m afraid.

Often I will stay in, Feeling so alone, And try to hide it with a grin, So that nobody really knows.

I laugh when I’m supposed to cry, I find I often laugh. I don’t really know how or why, I’m not a psychopath.

People can be so very mean, It feels safer to disappear. But when I succumb to that, I give in to my fear.

Sometimes I forget how easy it is, To say hello to a stranger, To do the right thing, In spite of the danger.

Easy is rare, Life can really get hard, And all you can do Is to doesn’t through your heart.

I wish I could take some of my own advice, But it’s easier said than done. Fear coats my body, It’s already won.

Dark, curved street corner, a gray rain parking lot or Fog-laden storefront waiting for a stranger

waiting to slake my evergreen obsession waiting and watching my texts waiting and hoping for a stranger bearing vines of promise

Verdant ink pointed leaves winking pink Rainforest foliage of kelly green lace Shiny emerald lobed tickets to Columbia hello, stranger

Panama in a clay pot Heart-shaped desire in dirt sitting on my passenger seat on the way home from a dark street I sometimes forget how easy it was to say hello to a stranger

Our eyes caught one another It felt familiar, as if I’ve seen you in a dream No words were spoken , just body language Your eye glued to mine and I felt uneasy It’s as if you knew me You’ve read my soul just by looking into my pupils My eyes pulled away but I wanted to glance again Because some how I felt that we were having a conversation through Vulnerability This time I was greeted with a smile Sometime I forget how easy it was to say hello to a stranger

Walking to gym Up the hill Across the bridge To the track Talking to my best friend “Should I go talk to her?” I stared at the girl in front me “Yes. Go!” My best friend Anouk was always there to give me advice I’m super indecisive The girl in front of me was someone I wanted to be friends with since fifth grade “But what should I talk about?” “Just talk about keeper of the lost cities! You know everything about it! Cause of Izzy that is.” Yes. I do know a lot about it. My best friend Izzy was a huge fan at the time. “I don’t know…what if I mess up my sentences and trip on the way over?” “You’ll be fine” We were at the track Classmates stretching I was so scared I’ve been so mean to her lately And now I just turn around all happy sunshine rainbows? “Go” My friend pushed me into her “Heyyyyyy.” That was so stupid “Hi” “Soooo you know Dex right? I love him. He’s my favorite character.” “Oh yes I find him very relatable.” Yes! She was actually talking to me! “Oh we’re doing the long jump today? Yes! I’m really good at it.” I sometimes forget how easy it was to say hello to a stranger.

Based on a true story. Sorry I didn’t include the whole entire story cause this was supposed to be a poem but then it turned into a story anyway…