Looking out of my window, I saw him holding hands with a beautiful young lady. A wave of jealousy washed over me because I had admired Eric since I was sixteen.

 Now at eighteen, I still couldn't bring myself to tell him how I felt. Seeing him hold hands with her stung, but I felt powerless since he didn’t even know I existed

Eric passed by my street every morning on his way to school, but lacking the courage to express my feelings, I simply watched him from my window. 

It was 10 a.m. on a Saturday, and I knew Eric would walk by soon. As I waited by the window, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I looked back and realized It was my best friend, Wendy. 

Wendy always teased me about my crush on Eric and urged me to share my feelings with him, but I always hesitated. I would say, "What if he doesn’t feel the same way?" Wendy would reply, "Sonia, he doesn’t even know you exist. Introduce yourself first and let fate handle the rest."

I realized it was time I came out of the shell I had been hiding for two years and conveyed to Eric how I felt about him. 

Instead of watching him from my window the way I used to, I waited for him at the usual spot where he passed on his way home. But that day, he didn’t come. The next day, I waited again, but still, he didn’t show up. Day after day, I stood at that spot, but he never appeared. Something felt wrong, but I had no idea what it was.

On a Sunday afternoon, while sitting by the window lost in my thoughts, I saw the same young lady he held hands with, walk by the same spot. I quickly rushed outside and called out to her, asking about Eric. She hesitated but eventually told me, "Eric is dead." 

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. Stunned, I could barely speak as I repeated, "Dead?" in disbelief. Shaking, I asked how he died, and she replied, "A brain tumor." Then, she walked away, leaving me standing there, frozen in shock.

I stood in that spot for what felt like hours, trying to process the devastating news. The only thought that kept replaying in my mind was, "I wish I had told him how I felt."

I eventually stumbled back home and immediately called Wendy to tell her what had happened. She rushed over to comfort me, holding my hands while I cried on her shoulder, repeating, "Wendy, I should’ve listened to you. Now I’ll live with this scar forever." 

Wendy wiped my tears and gently told me not to blame myself. She explained that before I called, she had just found out herself. She explained that her brother had been grieving the loss of a friend, and when she saw his picture, she realized it was the same Eric I had been crushing on for years. She held my hands and whispered into my ears “Sonia, be strong, you’ll heal from this soon”. 

As days went by, I continued standing by the window, hoping to see Eric walk by. But he never did. Eventually, I came to accept that he was gone forever.