“Vern! What’s up man?”
The shout of a passer-by brought Vernon Sanchez back from the trance his mind had wandered off into.
“Hey Tim,” he responded as he looked up and nodded at the kid who he recognized from the dorm down the hall.
Glancing around, Vernon noticed just how beautiful of a day it was. The sun hung bright in the sky, and a gentle spring breeze kept the temperature comfortable. The sky was an uninterrupted light blue, almost like the world he found himself sitting in was trapped inside of a marble. Freshly cut grass, flowers in full bloom, and the unmistakable smell of the mess hall wafted through the busy afternoon air. The Stanford campus was buzzing with students hustling to their classes, but Vernon stayed seated at the base of his favorite tree. He felt calm amidst the courtyard. The tall brick buildings and sturdy trees made him feel safe.
A feeling of safety was exactly what he needed at that point. He instinctively crossed his arms and brought both hands up to his biceps, feeling the subtle ridges that accompanied the tattoos he used to cover the canvas of his body. Vernon’s life had suddenly gone into turmoil ever since he laid eyes on her. She didn’t know it yet, but he was in love with her. Even though she had a boyfriend, and Vernon was perceived as somewhat of a freak, he knew she was the one.
The courtyard had finally settled down. Most of the students had gotten to class in time, and the few stragglers who didn’t were violently crashing through doors, trying to get to class as quickly as possible. Vernon stood up and stretched, glanced around one more time, then strode away from the solitude of his favorite tree.
Usually Vernon would be sitting through the seemingly endless lecture of his Colonialism and Collaboration in East Asia class, but today he was on a mission. He knew she would be sitting at the table closest to the far back corner of the library, probably working on her laptop for a class that Vernon would never dream of taking. He reached back to feel the letter he knew was in his back pocket. Even though he had written it this morning and shoved it in his pocket shortly after, it felt like the words he had poured onto the page were already burning a hole in his jeans.
Vernon pushed the library door open, took a few deep breaths, then mustered up enough confidence to make his way to the back corner of the massive room. The quiet thud of his feet on lush carpeting mimicked the beats of his racing heart.
“There she is,” muttered Vernon under his breath as he came around the corner of a book case. She was tapping away on her laptop just as he expected; looking more beautiful than he ever imagined a woman could. Why am I sweating so much and why the heck are my fingers tingling like this? he wondered to himself. Vernon stopped to gather his composure, and that’s when it happened.
Before Vernon could do anything, a man appeared seemingly out of thin air. It was Tim, and he was down on one knee. Even though Vernon couldn’t hear what was being said, he knew exactly what was spilling out of Tim’s mouth. She started crying and laughing and jumping up and down. They hugged and kissed while Vernon watched in amazement. Every ounce of hope and happiness that had filled him just seconds before was gone. The promise of forever for two people brought with it the despair of nothing for one lone individual.
Vernon sighed and turned to leave. He looked down at his watch and figured he could come up with a reasonable excuse for arriving to the lecture twenty minutes late. His walk was fast and purposeful, but his thoughts were wandering and meaningless. As he passed the tree he had just been sitting under, Vernon thought about taking a seat and spending the day in deep sorrow. However; Vernon knew that nothing would ever be the same, and just like he was moving on from his favorite tree, he would also have to move on from the love of his life.