The hippie chick returns

It was a nice winter night. My first semester was about to come to an end. It was the night of the Christmas Lights on campus. The whole campus would be lit; a huge party was taking place in one of the campus plazas. I was going with a few friends and we were just hanging out at the apartment. Suddenly, a car stops in front of my place and someone waves at me. I take a look outside and there she is. The hippie chick reappeared. In a few seconds my life became a mess again. All the feelings that I had managed to suppress were coming back at once. I didn't know how to feel. We went to the party. Once again I found myself under the moon and the stars (this time with fireworks as well) sitting with the one person that made me doubt everything I had ever felt.

She never really said why she left. The story didn't really make sense and it seemed like she was just wasting my time. I didn't really understand why she came back to see me, but it felt like she was playing with me… Keeping me interested enough not to give up on the idea. Giving me just enough hope not to forget about her. Her life was a mess, but she wanted to keep "the nice guy" around just in case she ever decided to get her shit together…

Back then I was naïve enough to actually play that role… and I did, pathetically well. I few more events occurred with this girl, each one as illogical as the previous, but I played along. I was inexplicably intrigued by that one, and it would be a while before, she stopped popping in and out of my life.

The hippie chick

It was a month into my first year in College. I was single and I was free. I was young and felt that my life was about to get better. I saw her three days a week and never spoke. Her crazy long hair looked as if she just got out of bed and went straight out the door. She wasn't particularly cute, but I found it hard not to like her. She spoke freely and seemed intent on being a rebel. Her eyes said things that I did not really understand. There was a lot I never understood about this girl.

One day after class, we went for lunch at the old place up the hill. It was a one of my favorite places. It was inside the campus, but secluded enough to make you forget everything and everyone around you. We talked about many things. I was overwhelmed by the fact that the person I found so interesting thought that I was the interesting one (Something I would not really understand until much later).

It was a Monday night and I had just gotten out of a 3 hour class at 8:00pm. It was a great night. Nice clear skies gave room for the moon to shine on our hilly campus and I decided to stick around instead going to my apartment. I was sitting by the Theater and I noticed her coming toward me. I was glad to see her there. She was heading to a big theater event scheduled for the entire week and asked me to join her.

An outdoor stage had been setup at the top of what we called Olympus. It was impressive. For one whole week, people from several different countries were to come together here every night, under the stars and the moonlight. One week of live theater from all over the world. It was a great event, unforgettable. And I got to share it with her. Every night that week, we met at Olympus to see the acts. The week ended strangely… it seemed like we said goodbye that Friday. For the next few months we didn't really see each other or speak much. She had stopped going to class for some reason. I rarely saw her. When we did see each other it felt empty. Something was missing. One day she just disappeared.

She has been my strangest friend. I tried to make sense of it, tried to forget about her, and sometimes it seemed like life had a plan for us if only we would listen, but who really listens at 18?