Prompt: Write about what you think love is775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8vMfHjWc5H
Maisy stumbles into the house, cheeks pink from cold and anger, fists curled like little puffed pastries.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqRCjdKxRf
'I had a very, very, VERY terrible day today!' She proclaims loudly, taking off her thick jacket. Her elder brother, Peter, announces his arrival with heavy footsteps on the staircase.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIBHBmI8aZv
'What's wrong, Maisy?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwhZa64Dh6f
'Just EVERYTHING!' The girl fumes. 'Miss Natalia was even meaner than usual today, and that's just the tip of the iceberg!' Beneath her outburst the girl applauds herself for using her newly learnt phrase. 'Danny said he didn't love me!' At this, she crosses her arms melodramatically with a little hmmph.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrRIEufl6rX
'Aw, Maisy, come here.' Peter takes his sister by the shoulders. 'Tell me what happened. Start with Miss Natalia.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmyICixcR4
'Well, I was playing with the soccer ball and Ben kicked it over the fence. So I climbed over and ran to get the ball from across the road. Then when I came back, Miss Natalia was so very angry and said all kinds of silly things to me. And then she didn't let me play for the rest of lunch!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrCURbHCr9G
'I see,' Peter says, with a smile to himself. 'And what about Danny? He said he didn't love you? Now why would something like that upset you, Maisy?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmPfJo4kQs0
The girl puffs her cheeks. 'Because I - love - him!' Peter laughs at her declaration. 'Don't laugh, Peter! I'm being quite serious!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH6gi4VUocb
'I wasn't laughing at you, Maisy.' He responds, conscious of her feelings.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkbcDrzudq6
'Then what were you laughing at?' She demands.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRuH6t1ldfz
'I was laughing at...' A moment's thought. 'I was laughing at love.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRU1vJ4AZdv
A crease appears in Maisy's soft and rounded forehead. 'What's so funny about love?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGBTPRypYWN
'I'm not so sure, Maisy. Why don't you help me out?' Peter grins, not only beginning to enjoy himself with the conversation but also satisfied that he had distracted her from the day's events. 'Tell me what you think love is, hey?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIwZYSF0Seq
'It's, it's, um.' She looks from side to side as if expecting an answer to be floating out of reach in the room. 'Well. It's when you like someone very much!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcXkuFoO7mg
'That's a start. So you said you love Danny. Is that because you like him a lot?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnXr7uqp79o
Maisy erects her body to inject confidence into her voice. 'I do like him very much!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3tiuoc5sn4
'Okay. Why do you like him?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS07EztUVZK
'Well, everybody likes him. And he's very clever. He beats me in all of Miss Natalia's tests. And he's good at soccer. And he makes funny jokes.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2ehtMNE7yg
'Hey, I make funny jokes, I'm good at soccer, I'm clever and everybody likes me...' Peter purposefully puts a playfulness in his tone to show his sister that he isn't being serious.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTnaRkJVMH6
'Don't be silly. You're different! You're my brother, and besides, you're not good at soccer!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjk7WWWMMwO
'I guess you're right, I'm not very good, am I?' Memories of letting his sister win with a comical oh no I lost face just to see her smile. 'But anyway, what exactly did Danny say to you?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eUC84iaBm
'Well I put a letter into his bag. And I wrote it in running writing! With curls and everything! It said, To Danny, I love you like trees love the sun. From Maisy.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyVlqJQouc6
'That's nice.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzqmtCFBKRa
'Which is what he said, too! He said the letter was very nice but then he said that he didn't love me back! I didn't know what to do then because that never happens in movies so I couldn't tell what I was supposed to say. So I ran off.' 775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIsYuUBAVII
'I see. Well, you know, love isn't like you see it in movies. A lot of things aren't.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9kKBidWfU1
'The what is it supposed to be? I liked Danny very much so I thought he would like me very much too! How else does love work?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7lbkHDLrZi
'I'm not sure how to explain it, Maisy, but I'll say that one day you'll understand what Danny did.' Peter looks out the window at the snow topped roofs.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2RP8sjzwMw
'Hey! That's not fair! I told you what I thought love was. Now you have to do the same!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNMabreWJLG
A few seconds pass in silence. 'Okay. Put your coat back on, I want to show you something outside.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xqNRiv1tw
Maisy utters some mild protests but relents to his suggestion, as he takes her by the hand to their garden.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaPky3paVVG
'Do you see all the snow, Maisy?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzdzppqXBdt
'Yes. But what has that got to do with -'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNhDQWncKnS
'Shhh. Just watch the snowflakes fall.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWuiI42AU43
They stand on the path by the street, eyes mesmerised by the stars of white that danced from the skies to the ground, like leftover drops of heaven.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡalJSxJGIaR
'Love... Love is like looking at these snowflakes.' Peter begins. 'Every snowflake is different, but every snowflake is beautiful. The snowflakes are like people.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjrB7v7SMqG
Maisy opens her mouth to interrupt but decides against distracting her brother from his story.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc5DcIRbdRF
'And some of the snowflakes, you can catch on your tongue. It kind of burns, but it sparkles, too. That's the love you're talking about. Out of the thousands and thousands of snowflakes that fall you might only be able to catch a few. But even the ones that you just give a passing glance, that make it to the ground, you can see that they're pretty too, in their own way, and if you can understand that - you can love everyone. Sometimes it's hard to see, for some flakes, that they're worth loving. But even those, people like Miss Natalia -' Maisy giggles at the mention of her teacher. ' - when you really think about it, those people love you in their own way too.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPFpu69NKzR
Maisy wraps her arms around her brother's waist as the late afternoon breeze begins to pick up, sending crystals swirling around their heads.775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaP3mDEveMs
'You caught Danny's snowflake on your tongue, but he couldn't catch you. But he loved you in a different way, and that's why he said he liked your letter, why he told you so quickly.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk6T35wg6bi
The girl bites her lip, cocks her head, and contemplates this notion for a few minutes. Eventually, she turns upwards confidingly to look at her brother, and announces: 'I don't get it.'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJsQPDL2sT
Peter laughs again, but it's filled with such joy that Maisy can't help but laugh as well this time. 'You know, I don't get it either.' He says, hugging her tight. 'Maybe when we're older we'll both understand. But for now, how does getting back inside for a nice hot chocolate sound?'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIO4UBZGEJ
She smiles, immediately brightening. 'That sounds good!'775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhXqQx37DHP
They turn around, back into the warmth and comfort of their home, with a love that burns a little but sparkles too, like the fire crackling under the mantel, the night filled with stories and smiles and songs, while outside the window snowflakes fall one by one. 775Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWjSyOc2jA
