#88 The Silent Witness

 

The children made themselves comfortable around him as the professor started his history lesson. He shushed the squirrels, straining his ears to hear the old man. It was a refreshing change from the mindless gossip he was otherwise subjected to.

He had stood there for over a century and watched the history they talked about being created. He wanted to tell them a story of his own.

Whoooooosh whoooooshhh!

“Don’t worry, it’s only the wind and the leaves” the man told the frightened children below.

He wished he had exchanged something else for his long life instead of his voice.

#34 The Old Oak Tree

The children from the house on the hill were his most frequent visitors.

He missed their noisy games. When they grew up, they spent afternoons nestled in his branches with their adventure novels. They had hosted countless picnics in his shade.

 

Sadly, it hadn’t lasted. They moved away a few years after the grandmother died. The house was rumored to be haunted.

 

The only people who visited him now were lovers with no place to call their own.

He winced as he felt the blade cut into him again.

It was yet another heart and initials being carved into him.