Strange Friend

Strange Friend

James was a quiet and reserved boy who never found it easy to make friends. He spent most of his time in the library, lost in the world of books, where characters were his only companions. The real world seemed too noisy, too chaotic for his liking.

One evening, as he walked home from school, he decided to take a shortcut through an old abandoned park. The park had been closed for years, the swings creaking in the wind and the slide covered in rust. As he made his way through, he heard a soft whisper behind him.

"You are not supposed to be here."

James froze. He turned around but saw no one. His heart pounded. Perhaps it was the wind playing tricks on him. He quickened his pace, but the whisper came again, clearer this time.

"Stay... don’t be afraid."

A chill ran down his spine. He wanted to run, but curiosity held him back. Taking a deep breath, he turned around slowly. This time, he saw a figure standing near the broken merry-go-round—a boy about his age, dressed in old-fashioned clothes, his face pale and eyes filled with an eerie glow.

"Who are you?" James managed to ask, his voice shaky.

"I am Oliver," the boy said, smiling faintly. "I live here."

James frowned. "But no one lives here. The park has been abandoned for years."

Oliver chuckled. "Not for me. This place is my home."

Something about Oliver unsettled James, but he also felt drawn to him. The boy did not seem threatening, just... different. Against his better judgment, James stayed, and the two talked for hours. Oliver had a strange way of speaking, as if he were from another time, but he was kind, funny, and full of intriguing stories.

Days passed, and James found himself returning to the park every evening. Oliver was always there, waiting for him. They played together, shared stories, and laughed like old friends. James had never felt so comfortable around anyone before. But there were things about Oliver that puzzled him. He never spoke about his family, never left the park, and no one else seemed to see him.

One evening, James finally asked, "Oliver, why do you never leave this place?"

Oliver hesitated. "Because I can’t."

"What do you mean?" James asked, a sense of dread creeping in.

Oliver looked down. "I... I died here. A long time ago."

James felt his breath hitch. "That’s not funny."

"It’s not a joke," Oliver said softly. "I was playing here one evening, just like we do now. I fell from the tallest slide and hit my head. I never woke up."

James stepped back, his mind reeling. "But... how? How are you here now?"

"I don’t know," Oliver said. "I just remember waking up and finding myself alone. No one could see me. No one could hear me. Until you came."

James wanted to run, but something inside him told him not to. Oliver wasn’t trying to hurt him. He was just... lonely.

"Is there anything I can do?" James asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Oliver smiled sadly. "Maybe. Maybe if I remember everything... if I find out why I’m still here."

Over the next few weeks, James helped Oliver piece together his past. He searched through old newspapers, spoke to older residents of the town, and even found an article about a boy who had died in the park decades ago. The photo was grainy, but there was no mistaking it—Oliver.

"I knew it," Oliver whispered when James showed him the article. "But why am I still here?"

James had a thought. "Maybe because no one ever came to find you. Maybe because you never got to say goodbye."

That night, James did something he had never done before. He spoke out loud in the park, telling Oliver’s story to the wind, to the trees, to anyone—or anything—that was listening. He said Oliver’s name, said that he was not forgotten, that he was loved.

A soft wind blew, carrying Oliver’s laughter with it. "Thank you, James," Oliver whispered. "You were the friend I always wanted."

And then, he was gone.

James never saw Oliver again, but he never forgot him. He still visited the park sometimes, and whenever the wind whispered through the trees, he smiled, knowing that somewhere, somehow, his strange friend was finally at peace.