The Magical Power of Friendship

Iris 吴佳婧

Have you ever felt a magical power that came from friendship?

Len's world had been silent since childhood, so silent that he always hid silently in a corner alone and never made a sound. But he desperately wanted to make a sound. He watched TV every day to imitate the shape of figures’ mouths, over and over again. However, he never believed that he could make a sound.

The weather was gloomy, and the sky was full of thick, low, gray-yellow clouds. The northeast wind roared and ran wildly in the wilderness as if holding a sharp sword that could pierce the tight leather coat, not to mention the exposed skin that was stabbed by it.

Len, as before, hid in a corner, silent, allowing the cold wind to continue to erode his chapped skin. But he didn't seem to feel it, his eyes being so empty. People came and went trying to escape quickly with umbrellas, and no one noticed this lonely and helpless figure. Len kept drawing circles on the ground with branches.

“This is how the world should be; that no one cares about me,” Len repeated this idea in his mind.

Len had been born deaf, which was no small blow to his entire family. Since he was a child, his parents had constantly taken him to various places for treatment, but there had been no significant effect. Slowly, Len grew up and began to slowly feel the disappointment that his parents inadvertently expressed. It was this disappointment that could always be the last straw for overwhelming him at some point. The reality was brutal. Len's parents had given birth to another child, which was undoubtedly a death sentence for Len’s treatment in his eyes. Len also completely lost hope in himself. He paid no attention to all the tribulations he went through after that, allowing them to attack his already broken heart again and again.

Len's hand that drew the circle began to tremble, and even so, he continued to draw, as if to paralyze himself to escape reality. The sound of “clicking” resounded through the streets where only the sound of rain sounded. It was just that Len couldn't hear it. Suddenly, Len's heart startled and he looked back. A girl, dressed in a long white dress, patted him with her hand. Under the roar of the wind, her beautiful curly hair kept swinging, revealing her delicate facial features. A pair of diamond-encrusted heels stood out on her feet.

“Hello! The wind is so strong that I am in too much of a hurry to go the wrong way. Can you help me?” The gentle but childish face made Len judge that the girl should be about his age.

Len stared at her mouth as if understanding her request. He shook his head firmly, and laughed at himself in his heart, “How can I help? I will only cause trouble for others.”

The little girl was shy at his stare, and at the same time very puzzled. “There is no viciousness; I genuinely want to ask for help.” The little girl tried again.

Len shook his head helplessly, pointed his finger at his ear, and waved his hand, trying to tell her that he couldn't hear and was of no value. The girl seemed to understand, apologized to Len in body language in a flustered manner, and ran away. Len sneered as if it was all that he had expected.

Just as Len was leaving, the little girl returned, carrying a notebook and a pen. She handed them all to Len. The notebook read, “Hello, let's get to know each other again. My name is Mary.” Len took the book blankly and wrote a crooked name on it. The wind gradually stopped, trying to create a silent but warm environment for the two children.

“Oh! What a nice name! Nice to meet you. We will be friends from now on!”

“Okay.”

“Why are you here alone?”

“Nothing.”

“You can't hear, so can you make a sound?”

“I don't think I can.”

“But I think you can.”

“Whatever you think.”

“Okay, but I'm willing to be your little trash bin for emotions if you want.”

“Thank you.”

……

The two of them quietly communicated in this notebook. They agreed to meet there every weekend to chat. Mary gave him the address to her home and trusted him to escort her back. Before Len went to bed, he kept recalling what happened. He even thought of cheerful voices as they wrote goodbye to each other. The sound of high heels on the ground was heavenly to Len, a beautiful concerto for violin and cello. Although he had not heard it, every time he saw it on TV, it could bring him great satisfaction. He felt that this girl was not ordinary. Thanks to her, he felt joy in his heart for the first time and felt that he was firmly chosen.

Fast forward to another weekend, Len put on his favorite clothes and secretly used his father's hairspray. He set off early, excited as if he could hear all the birds singing along the way. He had even written something in the notebook that he wanted to share with Mary. But Mary was delayed. Len frowned, unable to hide his loss. “Are you going to fail your first friend?”

It was clear that he was unwilling, but he forced himself to go to Mary's house. The first thing that caught his eye was Mary and a middle-aged man who was probably Mary's father in the garden. Though inaudible, Len was pretty sure that they were arguing. Len rubbed his hands and stamped his feet outside. He didn't want his friend to be as unhappy at home as he was.

After some mental struggle, Len rushed up and shouted at them with all his strength, “Mary is the best girl in the world!”

Len's world became silent again. But unlike before, at this time, the silence was indeed exchanged for Len's yelling. This meant that Len had finally made a sound!

Mary instantly jumped out of the garden, holding Len's hand and shaking it constantly, “You did it! You did it! I said you can!”

Len stood there stupidly, letting Mary shake him. Suddenly a tear flowed from his eyes, and Len held Mary's hand tightly, nodding firmly over and over again.

“You know what? I want to be silent like you sometimes, and I guess that will avoid a lot of trouble.”

“Silence is quite evasive.”

“No, this is a kind of wisdom, a great wisdom.”

“Maybe being friends with you is my greatest wisdom.”

The two fell silent, but both smiled tacitly.