August 18
There are boys walking around in my cemetery. They’ve been coming and going the past couple days. They appear to be teenagers. They don’t see me. They never see me. Nobody ever sees me. Maybe I should introduce myself. Ask them why they keep coming back to my cemetery. Nah. I’ll just watch from afar. I’m sure they’ll eventually lose interest. Whatever they’re doing here can’t be that interesting. Then my cemetery will be mine again. I like my cemetery. I especially like the silence. It makes me feel at home.
August 27
The boys didn’t come today. I don’t know what to make of that. I had gotten used to seeing them. I suppose this is a good thing. Perhaps they’ll be back tomorrow. Not much else happens in the cemetery. I visited the grave again today. There was a pile of leaves on it. I didn’t clear it. Leaves are one of the few things that give death beauty.
September 3
Only one of the boys came today. He seems sad. I want to ask where his friend is. It’s probably better not to. He’s carrying a bouquet of flowers. He hasn’t done that before. I should give him privacy. I don’t. He’s in my cemetery. He should’ve made sure it was empty before doing something private.
September 8
The other boy is here today. I haven’t seen him in a while. He got here shortly after the first boy. I still don’t know their names. The first boy doesn’t seem happy to see the second one. They’re arguing. The first boy seems upset with the second boy because he stopped talking to the first boy. And the second boy seems upset because the first boy gave him no warning of what he was going to do. This fight makes no sense. If the first boy is upset for being abandoned but the second boy is here now why is he still mad? And if the second boy was upset because the first boy did something then why did he come back? Unless he’s not actually upset by whatever the first boy did. People can be so stupid sometimes.
September 15
The boys came back today. This time they came together. Holding hands. I suppose that means they made up. The first boy is bringing the second boy deeper into the cemetery. The second boy does not look very happy about this. The first boy is talking about how they only ever do what the second boy wants. Somehow I don’t think that’s true. I’ve seen both boys here together plenty of times. Which due to recent events makes it feel more like the first boy’s idea. The first boy is taking something out of his backpack. Strange. They had never brought a backpack before. He pulled out a blanket and is now trying to lay it flat on the ground. The second boy is pulling out food and arranging it along the blanket. This seems like a waste of a blanket. Why would they put it on the ground when they could wrap it around each other? Or better yet give it to me? I’ve been here for years and no one has ever given me a blanket. I suppose I should let it go. They haven’t seen me yet. I’ll bring this up with them when they do eventually discover me.
October 16
It’s been a month since the two boys were last here together. The first boy comes here almost everyday now. Usually with some rather large books and journals with odd colored covers. The second boy comes every so often. I think he wants to surprise the first boy. He’s obviously not very good at planning these sorts of things. I think step one would be to know where the person you’re surprising is going to be. Maybe things have changed since I was last around people.
October 24
The boys didn’t come today. My cemetery feels empty without them. That never used to happen before. I had never felt this lonely before. I suppose I should go visit the grave. I haven’t visited the grave in a while. I’m sure the boys will come back. Right? Even if they don’t I’ll be fine. I’m always fine. Besides, this time of year usually brings more people around my cemetery. I’m not sure why. I need to prepare. I’ll visit the grave tomorrow.
November 13
It’s been awhile since both boys have been here at the same time. The first boy came a bunch on his own. That’s not unusual. But today they were both here. I’m not sure what’s happening but this is all very exciting. The second boy brought other people. I don’t know who they are. Then again I can’t say I know the two boys either. I feel like I know them but they don’t know me. I’ve thought about introducing myself. I always choose not to though. I don’t want them to leave me. The other people are talking to the first boy. They look very uncomfortable. I don’t think it has anything to do with the cemetery though. They seem like they don’t like the first boy. They’re pulling the second boy away. He’s struggling. He doesn’t want to leave. What an odd bunch of people. The two other people probably have some relation to the second boy since they have no issue grabbing him. I would offer to help but they didn’t bring me a blanket and I’m still cold.
November 24
It’s been almost two weeks since I’ve seen the second boy. The first boy comes daily and cries by himself. I want to go over there and comfort him but I think I would make things worse. He’s been crying over a pamphlet. I don’t know what it’s for. I can barely make out what it says. I think it says something about a summer camp. I don’t know why the second boy finds this so upsetting. From what I hear summer camps are happy. I’m sure I’ll figure it out eventually.
December 17
It’s been almost a month since either of the two boys showed up. The tombstones are all covered in white. I still don’t have a blanket. The grave is so covered in snow that I can’t find it. I hope the boys come back soon. I’ve let myself become too dependent. I am relying on them for entertainment and to keep my sanity. I’ve already lost so much. I can’t lose my sanity too. It would drive me crazy.
April 24
It has been 18 weeks and 2 days since I last saw the boys. I’ve gotten back into my routine from before them. I sit everyday and watch. After watching I explore. Sometimes I’ll visit the grave. All the snow melted and the flowers started blooming. The cemetery is full of life. I think it’s ironic. Nobody ever thinks sad places can be beautiful. Nobody lets themselves think like that. People decided long ago that death is a sad thing that should be colorless and dark. These flowers proved them wrong. I wish the boys were here to see it. I sometimes imagine them sitting on a blanket eating food like they sometimes did. Somehow my cemetery isn’t as comforting as it once was.
June 29
The boys are back. It’s been eight years, six months, and five days since I last saw them. They look different. Other than the added years to their faces, they look haggard. As if they’ve been broken in some way and are working together to repair themselves. They’re smiling with their fingers intertwined. They brought the backpack of food again. No blanket this time. After a while they get up to leave. As they walk away a small card falls to the ground. I want to see what the card says. I went to get the card after I was sure they were gone.
Please save the date
Ren Ishikawa
&
Aziz Rashid
May 19th 2026
I’m not entirely sure what this means. I assume the names on the card are the names of the two boys. When I get back to my spot there’s a blanket where I was sitting. I try to find who left it there. I’m completely alone. Yet I’ve never felt less so.
