[ CW ] Write a story that seems like it could reveal much with heavy analysis of symbols and events . However , write it with absolutely no thought about symbols or hidden meaning at all . In the comments , furiously debate hidden meanings and symbols of the story .

She was impressed by the first words she ever heard from me. They were a murmured, “ Could I sit here? I just wan na talk to you. I ’ m sorry I ’ m being so forward but I saw you and I just have to talk to you. ” I felt my hands shaking slightly, “ I wan na talk to you so much. ” 
 
 The most surprising thing was when she didn ’ t tell me to fuck off. From the beginning she tolerated me. I would later discover that Tessa tolerated a great many things in life. She tolerated the cold weather. Even though her favourite season was summer. I never understood people who chose to live in climates they hated. But I suppose we don ’ t all have the luxury of choosing our destinies and destinations. Tessa told me this. She told me a great many things. She taught me a great many things. An example for your ears: she taught me how to make a “ thank you ” sound like a “ fuck you ”. Said with the grace of a queen and the spite of a man about to start a fight. 
 
 I sat down at her cafe table. The place around us was empty save for an old man and his old dog sharing a quiet conversation through certain looks. Tessa told me about her job, her day, her past and her possible futures. She spoke to me as if I were a priest she was confessing not only her sins to but her loves and losses and victories as well. She spoke to me as if she was never going to see me again. So what could she have to lose? 
 
 The longer she spoke the more in love with her I fell. Some people fall with the weight of a feather. I fell like a world collapsing into the bottom of space. If such a thing were possible. I fell hard for this stranger called Tessa. While she remained firmly in her place. She was the love of my life. I was one of her many strangers. 
 I ended up telling her about my ex. She was silent for a while before something kicked in. An irritated look passed briefly over her face. Her eyebrows furrowed, her mouth formed a tense line. I would later realise, after months of seeking her out and revisiting the cafe we met at, after months of searching for her online, that she was judging how easily I fell in love. She had silently predicted my falling in love with her. The moment she told me about her ex, I thought she was just giving me what I had given her: a sad story for a sad story. Little did I know Tessa was teaching me a lesson. 
 
 I knew she was smart. Looking back on it, she was probably one of those smart people who only mingled with other smart people and would remain in that sophisticated bubble of intelligence for the rest of her life. I imagine the only idiots she spoke with were the ones that threw themselves at her. She was intelligent because she looked at me for only a brief hour within an afternoon surrounded by an infinite amount of afternoons and told me the truth. Intelligent people never lie. It doesn ’ t mean they ’ re heartless or cruel in what they offer to tell you, but they don ’ t follow the social cues of aimless flattery or chatter. Every word is carefully said. Every word is a lesson. And if that lesson is listened to, it has the power to change your life forever. Tessa taught me a lesson. Tessa told me about her ex. 
 
 I replied to her story, “ You loved him deeply. You were that infatuated with him? ” I remember letting jealousy colour my tone. 
 
 She regarded me with seriousness. Intelligent people don ’ t mock others when they ’ re about to grow. They ’ re endlessly patient. Tessa replied. 
 
 “ No, I wasn ’ t in love. I wasn ’ t infatuated either. I was obsessed. And Thank god I was obsessed. The point of an obsession is that it ’ s short-lived. Like a fever dream. Love is everlasting. If love is loving the reality of a person then obsession is idealising the fantasy of an idea. And an idea of an individual holds absolutely nothing against the actual person. An idea is a shadow. While a person is an entire world. ” 
 
 Tessa the idea. Tessa my afternoon obsession. Tessa the girl I saw in a cafe who I imagined our whole life together after just looking at the shape of her face and the way she sipped her drink. Tessa who watched me leave the cafe; fuming and rejected. The calm in her eyes. The curve to her smirk. Tessa: the only human who ever told me the truth. Tessa: my first love and final obsession. 

