He waited for her by the docks, kept hoping she would show to at least say goodbye. “I’m sorry,” he recalled her saying a week before, “I can’t go with you.”
“But why not?” He asked softly.
“I’m not like you. I’m tied to here. I have my family. I have roots, ones I can’t abandon.” She sucked in a deep breath, probably to control her tears. “When are you leaving?”
“A week.”
She nodded, “I hope your journey is safe and sound.”
He pursed his lips as if he was trying hard to come up with the words to say. “Will you at least be there to say goodbye?”
“I’ll try.” She shoved her hands in her coat pockets. “Um, I better go. Lots of research to do.”
Standing on the deck of his boat, he checked his watch. Time to go. Slowly, he jammed the key into its slot and turned. Then slowly and carefully, he maneuvered the boat away from the dock and out to sea.
(~170 words)
I am participating in Flash Fiction for Aspiring Writer, where we write a piece between 100 and 150 words (more or less 25 words) in length inspired by the photo prompt above. 
Such a heart touching story Yinglan! So sad that they have to part to their separate lives. Great story!
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Thank you. It is sad and it’s more sad that she didn’t go say goodbye.
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Yes! Very sad.
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Yinglan, I have tried to “like” your posts today, including this one, and it keeps saying that the like button is loading. But it never loads.
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Hmm, that’s odd. Maybe it’s just one of those days the like button is being lazy. 😀
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Hahaha! Yes! Probably, it’s a glitch with WordPress and will work itself out.
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I hope so.
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Fantastic story!! I had to read it twice, it’s so moving. This is a great take, thanks for sharing 🙂
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Thank you. 🙂
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Aw, heartbreaking piece 😦
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Indeed it is.
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Sigh!
A sad farewell , recorded so well , I could almost cry .
Wonderfully written .
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Thank you.
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Excellent writing style! 🙂
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Thank you. 🙂
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So much emotion in just a short story. Awesome work!
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Thank you. 🙂
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Really good story!
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Thank you. 🙂
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Such a lovely story
Click Here to see what Mrs. Dash Says
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Thank you.
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This is sad. Who knows if the poor girl wanted to come, but couldn’t! Well done, Yinglan
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Who knows but I agree, it’s sad. Thank you for reading.
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Your emotion filled story is beautifully written. Excellent
Click to read my FFfAW
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Thank you. 🙂
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How sad. Maybe things will change in the future.
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Maybe. 😊
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