The Colors of Us – Chapter Six

The Wishing Tree

On their final morning at Rainbow Lake, the valley seemed reluctant to let them go.

Mist floated lazily across the water, softening the edges of the mountains until they looked like paintings brushed onto the horizon. The air carried the scent of pine, damp earth, and fresh tea brewing somewhere nearby.

Meher stood at the cabin window, watching the first light spread across the lake.

"I wish mornings lasted longer," she whispered.

A gentle knock came at the door.

Ayaan leaned against the frame, holding two steaming mugs.

"I had a feeling you'd already be awake."

She accepted the tea with a smile.

"I don't want to leave."

"I know."

He looked toward the lake.

"Neither do I."

---

After breakfast, the elderly caretaker approached them with a warm smile.

"You've seen the lake," he said.

"You've walked the trails."

"But there's one place visitors often miss."

Meher's eyes brightened.

"What place?"

"The Wishing Tree."

They exchanged curious glances.

"I've never heard of it," Ayaan admitted.

"Most people don't," the caretaker replied.

"It's hidden beyond the old shepherd's path."

He smiled knowingly.

"If you're willing to walk a little farther, the mountains will reward you."

---

The trail was narrow and quiet.

Wildflowers brushed against their legs as they walked beneath towering pine trees.

The only sounds were birdsong and the distant murmur of a stream.

After nearly half an hour, the forest opened into a peaceful clearing.

At its center stood an enormous walnut tree.

Its branches stretched wide like welcoming arms.

Dozens of colorful ribbons fluttered gently in the mountain breeze.

Some were faded with time.

Others looked newly tied.

Tiny handwritten notes hung from many of them.

Meher stepped forward in amazement.

"It's beautiful."

The ribbons danced together, creating a soft whisper that almost sounded like voices carried by the wind.

A small wooden sign rested beneath the tree.

It read:

"Leave a wish.

Leave a prayer.

Leave with hope.

The mountains remember what the heart cannot forget."

---

"Do you think the wishes come true?" Meher asked softly.

Ayaan smiled.

"I think writing them helps people believe in tomorrow."

She reached into her backpack and pulled out her journal.

He searched his pockets until he found a folded piece of paper.

Neither looked at what the other was writing.

The clearing fell silent.

Only the wind moved.

Meher folded her note carefully before tying it to a pale blue ribbon.

She closed her eyes for a moment.

Not to ask for perfection.

Not to ask for certainty.

Only for the courage to welcome whatever life would bring.

Across the tree, Ayaan tied a deep green ribbon to a lower branch.

He smiled quietly to himself.

"What did you wish for?" Meher asked.

"If I tell you..."

"It won't come true?"

He nodded.

She laughed.

"You really believe that?"

"I believe some wishes are meant to stay between the heart and God."

She smiled.

"I like that."

---

They sat beneath the walnut tree, leaning against its wide trunk.

Sunlight filtered through the leaves, painting gentle patterns across the grass.

"I have a question," Ayaan said.

"Hmm?"

"If life gave you one extra year to spend anywhere in the world..."

"Where would you go?"

She didn't answer immediately.

Instead, she looked around the clearing.

"I don't think I'd choose a place."

"No?"

She shook her head.

"I'd choose the people."

He smiled.

"That's a very Meher answer."

"And yours?"

"I think..."

He paused.

"I'd return somewhere that reminds me who I am."

She looked at him thoughtfully.

"Maybe that's why people travel."

"Not to escape life."

"But to remember it."

---

As they prepared to leave, Meher noticed a ribbon almost hidden beneath the others.

Its colors had faded from years of sun and rain.

She gently touched it.

"Someone tied this here a long time ago."

"I wonder if their wish came true."

Ayaan looked at the weathered ribbon.

"Maybe."

"Or maybe the wish changed."

She turned toward him.

"Can wishes change?"

He nodded.

"I think people do."

"And when people change..."

"So do their dreams."

She smiled.

"I hope we never stop dreaming."

"I don't think we will."

---

The walk back felt quieter.

Not because they had run out of things to say.

But because some moments asked to be carried in silence.

When Rainbow Lake came into view once more, they stopped instinctively.

The lake sparkled beneath the afternoon sun, as beautiful as the day they had first arrived.

"It feels different now," Meher said.

"How?"

"It doesn't feel like a place anymore."

"What does it feel like?"

She smiled softly.

"A memory that's still being written."

Ayaan looked across the water.

"Then let's promise something."

She turned toward him.

"One day..."

"When life has changed."

"When we're older."

"When these mountains have seen a few more winters..."

"We'll come back."

She held out her hand.

"It's a promise."

He took it gently.

"It's a promise."

Far behind them, the ribbons on the Wishing Tree swayed with the breeze.

Perhaps they carried hundreds of dreams.

Perhaps they carried only hope.

Either way, the mountains kept them safe.

And somewhere among those fluttering ribbons hung two wishes—unread by anyone else, known only to the hearts that had tied them there.

Neither Meher nor Ayaan realized that years later, those ribbons would still be waiting.

Not because the mountains had preserved them.

But because some promises are never truly left behind.

End of Chapter Six

To be continued...