It's Called Observation

Good Morning/Afternoon/Evening/Night(whichever one it is in your part of the world),

Hi! I'm here to leave a quick review!!

First Impression: Well..this was quite a fun little story to read here...its a fun little look at the way that most teenagers tend to see situation like this...and well...that ending is also kinda wholesome...I liked it somehow...anyway.

Anyway let's get right to it,

If you ask me honestly the best thing in the world isn’t some friend. It’s a tub of ice cream, a sappy romantic movie, a box of tissues and some good heartbreak music.

And it is because of this, that I find myself watching a sappy romantic movie or listening to some crazy heartbreak music with a box of tissues and ice cream every day. At this point, I probably have the dialogues of Sleepless In Seattle memorised better than Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks did while they were filming it. And I definitely have the lyrics to every song by Taylor Swift and Adele burnt to my memory. Of course, I may not deliver the dialogues as well as Meg Ryan would, or sing the song as well as Taylor Swift did, but I sure could beat their memory.

Most people think that I am obsessed. But the thing is, I’m not. Not obsessed at least. I’m allowed to think about things for how much ever long I may want. I can talk about those things how much ever I want. Thinking or talking about something a lot doesn’t mean that the person is obsessed with that thing. It is possible to simply like something and talk about it. It’s called being interested in that thing.

Or person. I could think about a guy or talk about him all day. That doesn’t mean I’m obsessed with him. Because I’m not.

Honestly, I’m not obsessed with him. I just like him. Girls like guys all the time. That doesn’t mean they’re obsessed with them. There can be multiple reasons why a girl thinks about the same guy all the time. When you like someone, you do that. It’s natural.

I don’t like the word Obsess. Because that’s not what it is. It’s called Observation.

There, you have it. That’s what I do. I observe him.

I observe him between classes when I stand with my group of friends, not actively participating in the conversation, just paying half my attention to them. I observe him as he talks to his friends. As he stands in the corridor with his teacher and clears his doubt. I observe as he makes jokes at his friends. I laugh when his friends pull pranks on him.

I observe him when we sit in the auditorium for the guest lecture in the afternoons. I observe as he subtly messages his friends during the lecture. I observe as he carefully selects the tallest person to sit behind so he can hide behind them and play games on his mobile. I observe him grinning at his friends and laughing silently every time the lecturer tried to make us laugh.

I observe him over my newspaper in the library, as he reads quietly, only looking up when someone calls him. I observe the deep look of concentration on his face. I observe his eyes flitting from one side to another as he reads. I observe him when he writes down a new word when he comes across it. I observe him going to the reference section in the last 10 minutes, and look up the meanings of the words he listed.

When You observe, you learn a lot of things. I learnt many things too.

I learnt that he is focused on making a good career for himself. But I also learnt that he knows how to enjoy himself. I learnt that his friends bring out a side to him that is very different from when he’s alone. I learnt that he pays undivided attention to whatever he’s doing, whether it’s chilling with his friends, or studying. I learnt that his eyes light up with a really bright shine when he’s laughing. I learnt that someone twice our age trying to make us laugh amuses him endlessly. I’ve learnt that he has an insatiable thirst for knowledge. I’ve learnt, reading is a never ending quest for him.

I’ve learnt that he has a way of making those around him special. I’ve learnt that something happens to me when I’m one those around him. I’ve learnt that he changes my perception of myself every time we talk, he makes me feel better about myself.

I’ve learnt that he’s never felt about me the way I feel about him. And I’ve learnt that he never will.

But the most important thing I’ve learnt is that Love isn’t just about holding hands or being close.

Love is also the warmth you feel when you love someone from afar.

When you observe someone.

Hullo, I shall be reviewing your short story today.
I must say, the first few paragraphs perfectly describe me. You've probably described a good portion of the teenage girl population, and hit the nail on the head there. Well done.
I love how it slowly beings to build. It seems so innocent at first, and though it doesn't really lose it's innocence, to me it seems to get a little more intimate. How you describe the girl's "observation" of the boy is spot on. I must admit that I find myself thinking and "observing" the same way - a bit obsessively, and I don't mind calling myself obsessive when I mention Tom Hiddleston or Keanu Reeves.
Anyways, altogether this is a very well-written short story. I give you much applause!

Ok, first things first. I absolutely loved the subtlety and nuance with which you described the two protagonists of your story. At first we get to see the girl as she sees herself. Her perception of herself is different from that of the people around her (which is true for all of us to one extent or another) and it is left up to the readers to decide which one of the versions to believe, or whether to believe either of them at all! The way in which you depicted the girl's thoughts, actions and personality in minute detail is very remarkable indeed. The kind of music and films she likes, how she sees herself and the world around her, her thoughts, beliefs, her idea of a good pastime, all served to develop and build a character we can relate to. Your nuanced descriptions helped transform the character from a figment of your imagination to a flesh and blood human being in the reader's eyes!

Next we see the boy as she sees him, as an exaggerated and air-brushed version of himself. An ordinary man as seen from the enamoured eyes of a lover. His virtues are emphasized and his faults ignored. The way she sees him is an excellent depiction of the way in which teenage love sees the object of its affections, passionate but still innocent and naive.

Her description of her actions as 'observation', as opposed to 'obsession', her passionate defense of her own motivations and rejection of society's views and opinions also add a whole new and interesting dimension to her character, in addition to the typical tale of teenage rebellion. She is fiercely defiant, yet strangely vulnerable...insecure too, as otherwise she wouldn't have felt the need to justify herself in such detail. She is as real people are, especially in their adolescent years when they are still trying to find themselves, full of contradictions and insecurities, yet passionate in their own beliefs, craving acceptance yet unwilling to ask for it, preferring to feign nonchalance instead. I don't know if you realise this, but your subtlety and astuteness in documenting human behaviour is really quite amazing!

While the overall piece was very well written indeed, the only flaws I could find in this piece were minor technical errors. Any spell-check would help you correct them, but since this is after all supposed to be a critique, I might as well do a bit of criticizing!

At this point, I probably have the dialogues of Sleepless In Seattle memorised better than Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks did while they were filming it.

And I definitely have the lyrics to every song by Taylor Swift and Adele burnt to my memory.

I’m allowed to think about things for how much ever long I may want. I can talk about those things how much ever I want.

This. Was. Really. Interesting.

My first reaction to this was, "Spot on"

You couldn't have put this in better words. I'm tired of reading the good-old,"You are my coffee and I am your mug" kinda depiction of love. This looked extremely spontaneous and REAL. Obsession is almost always confused with observation. I have a very personal example to share.

I was writing a satire about a thief and I was reading lots of stories about how thefts are actually executed and everyone around me went crazy and claimed I'm obsessed with thieves and I'm an aspiring criminal. This frustrated me to such an extent that I gave up my novel.

Coming back to your story, I completely agree with the Tom Hanks and Taylor Swift example. It's such a universal example. Happens with everyone.

The writing style of yours is very smooth and sturdy.

Love isn’t just about holding hands or being close..