Saudade (noun): the longing to be near someone or something that is distant

It was nighttime, so the little green bird curled up against the frigid wind.

The small green body was tucked away under a roof, a tiny crevice with just enough space to fit a bird and block it from the coldness that draped over the city when the sun vanished.

Wings folded and toes coiled, the little bird tried to drift into unconsciousness but sensed an unsettling void instead.

It sort of… wanted a head pat.

A flurry of days had gone by since it first started journeying around the world and maybe even beyond the world, without a nest to call home and a companion to call friend. It witnessed the blooming of relationships across humans, animals, plants, and even the ephemeral life of a nonliving firework, yet it never experienced one for itself.

What would it be like to feel a gentle boop to the cheek?

Squeezing its little eyelids close, the little green bird imagined a warm touch covering its wings, a cozy tent for a weary traveler.

One last waking thought lingered in its mind as drowsiness weighed down its head: “would there ever be someone to tell the story of a storyteller?”