It was lunch time and I was swinging on the playground’s swings, waiting for my best, greatest, and only friend, Jason, or as I have always called him, Jay.
I saw Jay running towards me with his brown paper bag lunch and a huge grin on his face. His big smile always made me laugh. But why was he grinning? Today wasn’t a happy day for us, it was a sad day. Today, Jay was moving. I didn’t know where. All I knew is that he was moving far away. He was leaving me. Who knows when I will see him again?! It rips me apart thinking that right after lunch today he will be gone.

He sat on the swing next to me. We laughed and laughed over the stupidest things as we ate our PB&J sandwiches. I wished so hard that he wouldn’t go. But I knew he had to and I wanted him to remember me, so I made him something special to remind him that we will always be together.

Right before lunch was over I gave him my gift. It was a leather bracelet, brown, like the color of his eyes. On it was a word painted in blue. Blue, like the color of my eyes. The word was together. I hoped with all my heart that he would never forget me. When I gave it to him all he did was smile, put it on his wrist and said, “I will wear it forever and always.” He pulled something out of his pocket, a necklace. It was a brown leather string, the same leather on his bracelet, and hanging from it was a stone. A blue stone, the same blue from my gift to him. On the back of the stone was an engraved word painted brown. That word was forever. Together forever.

He put the beautiful necklace on for me and said, “There. Now we can be together forever.” I didn’t know what to say and a tear trickled down my cheek.

“I love it,” I finally whispered. “I will wear it every day.”

It was time for him to go. He pulled me close and gently kissed my lips. He whispered something in my ear.

His words were, “I love you Nikki. Together. Forever. Never forget that.”


I woke up. Suddenly I remembered where I was. Home, in my apartment, 10 years away from that memory