"Meet me by the tree." He'd always say. That was where we'd meet when we were kids. By that big oak tree down the street. That was nearly ten years ago…honestly, I've even forgotten how'd we'd actually hang out…I forgotten how close we were.

Now ten years later he moves back into the house from where he once lived, and when going to meet the new neighbors the first time, I could tell he wasn't too happy seeing me.

His blonde bangs with a red streak down the middle, were swept to one side and his clothes-dear god did he change. Tight-tight skinny jeans with some holes here and there and his shoes, big black round-ish shoes with red splats across the bottom, like he'd been walking in blood. His style had completely changed and the shirt he was wearing had the words:

"Suck it"

In English the front, pointing down. I stared at him. And as I stared I noticed more changes with this guy who used to be my best friend—he had a lip ring. A lip ring! Not to mention that he had three earrings in one ear—god knows what's on the other ear hiding behind his choppy medium bangs.

The expression on my face would probably scar a little kid if they were to walk by at that moment. This wasn't the guy I knew back then.

He walked towards me, "move." Is what he said. I did as he said, acting on impulse, and moved left, out of his way. I watched him slowly walk, arms crossed, flowers in one hand—flowers? There weren't any graves around here…

I followed him, he must've not cared since his expression hadn't changed. He slowly walked down to the large oak tree down the street, and then placed those flowers on the stump.

I asked, "Why are you doing that?"

He looked at me, smiled shyly and said in a low tone, "my best friend died when I was very small…" he laughed slightly and looked back at the tree, "we'd always go here and play together, when we were kids, and…" he paused, then rose from where he knelt. Looked me straight in the eye, and smiled a warm, loving smile, "I loved him…"

My heart beat sped up, and I had to do a double take.

"You…loved him?" I asked, sounding completely stupid—putting him on the spot and forcing him to come out and say "yeah, I'm gay what of it." But in fact he did something else.

"Actually, I hadn't known it back then, but when I moved to America I could feel the loneliness bottle up inside me, and when I said his name I felt better and there I knew I loved him…" he paused and the tone of his voice changed drastically. "but when I got word of his demise, I felt all this sadness build back up inside me, if only I got to see him again…if only I wasn't so selfish and moved to America…" his voice quivered as if he would begin crying any second now, but he didn't.

"Iru…"I said. Instantly his face lit up, his eyes widened, his mouth dropped. He stared at me in awe…

"…Kodo….nii..?" he asked in disbelief as the tears fell from his eyes, slowly, gracefully, sliding their way down his cheek.

I squeezed him tightly as he wrapped his arms around me with such force I thought he would break me in two. He cried messily in my shoulder, unable to form complete sentences.

"b-but…but I…" he paused as he sniveled, "they—they t-told me y-….you…" he paused once again and I took deep breaths. Trying to calm him down, I caressed his messy, soft hair with one hand and with the other I pat his back gently.

"I don't know what you've heard" I said reassuringly, "but I haven't been to the hospital since you left. I never had a near death experience." I said shushing his messy cries.

"t-they say y-you…d-died in a car crash b-b-back t-two years ago." He cried.

"Who said that? I asked, pulling his head gently from my shoulder and placing it in front of mine.

"m-my p-parents t-told me!" he cried, clutching onto my shirt. "K-kodo-nii!"

"oh Iru!" I said as we embraced one another again…