CHAPTER 1
It was a nice summer August day in New York City. The breeze felt soothing and relaxing with the cars passing by and honking out on the streets. The sun was beaming down; high over our heads as my best friend James and I were playing tag.
My short little legs were moving as fast as they could to get him, but for a six year old, he was fast.
I was a year younger than him and would be going into first grade this year.
"James, it's not fair! I'm not playing anymore!" I complained as I stomped to a deck chair and sat down with a frowned face and crossed arms.
"What's wrong sweetheart?" my mom asked placing her hand on my shoulder.
Our moms were the best of friends ever since middle school. They were like blood sisters doing everything together from shopping to cooking to traveling. They even went to Europe just the two of them for three months. Our families grew up close to each other and did almost everything together. Today was exactly one of those days of them catching up, minus our dads working.
My mom took hold of my hands and bent down in front of me. I was frustrated with myself that I couldn't tag him. When we played this game I could never catch him. It always ended in my complaints.
I could see James in the back laughing his head off which only got me more upset.
"It's not fair. He's faster than me," I whined to my mom.
James' mom came out carrying the burgers and placed them on the table. Our mothers decided to take off today to spend some time together.
"Don't worry," James' mom began. "You'll be faster than him some day and he'll be the one chasing you," she continued.
"Really?" I asked looking up at her and she nodded.
"Tati," James called out.
He called me by my nickname ever since we could talk as little kids.
"Don't stop trying," he said running towards me.
He stopped in front of me panting and catching his breath. I was upset with him so I faced the other way. Our moms just laughed and went inside to get the rest of the food.
"Tats," he said trying to make me laugh. "Tator tots," he called out and I couldn't help but to giggle.
"Okay guys, food is ready," my mom called out and we scrambled over to the deck table to win our spots. Like always, we sat together. We were having spaghetti and hamburgers today.
"I don't like meatballs," I whispered to him.
"I'll eat them for you," he whispered back.
I secretly handed it to him under the table because if my mom found out, she would yell at me. Giving each other what we didn't like was our little system that we had worked out with food. If I didn't like something on my plate, I would give it to him and he would do the same. It all worked out in the end.
But that was just a memory from my past.
I go to Penn State University and I recently completed my second year of college. I haven't spoken to James in over eight years. He pursued his dreams of becoming an actor and singer when he moved to California at the age of fourteen.
I remembered that day perfectly.
It was the summer of 2004 when I walked over to his house to do our summer school work on a Thursday afternoon. We wanted to get the work done earlier because in August our families liked to vacation together every year. This year, however, they didn't say anything about going on vacation which only made me wonder why we weren't doing anything this year. James has been acting strange lately though, same with my parents. Almost as if everyone knows something I don't.
When I walked inside his house, I found boxes everywhere and stuff out of their place. His picture frames when he was a baby weren't up or the decorations on the tables weren't there either.
He hadn't said anything about this at all.
"What are these boxes for?" I asked eying each one of them curiously. I was suspicious. They looked like boxes for moving, but James would never leave. If he were, he would've told me earlier.
"Um, my mom is doing something," was all he said.
I didn't continue to question him. We simply continued doing our work together. I badly wanted to know what the boxes were for. It bugged me for the next following days.
A week later, I found my answer.
I saw the sign on his front lawn that read: FOR SALE. My heart skipped a beat and my mind went blank. He was moving and hadn't told me anything about it.
I immediately ran over to his house and rang the doorbell. I waited impatiently for the door to open. One minute later, James opened the door. He stood before me in jeans and a green shirt, his hair brushed slightly to one side.
"You're moving?" I asked pointing to the sign planted in his lawn.
He looked over to the sign as if he forgot and then slowly nodded looking to the ground.
"I'm moving to LA to pursue my dreams. I got into this school and my mom said she'd let me go," he explained.
"Oh," was all I could muster to say.
I should have congratulated him or given him a hug or done something. But for some reason, we both knew it wasn't really good news to celebrate. Maybe for him it was, but finding out that he was leaving was like getting stabbed by a needle a million times straight in the heart. He's my best friend. The only one who ever really knew me. No one other than him understands me. Why did he have to leave?
"Yeah, your mom and my mom talked about it. I thought you already knew," he said and I shook my head. "I'm sorry."
"It's fine," I told him, but I was sad, broken-hearted.
Nothing about this situation was fine. I was almost in tears. No one ever wants to lose their best friend after all the times they've spent together.
"Listen I have to keep packing," he said. "We can hang out tomorrow."
I looked up to him, but found it hard to keep my eyes on him.
"When do you leave?" my voice cracked and my eyes began to tear up. I wiped them away and stared up at the sky to avoid any other tears from dripping down my face.
"Next week," he answered.
I nodded and slowly walked away. Only a week left to do everything. Why was I the last one to find out? At the last minute too.
"I'll call you later tonight," he called out and then closed his door.
As I walked back to my house the wind started picking up, making my hair fly everywhere. I took deep breaths in and out to calm myself from crying where everyone can see me.
The trees were swaying side to side and the leaves were flying off the branches. Disconnecting from the roots that once used to keep a strong hold on them like best friends do. James was the leaf who was flying far away from me.
A storm was coming. I wrapped my thin sweater around me to keep me warm, but it was no use. Out in the distance, I heard thunder rumbling and saw a flash of lightning. I quickly ran to my house before I could get wet.
When I closed the door, the downpour began and I rushed straight to my room to cry out the pain I was feeling. I buried my face in my pillow and cried myself to sleep that night. I even skipped dinner. I wasn't hungry either.
"Tati! Dinner is ready!" my mom called out.
"I'm not hungry!" I yelled and continued to cry.
My parents probably knew that I had just found out and that's why they didn't bother me that night. When were they going to tell me anyway? I had a right to know.
The next day, James came over around nine in the morning. My parents had to work so they weren't here. My mom always left around nine, so she must've let him in.
"Tati," I heard him calling out my name.
I shifted in my bed and turned the other way, wanting more sleep.
I felt him sit on the edge of my bed and place his hand on my waist. I slowly opened my eyes and turned to face him.
"Morning," he smiled and I felt like crying again because I knew in six days, that was something I wouldn't be seeing ever again until God knows how long. I swallowed and held my tears from pouring out all over again.
"Hey," my voice sounded hoarse, probably from all that crying last night.
"Your mom let me in," he said and I nodded.
I sat up in bed and he removed his hand. I hadn't realized I was extremely hungry until my stomach growled.
He laughed.
"Someone's hungry," he said getting up from my bed.
"I didn't eat last night."
He gave me a weird look.
"Why?" he asked.
"I fell asleep early," I lied.
"No wonder why you didn't pick up."
I remembered him saying that he would call, but I probably didn't hear my phone ring.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
"Apologizing. I should've told you earlier that I was moving," I looked to the bed sheets as he continued speaking. "I'm sorry."
"It's fine," I said flatly.
But it really wasn't. I should've been the first to know, not the last.
"Do you want to spend the day together?" he asked.
"Don't you have to pack?"
"I can do that tomorrow. Want to help?"
"Sure."
"Cool. Then lets go eat somewhere," he said taking my hand and pulling me out of my bed.
He pulled me downstairs out the door like a dog does when going on a walk.
"Where are we going? I'm still in my PJ's," I reminded him.
"So?" he questioned.
"I'm not going to walk into some place dressed in my PJs," I said.
He laughed letting go of me.
I quickly ran inside and changed into jean shorts and a Hollister shirt. I put on my sandals and put my hair in a high ponytail. I grabbed the house keys and locked the door. We walked down to Ihop and ate breakfast together. We both ordered pancakes and bacon, our favorite.
"Do you really have to go?" I asked.
He wiped the crumbs off the corner of his mouth with the napkin and waited to answer my question.
"Yeah," he answered quietly. "I'm kind of happy because I'm going to do something I've always wanted to do," he said.
"That's really nice," I said trying to be happy instead of gloomy.
We finished our food and walked down to New York Square. We walked around everywhere. Doing our normal stuff we always do when coming here. We walked in and out of stores trying on crazy hats that would make us laugh.
We got ice cream at Ben and Jerry's and eventually it would end up on our faces. James always won this competition because he was the first one to smush my face with his ice cream. But I got him back somehow.
When the sun was setting, we went back to my house up to my room. I opened the window and stepped out onto my roof. This was one thing we've always been doing since I was in fifth grade.
We carefully walked on the roof of my house, holding each other's hand to make sure we wouldn't fall. We sat down next to each other and watched the sunset in New York City. I laid my head on his shoulder and hugged his arm making our last memories.
When it got dark, we went back into my room and he hugged me goodbye.
"Do you just want to sleepover?" he asked.
"But we don't do that anymore."
"It doesn't matter."
I smiled, "Okay."
I packed my stuff and we went downstairs. My mom was there.
"Hey mom!" I said.
"Hey Tati, hey James," she said walking over to give us hugs. She eyed my bag. "Let me guess," she began as she walked back to cutting up the vegetables. "You want to sleep over James' house?"
I nodded my head. She quickly cut the vegetables. The knife hit the wooden board every second without missing a beat. She scraped off the cut up vegetables into a bowl and dried her hands on her apron she got with James' mom.
"Fine," she finally said and I went over to hug her.
"Thank you!" I said and she smiled.
She probably let me sleepover because she felt bad for not telling me earlier about James and them moving.
James and I walked out of my house and walked over to his. We watched a movie together on the couch. He put his arm around me and I laid my head on his chest wrapping my arm around his stomach. We watched the movie and ended up falling asleep on the couch. We looked like a couple, but we weren't. We were just two friends who were hanging out for probably the last time.
"James, Tati," James' mom called shaking us. "Go upstairs."
We got up and walked sleepily to James room. His bed could fit two people. I loved his bed because it was comfortable and nice. We slept together like good old times, him on one side and me on the other.
The rest of the week we hung out together. He slept over my house and I slept over his house. We alternated houses and did everything together the following days up until he left.
The day he was leaving, my parents and I walked over to their house. When we got there, everything was packed. The house was empty. Nothing was left and I just felt like crying even more.
When I saw James, he was sitting on the stairs with his head in his hands.
He looked up and our eyes met. My eyes were blurry from the tears already forming in my eyes. He stood up and walked over to me. James wrapped his arms around me and I buried myself into the crane of his neck as I sobbed on him. He soothed my hair and rubbed my back as he embraced and comforted me in his arms. I continued to sob.
"Okay lets get in the car," James' dad called and I slowly let go of James. We walked out and got in the car because we were taking them to the airport. My dad drove and James' dad rode shotgun. Our moms sat together discussing everything like best friends would do and James and I sat in the back.
"Can't believe I'm moving to Cali," James said flabbergasted.
"Yeah, it's really pretty over there," I said.
He noticed the sadness in my voice.
"I'll send you pictures on Facebook and we can Skype."
I smiled and nodded letting him know that I approved.
"Now I won't have my buddy to do homework with," I said and he laughed.
"I'm going to miss this place," he said looking out the window.
I exhaled and looked out the window too.
"You'll come back to visit right?" I asked suddenly and he turned to face me.
"Only if you come visit me," he said.
"Of course I will."
He smiled but it was a melancholy smile because now we were arriving at the airport. It was time for us to say goodbye.
We got out their luggage from the trunk and walked in the airport with them.
James' dad got the boarding tickets and now they were heading to security. My mom embraced her best friend as she cried on her shoulder. The dad's were playing the tough ones, but I knew they were sad inside.
I turned to face James.
He had his long arms already outstretched towards me. As if on cue, I ran into his arms and hugged him with all my might.
"I'm going to miss you my tator tots," he said in my ear, hugging me tighter.
I laughed softly, but my eyes were getting watery.
He let go and looked me in the eyes. He held my face in his hands wiping the tears off my face with his thumb.
"Hey, don't cry," he said and that's when I broke down completely.
He pulled me into his arms again and rubbed my back, comforting me. I cried hard against his chest not wanting him to leave. I didn't want him to go.
"You're going to make me cry now."
I laughed. "I'm going to miss you," I told him.
"I'm going to miss you too," he said.
"Promise you won't forget about me?"
"Promise," he said to me.
I hugged him one last time before he hugged my mom and dad. I did the same.
Once the hugging was all done, they got in line for security and just like snow disappears when spring arrives, they were gone, leaving everything behind.
Leaving everything just a memory.
