FRIENDS FOREVER

"Many people will walk in and out of your life, but only true friends will leave footprints in your heart."-Eleanor Roosevelt

September, 1981

Joss sat alone with no tears left to cry. She was only nine but her life was over. Her best friend was moving away. She sat amongst her mama's flowers and cried her little heart out. It just wasn't fair.

"Hi honey…."

Joss looked away from the little flower she was peeling petals from to see Mrs. Margaret standing there. Joss instantly looked away with her chin jutting forward in active defiance. She was the meanie taking John away from her.

"I know you're upset, Joss. Your mom called me to tell me you took John's news hard," she said quietly before moving to sit down with her among the flowers. "Sweetheart, I wish we could stay. John wants to stay here so badly but we can't." Joss felt tears fill her eyes again but she refused to look at John's mom. "You remember John's dad, right?"

"Yea," she answered softly. She didn't see him very often. He was always gone.

"And you remember that he just recently went up to heaven?"

"Yea," Joss answered quietly. She remembered Mrs. Margaret had been frightened when she couldn't find John, who had run off after being told his dad died. Her papa had gone off to help look for him. But Joss knew John would go to their secret place that only they knew about. She raced there and found him but he had been curled up in a ball and was crying. She never saw John like that; unsure of how to help, she had curled up with him.

"It leaves only me for John," she said softly as she reached out to rub Joss's face affectionately and she dashed away the tears that fell down her little cheeks. "And I need help to be everything he needs."

Joss looked up. "I could help!" she offered earnestly.

John's mom's eyes grew large and wet looking. "I know you would but I need an adult's help, honey."

"My mama and papa could help. They're adults like you," Joss insisted. But she knew Mrs. Margaret wasn't going to agree when she didn't say anything. Joss hopped to her feet and set her little hands on her hips. "I won't let you take him from me."

"Oh sweetheart…"

"No," Joss cried as she turned and ran off. She knew John was probably at their secret place. Joss had a plan. She raced around the backyard of the next door neighbor and found the broken part of the fence that led to a small wooded section they lived near. She and John had found it a while back. While they had wandered the area they found a small patch of grass with a large tree that they always sat under.

John was lying in the grass just staring up but sat up startled when he heard her call his name. He was much bigger than he used to be when they first met. But he was now double digits which meant he was grown up. Just one more birthday and she'd be double digits too, and not a baby anymore!

"We need to get married!" she announced her plan. John always went with her plans. His eyes widened at the news though. "If we get married then your mama can't take you from me."

John frowned. "I don't think that'll work," he said unconvinced.

"Why not?—I saw it work on my mama's shows. They got married and they got to stay together. These bad men were trying to take the boy away and the girl married him so he didn't have to leave."

John looked thoughtful. "I'm only eleven, Joss. I don't want to go bring home the bread." he said shaking his dark head in refusal. Going to work sounded not fun.

"What does that mean?"

"It means when we're married I have to go to a place I hate so we can get paid minimum wage and then we have to have babies." he exclaimed.

"Where did you hear that?" Joss demanded.

John shrugged. "At school, I overheard Michael and Robby talking about their older brother having to do that. But Joss our parents go to work and are there all the time, and they have us. I don't want a baby!"

"Well, you won't have to go to a place you hate and we don't need babies. Lucy will be our baby," Joss announced. John smiled at the thought of having her dog as their child. Lucy was her one year old Golden Retriever. He wished he could have a dog. "Now our ceremony will be here." Joss said as she pointed to where they were. "We just need a ring."

"A ring?" John repeated, deciding to go along with her plan even though he didn't see how it was going to work.

"Yea, all the boys give girls rings as they get married."

"Do girls give the boys rings?" he asked. "I've never been or even seen a wedding before. They seem too girly."

Joss pursed her lips as she struggled to remember. "I don't know." she admitted her face crumbling. "Our marriage needs to be real or your mama is going to take you from me."

"I don't think girls give boys rings," John rushed to reassure, hating to see her sad. John looked down at his plastic skull ring. Should he give her this? It was his favorite ring but he liked Joss more. "I'll give you my skull ring." he announced as he pulled it off his index finger. Joss's eyes widened as he slid the ring onto her thin finger. The ring wanted to fall off so Joss curled her tiny hand into a fist. "Okay, now what?"

"We have to say 'I do'."

John furrowed his brows. "Why?" he asked curiously.

"Because we have to," Joss answered as if that explained everything.

John shrugged and said, "I do."

"I do too."

John smiled then bounced on the balls of his feet. "So, uh, are we married?"

Joss scrunched her face up as she thought about the wedding she watched. John gave her a ring. They said I do. What else happened? She thought and thought, and then grinned as she remembered the boy and girl kissed on the lips just like her mama and papa did all the time! She looked at John. "Now kiss the bride!" she ordered as she leaned her face forward.

"We have to kiss?" he squawked. He had to kiss…a girl? EWWWWW! Michael kissed a girl once and he said it was disgusting!

"Yes, it is the final step, John, or we aren't married! Now kiss the bride!" Joss stated and puckered her lips up.

John squared his tiny shoulders. If it meant getting to stay here then he'd do it. He leaned forward and kissed Joss right on the lips. She pulled back and giggled. He wiped his mouth and glared at her.

"Now are we married?"

"Yes, they can't take you from me. I'm your wife," Joss answered with a grin and they both began dancing foolishly. They both froze when their names were being shouted from their parents and their voices sounded upset. "Uh-oh, we're in trouble," Joss whispered.

John grabbed her hand and led her out of their secret place and crawled back through the broken fence and rounded the neighbor's house and saw not only his mother looking scared but so was Joss's parents.

"Johnny!" he felt guilty for scaring his mom. He knew she was taking his dad's death hard. She raced over to him and held him tight. Joss was smothered by her parents. "Where have you two been? We've been looking for you and worried sick!"

"We got married." Joss proclaimed loud and proud. Her parents let go of her in surprise. She held her hand out to show off the plastic skull ring. "It's official, now you can't take him from me."

His mom looked at him. "You gave her your favorite ring?" she asked with a tiny smile. He shuffled his feet and shrugged. "Sweetheart, I know you don't want to move but our family is in Washington. Don't you want to see your cousins?"

"I don't want to leave Joss," John said quietly.

The adults smiled at each other before John's mom said, "You two can still keep in touch. I'm sure Joss's parents won't mind a few long distance phone calls, once maybe every month. And you can write each other all the time. You'll be each other's pen pals."

"It's not the same," Joss cried. She raced over to John and flung her arms around him. "You can't take him anyway. He's my husband now."

"Jocelyn Rae, John's mom is doing what's best for her and John. We are going home and discuss how you are never to lie about where you are," her papa said sternly, unmoved by the tears looming large in her eyes.

Her mama lowered to her eye level. "Joss, honey, I know you feel like the world is falling around your little head but we will work things out so you can speak to John on a monthly basis. And you can write him all the time. Now come on, let John go so he and his mom can go home, and we'll have them over before they leave for Washington."

"I don't think getting married worked," John whispered.

Tears scalded her cheeks as they trekked down them. No, it didn't. John didn't think it would, but she had been so sure. It worked on TV so why didn't it work for them? She reluctantly let John go before holding her hand up and pointed her pinky out. "Friends forever?" she whispered.

John smiled as he hooked her pinky with his. "Friends forever," he agreed. She went to give his ring back but he smiled. "Nah, keep it."

Joss smiled back and then turned to walk with her family back home but looked over her shoulder at John as he walked home with his mom gently talking to him.

AN: Thank you for reading!