I'm stuck in the airport until tomorrow morning so I wrote this to kill time. It's probably not that great, but whatever.
Cindy Vortex lay quietly on her bed, clutching a worn pillow to her chest. Looking out into the foggy night, she fixed her gaze on the distant glow of the age old street lamps lining the block. Tonight, it was easier to focus on anything, anything that took her mind away from the growing void in her heart. Fortunately for her, his house was barely visible through the fog, although eventually her eyes strayed there anyways. It had become a habit over the years, looking over at his place, to see what he was up to. But tonight was different. Tonight was the end of an era.
Retroville's prized boy genius had broken up with her after five turbulent years together. They'd always been on and off, but Cindy assumed they would make it through everything, and if it ever came down to it, she'd be the one ending things, not him. Alas, she was wrong. Jimmy Neutron had made it very clear that he wanted to make a clean break of it. She'd agreed, because her pride wouldn't allow her to protest the notion, and why should she? Why should she continue to fight for a boy who no longer cared for her?
Her throat clenched at that thought. That wasn't entirely fair. He had always cared for her. More so than her feuding parents ever had. He was the closest thing she had to Libby, and she had always secretly thought in some ways, he was better, because he was just so damn special. She'd given him everything she had, worked her hardest to make sure she was worthy enough of him, and had always cheered him on from her second place spot. She'd put up with her mother's incessant taunts about her mediocrity and her constant comparisons for him. She'd let down her walls, partially tamed her anger for him. She'd done so much for him, and he was willing to throw it all away in favor of ambition, in favor of his true love— science.
Ironically enough, his ambition was what drew her to him. They were among the few people in this dinky little town who had big dreams and the skills to accomplish them. But it had driven a wedge between them— the way his genius dictated his future, and the way her hard work got her far, but never far enough.
Even so, the agony killed her. Jimmy had been a constant in her life for as long as she could remember. She wasn't sure if she knew how to function in a world where he wasn't always around, a world where she couldn't hold him close to block out the misery of her pathetic home life.
It was so difficult for her to watch him slip away. Of course, when things had been bad for them, they'd been terrible. But the good memories- oh how sweet they were! If only she could relive them all again, go back to those golden days. She remembered the beautiful days on the island, and fingered the pearl on her neck that she'd worn on a silver chain ever since. She remembered the exact curve of his smile, the way his blue eyes lit up as he explained his latest invention. She remembered the space trips, the Candy Bar dates, the never ending arguments over abstractions and academia.
How could she let go of her first love? The most brilliant boy she was ever likely to meet? She gripped the fabric of her pillow tighter against her, wondering if she could close her eyes and pour all her sadness into the light cotton. She wanted him here so much, and she knew she couldn't ask that of him. She'd asked enough of him over the years, and it was time she returned the favor and let him be. If he thought it was better they were apart, she would respect that.
But she wasn't sure, at that moment, that she'd ever truly get over it...it seemed so ludicrous to think there would come a day when her dreams might involve some other boy. Until that day came, if ever, she was chained to the indefinite sting of massive heartbreak...