'Can you meet me at the park? Come around 8. Cya then!'

Paulo looked at his phone, mulling over the text from that morning. It was the first he'd received from Tess in some time, as she was busy getting ready to head out to college. Paulo'd been busy too, with him taking in as many Burger-Tron shifts over the summer as he could before school started. The text was now presenting him an opportunity to disrupt that routine, one he wasn't sure he was going to take.

Paulo laid back on his bed, looking up at the ceiling. The flame he had for Tess had diminished, but all it'd take is one smile from her to ignite it again. Part of him still loved that girl, despite knowing they could never be. It was a frustrating situation, and he still disagreed with her decision, but there was no fighting it. Tess was headstrong, and as much as he hated to admit it, more mature than him. None of this stopped him from loving her, though. Maybe it was that 'hard-to-get' nature that made him pine for her so much.

But if he was being honest, him keeping his distance from her was just him trying to run from his feelings. It was like an unbeatable monster that struck his heart, and all he could do was run as the pain was too much to bear. Tess had basically strong-armed him with the text. She was expecting him to be there, and as much as it might hurt to see her again, he would feel worse if he stood her up. He cursed himself for caring so much.

Paulo sat up and texted back. 'Cya then babe.' He had a whole day ahead of him to get ready, so he went off to do his own thing.

Tess heard her phone buzz. She searched for it on her messy desk, where a tree's worth of paper was strewn about. Amid the forms and letters, Tess found her phone, and checked the notification. She smiled at the 'babe.' Even after all this time, Paulo was still the same guy she couldn't help but fall in love with. She shook the thought from her mind. They couldn't be, no matter how much he, or she, wanted it.

7:30 found Tess and Paulo making their way to the park. The sun was setting on the horizon, painting the sky brilliant oranges and yellows. It lasted up until both arrived, as the last bit of light still clinging onto the sky dissipated into the darkness. Paulo parked in one of the lots situated around the park and headed through the gate that would lead to the main area. The park was quiet at night, most everyone had gone home or was in the process of leaving. The somali passed tired families walking down the path to the parking lot.

Upon a hill, Paulo saw her, looking up at the starry night sky, sitting on the soft grass. His heart was caught in his throat, nervous to break the ice, but he didn't need to worry for long. Tess heard someone coming and looked down hopefully. A wide smile broke out across her face. "Hey Paulo! Over here!"

No going back now. Paulo trudged up the rest of the way and sat down. "Hey, Tess. You wanted to see me?"

"I did!" She said, trying to sound upbeat, but the sadness in her heart leaked out into her voice. "I'm moving away for college tomorrow. I wanted to see you one more time before I left."

Paulo looked at her for a few seconds and then to the grass beneath him. He felt totally deflated. He knew she might be going away, just not so soon. The news was like a punch to the gut. "Oh." Was all he could say.

Tess imagined he might take the news poorly. Still, she wasn't about to let their last meeting be an awkward one. "I wanted to spend my last night here with you."

Now, that was interesting. Something stirred in Paulo's chest. "Why?" He asked her.

It was Tess's turn to examine the grass. She picked at it a little, wondering how much of the truth she should tell him. Of course, she'd never lie to him, she didn't have it in her to do that. Paulo deserved at least that much respect. "Because…" Tess sighed. "Paulo, please… don't make me say it…"

"Why not?" He asked, feeling a little heated. "Why can't you? Because you'd have to admit you were wrong to reject me?"

Tess gripped a wad of grass at his words. "It's because it'll just hurt more if I do. You KNOW why we can't… I don't want to argue in circles again. I just… I know I'm gonna miss you a lot. I don't want our last meeting to be an unhappy one." Tess sighed and dropped the grass she had in her hand. She wasn't wrong to reject him at all. The wrong thing to do would be to string each other along for years as they lived apart, and who knows if they'd still love each other on the other side?

The thought of never seeing Tess again, a girl he'd thrown so much of his heart to, was taking its toll on the boy. A great darkness was washing over him, and now he was regretting coming out at all. He could have just made up some excuse as to why he couldn't come. But would he have been able to live with himself if he had? How many nights would he spend staring at the ceiling, wondering what might have been had he just put his faith in her? His emotions ran rampant, his fists clenched beside him.

Tess could see the emotions welling up in him, ready to burst out. She'd been there before, knew how that felt. She'd seen what it did to others, too. While her emotions were rampant that night as well, she understood what she was walking into. Tess placed a gentle hand over Paulo's tense one. "But for tonight, we can pretend. You and I, together."

Paulo appreciated the gesture, but felt like he was being selfish. He didn't want her to do something she didn't want, not for him. He loved her too much for that. The somali shook his head. "No, I'm just being stupid. We can start over. It's good to see ya babe."

"Paulo, really. I'm okay with it." Tess smiled, and her eyes shone as bright as any star. "We may as well." She could see a melancholy in Paulo's eyes. 'We may as well' translated to 'We probably won't see each other again.'. He was never good with goodbyes. Being abandoned by his mother had left a void in him, a void that grew with every parting.

Paulo nodded. "Alright."

The two scooted closer together, and Tess laid her head on his shoulder. They sat together like this for a while, serenaded by the crickets in the summer air. Their hearts beat as one. Above, the vast universe put on an elegant display of twinkling dots. The park was far enough removed that light from the city did not stain the sky with its bland hues. Nothing came between the earth and the stars. They entranced Paulo, and he felt as though he could be lifted off the ground and pulled into them. Tess kept him grounded. "Do you think we could have worked out? If we were in the same grade?" He wondered aloud.

Tess pondered this for a moment. It seemed such an easy answer at first, of course they would. She LOVED him. But long term? That was hard to say. Not that she was counting on a potential relationship being short lived. "I don't know. Maybe." She shifted herself to put an arm around him and press her cheek to his as they looked up at the stars. "Maybe somewhere out there, there's a Paulo and Tess that did end up together."

Paulo's face fell and his ears went back. He wished they could have been one of them. "Yeah…"

"But…" Tess said slowly, noticing Paulo start slouching. "I bet there are a lot of Paulos and Tesses that have never met. I'm glad, at least, that we aren't one of them." And she punctuated it with a small nuzzle to his cheek.

Her words and nuzzle brought up his spirits. "Yeah… and I bet there's a world where we HATE each other too." Paulo speculated.

Tess giggled. "And I'm glad we're not like that, either."

Paulo looked at her with a goofy smile, counting his blessings. Things could always be worse for them. Tess's face was beautiful as ever, and once more Paulo's heart was caught in his throat. He wanted to say something, HAD to say something, but what was there for him to say? He didn't have the chance to say anything, for Tess leaned in and placed a small kiss on his lips before laying her head back down on his shoulder.

Paulo decided not to ruin the moment with a stupid comment, and just looked up at the stars again. They sat like this for some time, but the night wound down, and soon it was time to leave. Both cats got to their feet and stood awkwardly, neither really knowing how to say goodbye. Finally, Tess broke the silence, unable to delay her return home any longer. "Well, I better get home. I have to get up early tomorrow. Thank you for coming tonight, Paulo." There was a tightening in her chest as she said the words.

"Yeah, no problem, babe. I'll always show up for you." Though he flashed a confident grin, he felt his cool fading as their possible final goodbye was approaching. A lump formed in his throat. "Go kick some ass for me."

Tess smiled and held her arm. "I'll… I'll be sure to." She started to turn to walk away, leaving behind the only guy she ever truly loved, but faltered. In one quick move she turned back around and threw her arms around him. Paulo was a little caught off guard, but happily welcomed her affection.

"I'm going to miss you so much…" Tess whispered shakily into his ear. Her emotional barrier was crumbling, and tears were beginning to flow.

Paulo closed his eyes as he too felt his own wave of tears come upon him. "Me too, Tess. I'm gonna miss you everyday."

The teens stood in the park alone, embracing and sobbing on each other's shoulders. Neither wanted to let go. Letting go meant goodbye, and they couldn't stomach that. If they just held on for a moment longer, kept the other in their arms, everything would be okay. "I d-don't want to let go..." Paulo cried. "I don't want to never see you again…"

Paulo's sobs gripped Tess, but she understood. She didn't want to let go either. But it had to end. There was no stopping tomorrow. She gave them another minute to get their tears out, and let go. Paulo did as well. Apart, they dried their eyes and got themselves together.

"Well… see ya." Paulo said. "Maybe we can call each other sometime."

Tess smiled. "I'd like that. See ya, Paulo."

The two split ways, as Tess had parked elsewhere. A few steps away, she stopped and turned around. "I'm sorry."

Paulo stopped and turned around too. "For what?"

"That we couldn't have been more."

Paulo smiled weakly. "It's alright. Plenty of babes out there in the world. You'll just always be my best babe." And he winked at her.

Tess smiled back and exhaled out her nose in amusement. She could always count on him bouncing back, no matter how hard of a hit he took. With that, they both turned back around and left, sad about the end of this chapter in their life, but looking forward to what new things life would bring.