Together

The conclusion is finally here.

    I had successfully moved onto junior year. I was definitely smiling more often, and people did not like that. Even though I forgave everyone and apologized, they still had it in for me. That was okay though. I didn’t expect them to forgive me.
    I had taken all new AP courses, which my mother is very proud of me. I also have my friends in some of those classes. When I say “friends” I mean all the people I’ve met and became friends with. The incoming freshmen and the new sophomores that had no idea what I had done have been very kind to me. I’ve made plenty of friends, and I couldn’t read any of their minds. I felt relieved that I didn’t have to constantly know what they thought of me.
    In the beginning, I thought that mind reading was a gift, but it turned out to be a curse. I had been constantly trying to know who thought what of me since I was five. Now all I had to do was make friends. Who cares what they thought of me, because I didn’t.
    I had stayed friends with Valeria and Wendy, who both cried at the last blog I posted for Barry’s blog. It read:

“Dear Internet,
            This is the last time you will ever hear from me. My owner’s best friend died of cancer. He was so young and didn’t deserve it. I remember the time when I first met him and then the time where he saved me from the burning house. He was an amazing individual, and I am so happy to be fulfilling the wish my owner wants.
            She wants me to be with him up in Heaven. I owe him my life and would want nothing more than to keep him company, but my owner and I have been together for her whole life. I will be sad to leave my owner, but I can tell that she is finally growing up. She doesn’t need me like she used to. Now she can be her own confident. I am    happy for her.
            I will be incinerated soon, so I wish all of you have had a life such as mind. It had a happy, and complete life. It was full of friends, accomplishments, disasters, and happiness. There is no greater happiness that what my owner and I had. I love you, Ali. I hope you remember Bengt and I. We will be watching you from Heaven.
~Barry the Lion”

    Both Valeria and Wendy cried at the thought of Barry’s death, but they had accepted it. Now we hang out every Tuesday down at the Rainbow Café.
    Now for Hasse and Emelie, I go over and help around anyway I can. Hasse even taught me how to throw knives. Emelie taught me how to bake, and she also gave me a few things that Bengt wanted me to have. One was a necklace that he made weeks before departing. It was something he definitely wanted me to have after he died. It was a locket with a picture of himself and a picture of Barry. It was as if he knew that Barry would be with him.
    The second thing was a journal that Bengt wrote in everyday. All the pages had been torn out, except for the select few that Bengt left just for me.
    The first page read:
        Today I met the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen. Apparently her name is Ali. She had all AP classes, so she must be super smart or something. Mark, Greg, and Trevor spoke highly of her. Why would she not hang out with them now though? Maybe she lost confidence in herself and felt as if she couldn’t be a great friend. It’s absurd, but it could happen.
    The second one read:
        Ali is a mind reader! It is amazing! Just think about it, now I could communicate with someone without using Sign Language! I could convey feelings I never thought I could with her, but she told me what she had done to the school and to her friends. I don’t care though. She regrets it, and that’s good enough for me. I can’t wait to be her friend.
    The third one read:
        I made Ali stay with me. Her mother had kicked her out, and she is currently sleeping in my bed next to me. I’m so happy she is here. I would never tell her this, but I really hope her mom never finds her. I know it’s bad, but I want her to stay with me forever. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but I feel happy whenever I look at her. She makes me happy, and I only want to make her happy.
    The fourth one read:
        I think I am starting to develop feelings for Ali. We’ve been spending so much time together, it is a wonder how I haven’t started liking her sooner. Whenever she growls at me, or yells, it makes my heart flutter. And then she can be completely cute and give me a laugh, which makes my heart soar. What if she doesn’t like me back? I would be devastated. I don’t think I could live if she hated me. I just won’t tell her of my feelings.
    The fifth one read:
        I love her. I love her. I love her so much that it sickens me. My cancer is spreading too fast. I don’t want to die just yet. I want to spend a little more time with her. Please, God, don’t take me away just yet. I am so in love that it hurts to breathe. I want to hold her in my arms and kiss her all over her face. Just once, I want to know what it feels like to love and be loved in return.
    The sixth one read:
        I will fade away soon. I can’t separate from her, no matter how hard I try. My heart aches when she’s away, yet it also aches when she is near. Why was I born with this cancer in my body? Why couldn’t I just have a normal life like the rest of the kids? Why can’t I just grow old with her and maybe have a few children? Why? Why?! Why can’t I just tell her how I feel before it is too late?!
    The last one was addressed to me. It read:
        Ali, I know you are reading this because my mom has given it to you. I want you to think back to when you first showed me Barry. You spoke about him, and your eyes twinkled in the most beautiful way. I had told you that I wanted to speak of someone like that one day. Well that day came. I was telling my dad all about how much I liked you, and he commented on how my eyes sparkled at the mere mention of your name. Ali, you are everything to me, and I am so glad I found you. Without you, I would have died unhappy with my life without a reason of living. If only I had met you just a bit sooner. Maybe you would have pushed me to do treatment. Maybe you would have accepted me. Maybe we could have been together, at least for a little while. Nevertheless, I do not regret the way we met. I want you to take care of yourself and make tons of friends. I may not be around anymore, but that doesn’t mean you can’t live your life. I love you. I always have and I always will.
    The moment I stopped reading I cried even more. Now matter how many times I think I’m done with crying over Bengt, he still somehow manages to make me cry harder than the last time.
    I kept all of the things he gave me and put them in my nightstand. They were under the picture of Bengt and I that he had given me. I used them every night before I went to bed. They gave me courage and helped me get through the next day.
    As for Greg, Mark, Trevor, and I, we hang out almost everyday after school. We convinced the principal to open up the Yearbook club again because the teacher had to be hospitalized due to extreme stress. The four of us were on our way to making another great yearbook. Of course I wasn’t allowed near the computers, but that was perfectly acceptable.
    We sat around the tables and laughed at stupid things. Mark often hugged me, but that was alright. I finally felt like the old me again. And it was all thanks to Bengt. I love you, Bengt. I always have, and I always will.

End

Author's Note

Thank you all for reading this to the end. It was a long and rough journey, but I managed to pull through. I hope you guys enjoyed this. Thank you for reading!

I'm thinking of writing a sequel. What do you guys think?

Reviews

[Ali]

this story was so f*****g great, man. -applause-