Short, Short Stories

Final Farewells

"Twenty minutes until his plane departs.."

I mutter under my breath as I look around the bustling airport. I sat beside my best friend, who was anxious, yet excited for his plane ride.

My eyes landed on him once again, he was quietly staring out the window, gripping his suitcase tightly as breaths occasionally escape his mouth.

This was the first time ever that I actually cared about one of my friends leaving me. I mean, my friendships don't really last long, but this particular friendship was especially dear to me.

His presence alone could make my day 100x better. He was someone I could put my trust on, like a brother to me. It was absolutely heartbreaking when he told me he was going to fly halfway across the world for a project he'd dedicated a lot of time into. I was proud, of course, but I was also shaking inside. It's been some time since I felt like this, and I absolutely hated it.

I hadn't realized I'd been staring at him for a while before he waved his hand in front of me and kept repeating "Hello? Earth to my alien best friend? You there? Hello?"

I roll my eyes as I move his hand aside.

"Yes, I'm here. Now, what do you want, dork?" I reply in my typical petty tone.

"Nothing much, you've been staring at me for the past 3-4 minutes.. You really can't resist my charms, can you?? And you said I can't flirt with girls!" He retorted back and we both burst out in laughter.

"Anyway, in all seriousness, what's up? You usually don't space out." He suddenly got serious and I momentarily tense up.

I sigh, deciding to tell him.

"I've been thinking.. will we still be friends? Even after you leave? I mean, ever since we met, we've been inseparable. Although it'll ruin my pride to say this, but.. I really did enjoy all those moments I shared with you.. and.. I'll miss your presence." I quickly ramble, then flash an awkward smile to him.

"You really think we'll stop being friends?" He snorted out a laugh. "Of course not! You've been my best friend since forever, and I wouldn't abandon my other half of a braincell!" He said as he pulled me in closer for a hug.

"I'll miss you too.. but, we have social media afterall, so I'll be able to text you whenever. I promise." He said as he stroked my back.

We shared a comfortable silence between the two of us until the speaker made the announcement.

"Passengers on flight xxx will start boarding the plane. Please head over to gate xx to begin boarding. Thank you for your cooperation and have a good day."

I grimaced. The moment had final come. The moment where my best friend would leave me for the next few years.

"Well, that's my cue. Unfortunately we'll have to part ways here." He said sadly as he separated from the hug and grabbed his backpack and suitcase.

I get up too, following him to get him checked in.

"Hey, promise me that you'll text me as soon as you land?" I ask, holding out my pinkie.

"Pinkie promise." He replied back, linking his pinkie with mine, doing our strange handshake for the last time until we met again.

"Hey, don't be sad! This isn't the end! I promise I'll get you a bunch of food from the place I'm staying!"

"Promise?"

"Absolutely. Just text me what you want and I'll try to buy it for you."

"You sure? Whenever we eat out, you always make me pay!"

"HEY! WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THAT!!"

He smiled his signature toothy grin. "Till we meet again,"

"This isn't our final farewell, afterall."

Fin.