Logan

27| We are here for you

"I can't believe my baby is graduating tomorrow," My mom says teary-eyed.

"Mom, how many times are you going to break down before tomorrow ends?"

"I'm not sure why you're so surprised honey, you know your mom can be a little... emotional at times," My dad says.

"A little," I laugh.

"Ok, maybe a lot," That earns him a slap on the arm and an eye roll.

"You guys are something else," Christian says shaking his head.

"That's not what's important right now," My mom says changing the subject.

"What is important right now?"

"The finishing touches for your party,"

"Really mom? Isn't this a little over the top?" A voice asks from behind me. I turn around so quickly that I think I might have broken my neck.

"Luke?" I ask. I stare at him for a while before I rush over and hug him. "When did you get here?" I ask tearing up.

"Yesterday, you have no idea how much work it took to get mom to keep this a secret from you," He says laughing. I pull away to look at him.

"You look exactly the same,"

"I mean it's only been two and a half years,"

"Yeah, two and a half years too many,"

"I missed you too Logan, and look I'm sorry I wasn't here when everything happened, if I could have been I would have been here with you every step of the way," He says apologetically.

"Luke, it's fine. I know you wanted to be here, plus I had Meg back in California. And now I have Christian and all of my friends here," I say gesturing to Christian who is still standing with my parents.

"So he's the boyfriend?" I nod. "And you really like him?" I nod again. "What do mom and dad think?"

"They love him, they might like him more than I do," I say laughing. I look back at Christian who is still talking to my parents. "I really like him, I know you're not open to trusting another guy with me after Brandon but once you get to know him I know you'll see what I see, so please promise me you'll give him a chance,"

"Ok, I'll give him a shot,"

"Thank you," I wave Christian over to us and introduce the two of them. "Christian this is my brother Luke, Luke this is my boyfriend Christian," They both say hi and shake hands. "Please be civil," I add in, aiming it specifically at Luke. I walk away leaving them to talk and go find the girls. 

"So Luke's talking to Christian, you should start planning the funeral now," Meg says laughing. 

"Oh shut up,"

"I'll help you plan, we could go casket shopping later," Dani says smirking.

"I seriously regret introducing you two," I say shaking my head.

"You've been saying that for months now, face it we are a fun duo," I have to admit they are a fun duo, that's probably one of the best things for me, that my two best friends get along so well. Their antics are enough to keep everyone on their toes. Taylor and Summer just look at us amused. The two of them have been going strong just like me and Christian. I know for a fact I am going to be at their wedding one day, and I can't wait for it.

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"I know that it is traditional to have the valedictorian be the only student speaker at graduation but tonight we also have one of my fellow classmates speaking. She is an inspiration to many people including me. I'm sure a lot of you have heard of her after her dance went viral or after she was on the news for some less enjoyable things but one thing none of you know is just how truly great she is. She is the picture of taking what you are given and making the most of it. Let me introduce Logan Young," The crowd cheers as I make my way onto the stage and thank Summer.

"Thank you, Summer. For as long as I could remember I've always had one dream and that was to dance. It was where I could be myself and work through anything I was feeling. Then one random night my junior year my sense of security was ripped away from me and with it my love for dance. It had felt like part of me was taken from me so I was determined to push down the rest of it. But it wasn't until I moved here and met some amazing people that I learned that no matter what happens in my life who I am can't be taken from me. Slowly I found my way back to dance and back to myself. Whenever I talk to anybody about it now I tell them that it took me a while to find my strength but the truth is that it was always there beneath the surface.

No matter what happens in your life your strength is there. It took me a while to see that but when I did I felt unstoppable. And I know this may feel irrelevant to some people because they have never been in my situation, and I'm glad they haven't, but you don't need to be in my situation to feel helpless. Every day we deal with things that are out of our control and make us feel helpless but the truth is that you aren't. You are never truly helpless you just haven't found your strength yet, for me, my strength is my voice. And for a while, I lost it. I let people scare me but then I realized that I was tired of feeling afraid so I danced. My dance that went viral was my statement, my way of taking back my strength. 

It was terrifying but it was also exhilarating. Seeing so many people affected by my dance and my message moved me in ways unimaginable. It's one of the things that gave me the courage to come forward when I was raped for the second time. There had been so many people who supported and believed in me and I felt like if I could do it then others might too. I know that my coming forward inspired so so many people to do the same but the people that inspired me are the people around me. Through all of the darkness in my life, they were by my side. No matter what. And not many people are fortunate enough to have that so I decided to be that for people who didn't have those kinds of people. So no matter what you go through know you are not alone. There is always someone who knows what you are going through. Someone you can reach out to. Never forget that there are people all around you who can help, even if you are scared, even if you feel like no one will believe you, we are here for you,"

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And with that Logan is officially over. I am really happy with how it turned out, imperfections and all. This has been a project that I can say that I am proud of. I know that if I were to rewrite most of this book I could make it much better, and maybe I will someday, but I am proud of where it is now. I hope you all enjoyed this story and enjoy the extras. XO my lovely readers.

Love, Marie