Lost and Found- A Reed Deming Fanfiction

Lost and Found- Part 43

Dear Reed,

Well, honestly, I don't know where to start this.

I'll go back to day 1.

I don't know if you remember this day as vividly as I do, but it's probably because scientists say that extremely vivid memories are the best and most important ones.

K5 orientation, I was scared as hell, I remember. My mom was walking me down the hallway- before she started abusing me- to meet my first grade teacher. I don't know why, but I was so captivated by this bulletin board on the wall next to the door that had all these little apples with our names written on it. I picked mine out right away, which was next to three other little apples that read Chelsea, Maggie, and Reed.

My mom dragged me in the room, though all I wanted to do was sit and look at those apples. I don't know if she told me to, but immediately I ran over to you. You were sitting in the corner, paging through a book that you held upside-down. I remember that we introduced ourselves and immediately started talking. You tried to read the upside down words on the page to me, failing miserably. Before I knew it, my mom was grabbing my hand, forcing me to leave you. I remember all I wanted to do was sit there and talk with you.

Every day, a typical kid would fight and kick, refusing to go to school. I was completely opposite, eagerly hopping out of bed each day, ready to play with you, my best friend. Though every day, a girl named Shelby would laugh at me for having a boy who was my best friend, I didn't care.

We finger-painted together, tried to read together, played Guess Who together, everything I did was with you. I know for a fact, because Kayla recorded me doing so, I would come home and beg for you to come over. You did practically every day, though you knew I would force you to play dress up and "house" where you were the dad, I was the mom, and we had our little baby dolls that were our kids, though at the time we didn't know how kids came about.

Throughout every grade, K5 until 6th, you were my one true friend, the one who I could tell anything. Obviously, I had my other friends I occasionally hung out with, but none of them had a mutual relationship like ours.

Every time the teacher announced that we had a partner project or assignment, we would instantly look at each other. Recess time would turn into "Time for Reed and Pam to be idiots and get in trouble for playing with dirt and water trying to make clay or for hanging upside-down from the monkey bars". Study hall was "Lets hide our phones behind our book but pretend that were reading but lets really text each other."

Even outside of school, nearly every moment was spent together.

I specifically remember, every Saturday from 1-3 was our "Picnic in the Park" time. During summer, the pool was our second home. At least 3 times a week, we hopped on our bikes and rode to the community pool a few blocks from out houses. Yeah, there were those teenagers who laughed at a young boy and girl swimming together, nearly naked, but we didn't care.

By far, the worst day of my life was when my dad said he had a job transfer and we were moving. I remember I was raging with anger, especially because he left my family when I was born. I didn't understand why I had to move. But I did.

That last day we had together, before I flew across the country, spent at the airport, was magical.

Remember?

A minute before I boarded the plane, we had our first kiss together. I never thought you felt that way about me, but secretly, I always liked you, but I could never tell you.

All I could think about on the plane ride home was you. I was just trying to wrap my mind around the fact that you did actually like me.

Of course, being away from you with nothing but a phone to hear your voice was incredibly hard. Every day when I got home from school, I called you, even before homework. Because of talking to you so much, my grades began declining, that's when my mom got a bit too angry. Only Kayla knew about her abusive ways. My dad didn't because he was hours away from our house. I couldn't tell anyone at school. I didn't feel that trust that I felt with you. Typically, I would have told you right away, but I didn't want to put you through that pain. Every day when I got home from school, I got the daily beating, ran to my room, cried for an hour, did homework, and went to sleep. I rarely left my room, only to use the bathroom. I had a plentiful stash of food and water hidden in my closet. Day by day, the routine continued. Going on for two years, until I got that mysterious text.

"6:30, Bradford Beach."

Yeah, I thought it was my friend Hedley. I went to the beach, seeing the opposite of what I expected.

When I saw you, I didn't believe it. I thought it was a dream. Luckily for me, it wasn't. Right there was our second kiss. We pranced down the beach together, stumbling on that one cave, where we actually went at each other. Then my mom found us. We took off running, hiding in the woods, when I spilled my heart put to you. When you asked me to move to Texas with you, I didn't believe it. But looking back on it, I'm glad I did.

Kayla and I were living happily with you for a while, when we both declared to be in a relationship. Then that one day, my mom found me and took us back to Wisconsin. She locked us in a shed. Kayla and I thought we were literally going to die. But lucky for us, we broke out of the shed and fled to our aunt's house.

I then made a huge mistake. I was just so overwhelmed with everything that happened. I broke up with you. I broke your heart, as well as mine. I was thinking for a while, when I decided to fly back to Texas to be with you again.

I was so happy that I did that, honestly. I couldn't begin to imagine what would have happened if I hadn't done that.

Knowing you were willing to take me back was the best thing ever. We still stuck together, through moving houses, flying to Paris for your birthday, getting Rory, me getting hate, everything that has happened.

And I don't know where I'd be without you.

Thank you, for everything. You deserve the highest of fives.

I want you to know, no matter what happens, through thick and thin, whether good or bad or ugly, I'll always stand at your side.

Dear Lord, I pray we don't, but if we were to ever go our separate ways, I would still love you with all my heart, just as much as I do today.

And it's not just your actions that make me love you so deeply.

It's your bright, glowing eyes that stare me down, hypnotizing me with love. It's your cleanliness, because without it, the house would be a complete mess. It's your Snapback collection that you let me borrow whenever I please. It's your responsibility, proving that you're gonna be a great father. It's your scent, as crazy as it sounds, that will immediately make me happy. It's your voice, serenading me until I fall asleep. It's your tight, protective grip, showing clear ownership of me, that nobody could break us apart. It's your corny jokes, trying to make me laugh in the darkest of times. It's your kind heart, loving me endlessly.

I'm writing this on November 17, 2013. We are 14 year old freshman. I'm a competitive gymnast and club volleyball player, you're a soccer star.

I have one last thing to say before I wrap this up.

Reed, you've been there for me every day since we were 4. Ten years is a long time to stay close. Normally, people would get in a stupid fight over something and call it quits. But not us. I know that our relationship will be going strong for a long time, however long it may be. I hope that it will be going until we're 100 years old. But if so, if you live to be 100, I want to be 100 minus one day, so I never have to live a day without you.

Someone once said, to the world, you may just be one person. But to one person, you may just be the world. You're that one person that means the world to me, and always will.

Because of this, I would like to ask you something.

Reed,

Will you marry me?

I folded up the letter, stashing it into an envelope, hiding it deep beneath my clothes, waiting for the day in 10 years when I will need to pull it out again.