Reunited

1. Can't Do This Without You

Colby and I were best friends. By best friends, I mean we were as close as siblings. His and my parents had been friends since before we were born, and once we were we did almost everything together. We'd celebrate birthdays together, have sleepovers, and he was always someone I could go to if I needed advice as we grew up.

By the time we got to middle school we both had our own friend groups, but we'd always sit with each other at lunch a couple times a week or next to each other in class if we could.

When high school rolled around we had a lot of different classes and different lunch times so we didn't see each other as much. I'm not gonna lie and say I didn't miss being around him more, but we'd always make time for each other. We'd still hang out a couple days a week after school or on the weekends, sometimes alone and sometimes we'd hang out in a group.

Colby had made a new friend in junior year that he became really close with, his name was Sam. They started hanging out a lot and making funny videos together, and they actually became kind of popular on social media. Colby had found a love for making and editing videos, and by the time it was senior year sam and Colby wanted to try and move out to LA to start a career in social media.

Up until this point colby and I were still extremely close, he always made time for me and would text/snapchat me all the time when we weren't hanging out. I really liked Sam, him and I actually got along really well too. But knowing that he was going to be leaving the state honestly broke my heart.

I could tell Colby was really sad too, but I understood he needed to focus on himself. As we got older Colby had grown into a good looking guy, and I can't lie and say I wasn't attracted to him a little. I know it's weird considering I said he was like a brother to me, but I couldn't help but feel a bigger connection.

I never really thought of my attraction to him as a crush though. We had been so close our whole lives that I already loved him. I loved him as much as I did my own family, I would have done anything for him. I was happy just having him in my life, and I knew he loved me too.

Don't confuse this with being "in love" though. I knew I wasn't in love with my best friend, I just was attracted to him because he was an attractive guy. I have had some thoughts slip my mind every now and then about us passing the friend zone, but I'd never confess to thinking about him that way because I wouldn't want to ruin a life long friendship.

Colby knew I had already been accepted into a college, I was actually going to school for multimedia, strangely enough. He told me that maybe once I'm finished with school I could move out to LA with him, but I kept my hopes to a minimum, knowing that who knew what the future would hold a couple years from now.

We had the talk about being afraid to drift apart as friends, but we promised each other we would never let that happen. I hoped he would keep his promise.

The goodbyes were really hard, we had a going away party with all of our friends, and the night before he left we had a small gathering with his and my family. It was bittersweet, we reminisced on all the years here in the small town in Kansas. Both his and my parents were proud of him for chasing his dreams.

I held back tears until he was at the door ready to leave. My parents had gone to bed by that point and his parents had gone home, him and I had just been spending time together one last time.

I remember him letting out the breath he was holding, we were just looking at each other, the silence was powerful. I watched his eyes become glossy, which is what caused my waterworks to start. I hadn't seen Colby cry in years, and the fact that he was about to broke my heart even more.

It's almost like we read each other's minds, and before either of us let any tears fall we pulled each other into a tight hug. By this point tears were streaming down my face, and I could feel Colby's body shaking as he hugged me tighter.