Puzzle Pieces [#Wattys2016]

1 | Prologue

Claire was 5 and Max was 6 when they met. They had grown up on the eastern side of Maine, only streets apart, but hadn't met until Claire started kindergarten a year after Max. They were instantly friends, after running into each other one day during their recess break.

From the first moment Max laid eyes on Claire, he had known there was something special about her. He went over and talked to her, and Claire too saw that he was different than anyone else she had ever met. They grew up together, and grew closer. Soon enough they were inseparable.

When Max was 14, he confessed to Claire how he felt. Claire was ecstatic, as she felt the same way. They were alike, yet different enough that they never got bored of being in each others company. They were a perfect match. They're friends and parents liked to joke around and say that they were like two halves of a whole. Like puzzle pieces that lined up with complete perfection. Together, they were unstoppable.

But as they got older, they started to argue. That's normal though, everyone said. There's no such thing as a perfect relationship. Claire quickly became heavyhearted whenever they argued, because she had never had a relationship with anyone else but Max, and their relationship had always been perfect. She didn't recognize the fact that arguing and small fights were normal in any relationship.

Time passed quickly in the presence of each other. But they were arguing more and more.
Their arguments started to escalate the more often it happened. Although normally, they had always made up before the night was over. Things were fine between them, although they both felt different around each other. They started thinking that maybe, not all puzzles were meant to fit perfectly.