Fingertips

Graduate's Goodbye

I smiled as I saw my best friend, Raven, move the tassel from the right side of her cap to the left side.

I cheered knowing how hard Raven had worked to get to this point in her life. After the ceremony, the graduates met with their relatives to take pictures and collect gifts, and afterward, head home or to any other plans they had.

Once I spotted Raven from the crowd, I raced toward her and threw my arms around her. She was visibly crying with tears of joy knowing that her future had just begun. "I'm so proud of you Ray. I know how much this moment means to you," I whispered in her ear as we had our arms tightly wrapped around each other.

I started crying, causing her to break our hug. "Why are you crying, Bee? You have another year left," she giggled. "Exactly! I have another year left to complete without you! How am I supposed to survive without you Ray? You helped me get through all of the hardships I ever came across," I said in between sobs.

"Exactly. I taught you everything you need to know. You need to be independent now. You're gonna be a senior next school year, and I know people will still love you!" She said, rubbing circles on my back. I nodded.

_______

Summer vacation officially started today. The school year was over. Which meant absolute boredom for me. "Phoebe! Come downstairs honey! Raven is here to see you!" I heard my mom yell from downstairs. I sat up on my bed and quickly rushed downstairs. I haven't seen Raven in a week now. She was busy filling out tons of college applications. She was trying to apply to a local college so that we could visit each other easily.

"Ray!" "Phoebe!" We greeted one another. "I haven't seen you in years!" I exaggerated. "It's been a week, Bee," she laughed. "Well, it felt like years!" I groaned. I grew accustomed to seeing her every day, so breaking that chain was really weird.

"What do you wanna do today? You wanna sleep over?" I asked excitedly. "Of course," she said, laughing at my childish tone.

_______

I grabbed two trays and began piling various snack items on them. Our sleepovers always required tons of snacks. I filled a bag with some water bottles and tried my best not to drop anything as I head up to my room.

I called out to Raven to open the door because I couldn't do it with all of the food I carried with me. She quickly opened the door and her eyes widened. "Yes! You brought Cheetos!" She said while grabbing the bag. "Thanks for helping," I said sarcastically. "Oh! Sorry!" She apologized, taking one of the trays and the bag of water bottles. We sat down in the fort we made and began ripping open bags of food. Every time we had sleepovers, we always made pillow forts. We decided to keep the tradition as we got older.

"Bee, I'm gonna miss this. I'm gonna miss you. Growing up is hard, but it has to happen," she said, growing sad.

I moved closer to her and put my arm around her. "Ray? What are you talking about? You're always going to be my best friend. And you're even going to a college nearby. Why are you so sad?" I said while rubbing her arm.

"That's the problem Bee!" She yelled, surprising me.

"I can't do that! I can't do what benefits you only! I can't apply to a nearby college because they won't give me the education I need! When you asked me to apply to a nearby college, I said ok, but I realized how selfish that was of you to ask me. You don't understand how hard I've worked to graduate early! I busted my butt off to make sure I got into a good school, and I can't let your needs hold my dreams back! You're smart, Bee. I can't let you rely on me all throughout your educational life, and I can't let you apply to a nearby college when you graduate either! You need to follow your dreams, and don't let your fears hold you back. You have such a bright future ahead of you," she finished as she finally sat down and took my hands in hers.

I sat there, gaping at her. Where was this coming from? In all our years of being friends, even when we fought, she rarely yelled like this. "Ray. Where is this coming from?" I questioned her. She started crying, but I couldn't bring myself to console her.

"I got into Harvard, Bee. My dream came true," she said, merely a whisper.

Harvard? Did she just say, Harvard?

"B-but that's all the way in M-Massachusetts, Ray," I stammered. "I know. But you have to see this through my eyes too," she replied. "This is such an amazing opportunity. I can achieve so much more there, and I can learn so many things I wouldn't learn at just any school," she finished.

It took me a while to process what she just told me, but when I finally understood, I realized how much this meant to her. I could see the happiness in her eyes as she told me she was accepted to her dream school, and I understood that as her best friend, it was my job to support her in her decision. I knew this is what she deserved, and I was going to support her through everything.

I smiled at her. A genuine smile. I truly was happy for her. I couldn't hold her back from pursuing her dreams. I would die to see her not happy, and I wanted to be a part of what made her happy. I leaned over and hugged her.

I whispered, "I'm happy for you Ray. Don't let my necessities hold you back. I'm sorry for not realizing how selfish I was being. You deserve this. Please take the opportunity. I want your future to be brighter than the sun. Be careful out there, and make everyone proud. I'm already proud of you. I love you, and I'll miss you a lot."

She hugged me back. "Thank you, Bee. I love you too. I'll miss seeing my other half every day. Please take care of yourself now that I won't be there. Promise me," she said, tightening the hug. 

"I promise," I replied. What will I do without her now?

A.N.

Hello, everyone! Welcome to my second book, Fingerprints! I hope you guys like it! This chapter was very long because it leads to a very important part of the story. I promise you guys that I'll do everything I can to make the next chapter interesting.