Eighteen year old Brandy Hunt stood at her doorstep, ready to go off to college. A tear glistened in her eye as she gave her little sister, Eileen, a final hug goodbye.
"Bye guys," she said, a sad smile on her watery face. Her father nodded once, a pained expression on his face, as her mother wept in his arms.
She put her last bag in her car and climbed in the door. She waved from out the window and started the engine.
"Wait!!" Eileen called to her, open tears rolling down her cheeks as she ran to her big sister's car.
Eileen was growing to be quite a beautiful young woman. She could even make crying look angelic.
Brandy quickly pulled her car door open and ran straight into her sister's hug.
"I'll miss you sis," Brandy whispered.
Eileen pulled back, looking Brandy in the eyes, a sad smile on her face, "I'll miss you too."
Brandy placed a hand on her sister's face, wiping away a trickling tear.
Eileen grabbed her older sister's arm as she began to walk back towards her car, "you know who else will miss you?"
"Who?"
Eileen raised her eyebrows at her older sister.
Brandy shook her head, "I already said goodbye to him. I-" her voice broke, "I can't."
Eileen nodded her head, "yes. You can."
Brandy nodded, wiping her runny nose on her arm.
"All right. Bye, Eileen."
Brandy hugged Eileen one last time before walking back to her car and climbing in once again. She waved goodbye to her parents from the window as she left for the University of Maine.
Brandy passed his house, trying with all her might not to stop. She couldn't stop. It would hurt her too much to see him.
The memory of the night before played over and over again in her head.
"We need to break up..."
"It'll be too hard..."
"We'll never see each other..."
"It's best this way..."
"Neither of us ever thought it would last forever..."
"We can still be friends..."
She recalled the tears streaming down his cheeks as he nodded in agreement with her. As he said he knew this was for the best. It pained her so much to see him in pain. She couldn't stand being without him.
But she would never know how much more desperately he needed her. Ee would forget how to function without her love and support.
"Fuck it."
Brandy swerved her car back around and parked in front of his house, running up the front porch.
She knocked on the door, waiting impatiently.
An all too familiar boy opened the door, his eyes wide with shock at the puffy eyed girl standing in front of him.
"Can we talk?" she said, sniffling from runny tears she had just shed with her family.
Eddie Kaspbrak nodded, holding the door open, gesturing for her to come inside.
"My mom isn't home," he muttered as he walked to his room. He awkwardly sat down on his bed. She slowly sat down next to him slowly, a heavy tension built up in the air.