He Saved Me

Chapter fifty three

~Skip a month~

"Class of 2019,

We made it. For 12 years we have been wandering the school halls with each other. At the time it crawled but standing here in front of you all, I can't help but think it went so fast. In a couple years we are going to be wishing we could go back, even for a day. We are going to want to relive these moments.  Its now time to move onto bigger and better things. As we say our goodbyes, we can't ignore the fact the memories will forever be burned into our minds.

I'm honored to be up here today. On behalf of the class of 2019, I want to thank all the teachers, parents, guardians and all the other supporters. Your love and guidance meant more than you know.

'Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts' - Winston Churchill. This quote has given me the motivation to be standing here, in the flesh today. No matter what challenges I was put through, I thought about what could be. You can do anything you put your mind to. Anything is possible as long as you want it bad enough. You can't have a rainbow without a little rain.

Each and every one of my peers and teachers has helped me and given me a reason to strive to be the best person I can be. I want to thank each and everyone one of you.

As we enter this next chapter of our life, I wish you the best. Don't forget, you can do it. We all believe in you. Congratulations class of 2019!

Thank you"

Claps and screams are heard and my heart rate immediately slows as I step down.

The rest of the ceremony flies by in a blink of an eye.

"We did it" I run up to Mason, throwing my arms around his neck.

"We did. We did it. You were amazing" He whispers in my ear, spinning me.

Tears immediately spring to my eyes when I see my friends walking towards us.

I hug each of them before we embrace into a group hug.

I look out into the stands. Luke, Grace and Uncle Blake and Aunt Cara are smiling at me. I can't help the disappointment when I remember she couldn't be here. That even if they weren't in prison, they wouldn't be here.

"Hey" Ellie touches my arm, snapping me out of my trace.

"Hey, sorry" I shake my head, motioning for my family to come down.

"That was beautiful Leah" Tara sniffles, hugging me after hugging Mason and Ellie.

"Group hug" Jim smiles, pulling us all into a hug.

"I'm proud of you guys" He nods, a smile spreading on Masons face.

I turn around when I feel a hand on my back.

"You need to stop making me look so stupid" Grace smiles, tears threatening to spill.

"Shut up" I laugh, hugging her. "I'm so, so proud of you Leah" She whispers, tears falling freely from her eyes and onto my gown.

I hug Luke next, he pulls me close. "She would be so proud of you Leah. I'm so proud of you. That was amazing" He holds me arms length away, his eyes glossy.

"Thank you" I whisper, pulling him into another hug after doing our handshake.

"We're proud of you Leah. So, very proud. For a girl who has been through so much, you haven't let it get to you. Valedictorian? Absolutely insane. Congratulations. We love you. We love you so much" Aunt Cara says, pulling me into a hug with Uncle Blake.