Missing Piece

"I remember one night, Rizz got us a huge puzzle. Except it was white. We knew it was gonna be a pain in the ass." I laughed, feeling tears burn at my eyes. "Each piece had another that fit perfectly. And it took us until five in the morning to finish. We didn't care that we had class in a few hours." I laughed, sniffling. "But the thing is. We put it together. And the best part was the end. Once we got there, we were so excited." I smiled, thinking back on how tired I was. "Because we all knew what it meant. We had done it. And we counted down. Three." I took a breath. "Two... One. And we threw it, tossed it, messed it up, took it apart so quickly. All of us laughing and crying cause we were so glad it was over." I sucked in a breath, taking my trembling bottom lip in. "Because that's the thing about puzzles. The long anticipated end, where even after the matching pieces meet, everyone knows it's getting destroyed in the end anyways. Because it's a puzzle. And it doesn't stay forever."