"The party of course!" Marc Exclaimed.
Um... I don't know what Marc was expecting out of me, but I had no reaction. First off, I'd been to parties he's brought me to in the past so It's nothing new, and second off, I don't even know whose party it is. I think to myself and cannot come up with a guess, so I ask Marc, "So who's party?"
With that, I see Marc have a slight glimmer in his eye and he smirks a little bit. I became a little nervous as he did not respond but as we drive, I get memories of my childhood. I remember this street... Why do I remember this street? Concord. Concord Court. No way... There can't be, I mean this can't be... I can't believe this guy.
I turn to Marc and say, "So Marc... by any chance are we going to the big blue house at the end of the block."
No response.
"Come on Marc... You know I haven't talked to her in years."
No response.
"Marc..."
I give up trying to compromise and we reach the end of the block. I look over and see the same tall maple we used to climb. I remember just how much time we spent in it, climbing the branches, hanging from the top, carving letters into its thick bark. I remember her bright smile, and the way she would always say my name, so cheerful, so kindly, with no hate in her eyes. She didn't hold hate for anyone; she was the nicest person you could ever imagine. A girl who wouldn't hurt a fly. A girl who would never think of being disobedient and would always follow everything her parents said. She was a girl that would follow you to the end of the world if you asked, and gladly do it. That girl, that lovely, kind, compassionate, loyal, and friendly girl. That girl was no longer here. In her place, was a skinny, straight-faced girl. A girl with bags under her eyes, but when she smiled, I could tell who it was immediately.
"Carly?"
"Man, you sure have grown up, kid." Carly said with a slight girly chuckle. Despite looking almost completely different, at first, she seemed to be the same person.
"So," I look her up and down, she's wearing a sort of trendy outfit and it's clear she hasn't been very sober. "Have you been treating yourself well?"
"You know, I've been living, that's the best treat you can really get." She said, looking slightly distant at the ground.
I took a look around and saw a bruise on her leg right above her knee. I didn't notice it from the tree, but as I made my way over to her, I could tell that she was shaking a little bit.
"Carly, do you want to go inside and take a seat? You look like you need some rest." I head inside after she starts to move through the door, and we sit in the living room. The same leather couch that was there all these years ago. While I had been to her house many times, this seemed to be the first time that I ever had seen her outside of play clothes or her school outfits. Even after all of this, man she still was really pretty.
I catch myself staring at her and awkwardly look away to try and not creep her out. I nudged Marc who followed me in and sat next to me, "So why are we here? Didn't you say we were going to a party?"
" Well... you see I was supposed to take Carly to the party as well, but she doesn't seem to want to go. As you guys have the same birthday, I figured you'd both want to celebrate it together."
"Marc, you know we haven't talked since the incident."
"Yeah, I know, okay! I know," He sighs, "I just thought... maybe you would want to come if she was there with you. So, you could have fun like you used to."
I look at Marc with soft eyes and a faint breath left my mouth. I breathe in, look at Carly, and see that she too has softened her eyes. I saw a slight glint in the corner of her eye, a tear had formed in her eye. This whole time, she seemed to be looking away, distant and away from me, but at that moment I realized something crucial and detrimental to my approach to her. She was not looking away or being distant, I had never actually looked at her at all. This whole time, my eyes had been averted, ignoring who was in front of me.
In front of me was the same exact girl that had been there previously. The same girl I used to run and play with. The same girl who carved her initials with me. That girl, Carly never changed. She was just waiting for me to come back. I thought so hard about where I was, her house. A place I had not entered in 4 years. It was a place that I loved, and had so many memories in. While it has been years. I never forgot what had happened, and I doubt she has too.
It was not a happy story, but it was not sad either. It was simply a mistake astronomical enough that it shattered our relationship for the rest of our youth and caused us to endlessly drift apart. Now, I will tell you exactly what happened. All those years ago during our 8th grade summer. The incident that caused us to never speak again.