Life Pulls Them Apart
The years passed quickly.
Middle school became high school.
High school became graduation.
Life grew more complicated.
Maya excelled academically.
Ethan worked every part-time job he could find.
They remained close despite busy schedules.
But shortly after graduation, life intervened.
Maya earned a scholarship several states away.
Ethan stayed behind to help support his mother.
The night before Maya left, they met beneath their old oak tree.
Neither wanted to say goodbye.
Neither knew how.
“I’ll come back,” Maya promised.
“You better.”
“You’ll probably be rich by then.”
Ethan smiled.
“I’m working on it.”
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Maya hugged him.
The embrace lasted only seconds.
Yet both remembered it for years.
The next morning, she was gone.
