We never said goodbye to each other. I always left your house at 1am with a little wave and a "see you soon", and we always made good on that promise. I always knew that I'd see you within the week, so I didn't need to say goodbye. It was one of my favorite things about our friendship.
But then it was time for me to leave for the month. Your goodbye was the one I dreaded most because I didn't know how I would get through my weeks without your stupid jokes and lovely conversation. Somewhere in our friendship I fell in love with you, and I thought saying goodbye would break my heart. But your goodbye was the best. Your goodbye made me love you even more.
It was midnight. I had to leave town early the next morning, and everyone else had already left. You gave me a speech about how we'd stay friends because you couldn't not be friends with me, and then you gave me a hug. It wasn't like our usual "see ya later, friend" hug. It was a hug like a small child holding onto his mother telling her never to let go. Then you walked me outside and told me to have fun and threw water balloons at my car and made me laugh hysterically before standing in the street and waving to me as I drove away. I looked at you in the rearview mirror and realized that I didn't want to live without you, and I sobbed because this was another "see you later" just one that would last a lot longer than usual.
And then two weeks later I went home to visit. I was so giddy to see your face again. I missed you so much, and I think it's true that absence makes the heart grow fonder because I swear I liked you more than I ever had before. I stayed for 24 hours and then it was another goodbye. You hugged me again. You buried your face in my neck. you pressed your body into mine, and everything about the moment was perfect. Then I walked outside and you ran out after me to grab something from my car. Then you stood in the street and waved again, and I cried like a baby again. Your goodbyes make me love you more. I'm coming home soon and we can go back to our "see ya laters" but our real goodbyes will always stay with me because they make me love you and appreciate you more than I ever thought I could. Soon we'll get to say hello again, but we'll have many more goodbyes in my life. Goodbyes suck, but your goodbyes are the happiest any goodbyes could be. I love you. I always will.
