So, I have this friend that I have known since I was 8 years old. I was in 5th grade and he in 7th, I in elementary school and he in Junior High (that's what they called the middle school back when we still had dinosaurs walking to school with us, and yes uphill both ways! LOL). I played the trumpet back then, he played the drums. Well, he has NEVER been one to do what was uneventful, he got a band detention that day. The music teacher had to come next door to teach us little kids, and so he had to pack up his drums and follow along! It was that day that I first lost whatever I had of a heart back then. I come from an extremely abusive home life and never had known a single true feeling until I laid eyes on him—pure and true happiness, from the start. I was head over heels in crush mode.
I was a very resourceful little girl, I found his phone number and began calling him once or twice a week. Some days we would talk for hours, but I could never speak when the poor kid stood right before me. It went on like that for many years, the calls got fewer and farther in between as we grew up. When I was 16 and he was 18, he informed me that his girlfriend was pregnant. I had talked to her briefly a couple of times, and even though my heart stopped I was happy for him. But long before that baby could even be born, he got caught by the law for doing something stupid and ended up in prison. Yes, at 18 and even still in High School. So, needless to say, I lost touch. 
About a year and a half ago, I found him under the people you may know category on Facebook. I was nervous as hell, but sent the damn request. Wondering the whole time if he would even remember me, the girl he once told a friend that he thought of as a little sister (yes, I was crushed). The reply came back in an instant, it was accepted!!! We began to talk, and within 3 days he came over for a visit (Christmas Day 2022). We talked and caught up into the wee hours of the morning and he ended up falling asleep on the couch as we watched a movie. I left him there, and yes to even keep this memory alive I took a quick pic. LOL. We were together often over the next couple weeks, but something happened and we just stopped talking. 
That was in about February, come June I got a message on Messenger from him saying that I needed to call him ASAP, that he had something to tell me, and that he needed to apologize to me. I was baffled, so I called. We have been side by side since. But here's the kicker, he has congestive heart failure. He's dying, literally! He has become not only my best friend but my world. He lives here and does everything he can to make sure that I am taken care of. He does the cooking, cleaning, laundry all of it. he will bring food and drinks back to the bedroom (cuz that's where I pretty much live) usually waits for the dirty dishes and then takes them to the kitchen. He understands that I am working from the time that I open my eyes, til the time I close them. Sadly though, he does not have much longer to be here with me. And because of that, I will from time to time take a few days off from working so much and just spend time with him. Before you ask, no we do not have sex nor have we ever! Not saying that I wouldn't want it to happen of course...
But if I go MIA for a few days, please be kind and understanding. Please know that I am spending the last of the time I have been awarded with the man, that even to this day, I am madly in love with. I will return in a couple of days, maybe a little sadder, but with the lasting memories that will need to last me the rest of my life.
Thank you to those who read all that till the end, please cradle the ones you love and make memories to last you a lifetime!