(back)

And She was Gone

"It's never going to be the same", is what I thought. She was moving away and there was nothing I could do to stop her. My best friend, Samantha, was leaving to New Orleans, which was deep down in the south. There was no way I was going to be able to go on without the only friend I ever had. She was the only person that could meet up to my standards.

"You have to be strong", Samantha told me.

"I don't knew if I can", I whispered.

"Sanai, you can do it and you will...and don't say no, because I'm not taking that for an answer", she said.

After those words left her mouth I ran...I ran towards the park where no one knew where my secret spot was. I sat beneath the weeping willow, as the seeds from the dandelions whisked past my face from the eastern wind. I didn't cry nor did I feel any anger; I actually felt nothing, no emotion at all. Then I looked up and saw the swing sets about ten yards from where I sat. I walked over to them and sat down in the one farthest away from the rest. I felt the same way that this one appeared to be, alone.

I pumped my feet in and out to start moving . I began to go higher and higher, faster and faster. It was fun. No one was around to bother me. I stopped and stood up from the seat when she called my name. I never thought that she would actually think to look for me in a park. I always complained to her that they were a waste of the city's money.

"Sanai, you can't avoid me forever", she said, while walking over to me.

"True, but I sure can avoid you until you leave", I yelled to her, because there was still some distance between us.

"Why don't you want to talk?" she asked.

I simply told her, " I was trying to forget your existence since we wouldn't be able to see each other anymore. There won't be any more long conversations on the phone, no more giggling while Mr. Cassius bent over to look for his portfolio. There won't be anymore hiding out at Jackson's Lake after we ditched a full day of school and don't want to deal with our moms!"

Then the floodgates opened and the water came gushing down. I jumped off the swing and fell to the ground, the dirt meeting with my knees in a painful way. She dropped down and grabbed my hands. She put the to her heart and told me that I would be there forever. I didn't want to believe her because if it were true then she wouldn't be leaving me. She said it would be better for her and her dad. They needed to spend time with each other, because he wasn't there throughout her childhood.

"When you meet him at the airport, tell him I don't like him." I said to her. It wasn't fair for him to want to be in her life now... when she was finally beginning to grow into a real teenager. "We are supposed to have our firsts together. So far we've only accomplished the menstruation part. We are supposed to have our first dates together, first dance, first prom, everything! But now your father wants to step in and ruin everything... everything that we built our friendship on. I hate him! I hate him! I hate him!"

"Sanai, I'm coming back, I'm only spending two years with him, then I'll be back. Do the math, we'll be able to have our junior and senior proms together. Freshman and sophomore years will suck, no matter if we are together or not. But we'll spend all of our time together during the two most important years."

Then I reminded her that we wouldn't be able to enter high school together. She sat there staring into the sky and said, "let's get on the swings."

We got on and she asked me why I always criticized the city on their decision of making this park. I told her it was because we never had any parks when we were little. It wasn't fair at all that these little kids can have this type of exposure to this type of stuff but we couldn't. Then she said, "honey... life isn't fair, but you always have to make the best of it and don't let anything or anyone bring you down."

I stuck to those words. They were so amazing. Every time I had a bad day, I remembered what she said and it brought a smile on my face. It has been twenty years and we are still friends, but in spirit though. The year that she was supposed to come back to Detroit, she didn't.

Her father disappeared with her and they found him three years later. He was sentenced to twenty-three years to life in prison on kidnap, rape, and murder charges. He killed his own daughter and had no regrets. I told her I didn't like him and to this day I still don't. I actually hate him now for what he did. What a sick man. How perverted can you be?

Oh well, I have to get over it someday, might as well start now. "Samantha, I love you, I miss you and I hope you feel the same way. Do you know that I chased after your plane after it began moving. I never in my life ran so fast until that day. That's what gave me the courage to become the track star that I am now. Every time I am in a race, I imagine myself chasing after your plane to warn you of the danger you are headed into. It is amazing what you can achieve when chase after your dreams. Remember I love you and I miss you... and I can't wait until we meet up again my friend."

Article provided by