We Are.

New beninnings. My mother always told me humans needed new beginnings. We needed sudden changes, we needed things to be fresh and for old things to fade into the distance so we can cleanse ourselvesand discover who we are, and I tried to be mindful of all of these things as I packed the back of my Buick, preparing to leave Huntington Beach... and my six best friends behind with it.
Growing up it had always been the seven of us as a gang, you had all of us or none of us. Matt, Brian, Jimmy, Naomi, Johnny, and Zack. Johnny was younger than the rest of us but he was family all the same, coming into our lives when we were in our early teens. Huntington Beach was my heart, and everything I had ever loved, everyone I had ever loved lied within the warm air and sandy beaches that I also lived for. I didn't know what I was doing, going off to college over 1,000 miles away and I'd tried to talk myself out of it too many times to count. The little voice in the back of my head, which was actually Jimmy loudly speaking in my ear, always told me"you are too big for Huntington Beach". My gaggle of friends stood silently in a small group as I turned to them, packing the last of my things into my overly-stuffed trunk. At the same time I saw all of their faces, my heart shattered and all of the spaces where it had broken filled up with regret. I slowly dragged my feet over to each of them, sharing hugs and tears with them individually. Swallowed by Matt's arms, inhaling Johnny's constant cigarette and Jack scent, having Brian kiss me on the forehead like he did anytime we left each others presence, and Naomi being dramatic and crying so loudly I'm sure the whole neighborhood heard her. "It'll be okay, I'll be back every summer and holiday that I can, I promise." I squeezed my best friend tightly before walking out of her arms and into Jimmy's.
His pointy hair caught itself in my fingers as I tried to reach my arms around his gangly frame. "I am so proud of you." he whispered, squeezing me tightly as his face buried in my short, bright pink hair.

The tears from my own eyes couldn't hold themselves back anymore. Jimmy was my heart, my soul, my brother. Leaving him wasn't something I ever thought I would do. But nothing prepared me for the last. Zack was standing in front of me now, barely standing, as if he was on the verge of collapse from the situation. We had a bond, a completely unexplainable connection that was pure, loving, and the epitome of happiness. He buried his hands in my hair and his face into my neck as it became warm and wet with his tears. I would miss our horror movie sleepovers and our jam sessions at 3 am after smoking a fresh bowl. But more so than that I would miss the wat he held me when thunder made me shake, the way he rubbed my back in circles when I was sick because he knew that was my favorite, but most of all I would miss the way he told me he loved me, even though he didn't mean it in the way I wish he did. "Call me anytime you need me. Call me every night if you want to,' he sobbed, "I'm sorry I'm such a pussy." he spoke muffled from my neck. I giggled, sadness lacing my tone. "I'll miss you so much..." I whispered, choking myself up. His face pulled up from my neck, placing both hands on either side of my face, thumbs grazing my chin, and then the left one tracing my lower lip. His mouth moved closer to me, and I closed my eyes to embrace for impact. My private ecstacy was interrupted by a peck on the nose and another kiss on the forehead. As this happened, I'm sure I felt my heart shatter more even though I wasn't sure it was possible.
"I love you...so much." he choked out before I pulled away, a smile poking through just barely on my shocked mouth. I climbed into the driver's seat of my shitty black car and drove away slowly, looking back every so often to see my friends slowly disappear one by one as I got further away. Until he was almost a dot in the distance, I watched Zack stand there until he was gone. That day, was the biggest mistake of my entire life.

Notes

Characters will be added as they are introduced.

Welcome to "We Are.", a story I've wanted to write for a long time and finally have the willpower to do as well as the time. Thank you for reading!