I hated the random phone calls I got from her saying to meet her random places… But like always, she’d call me and beg me to meet her at midnight at some secluded place so that people wouldn’t know we knew each other. She is Brooke. Brooke and I use to be best friends from the time we were born till freshman year. She changed a lot freshman year and decided not to be my friend because I was not considered cool. Then out of nowhere, in the middle of our senior year, she called me and begged me to meet her in Parks Way alley at midnight… I went. We talked. She apologized. She insulted me. I listened to her rant. I left and that’s how I became her best friend again… From there on out, just cause I showed up to her rescue, I was her best friend again when she needed someone to confide in at 12 o’clock in the morning.

The calls never stopped coming. Every little thing that happened, she had to call me. The real reason I was all of a sudden her best friend is because poor little miss Brooke’s perfect world started to crumble in her hands and she didn’t know how to stop it or who to turn to… So, she turned to the only person she knew who would come crawling back to her. ME.

One hot summer night, I was crawling into bed when my phone started vibrating. I answered. It was Brooke. “Luke, Meet me at the East Bay Bridge at midnight.” I agreed and hung up as I pulled jeans and a new T-shirt on. I walked down the steps and my mother was curious to where I was headed and I told her the truth. She gave me a disapproved look but I didn’t care. I was out the door and in my truck before she could say anything. I pulled out of my driveway and started my journey to the bridge.

When I got to the bridge, I saw Brooke sitting on a park bench facing the bridge and the lake. She looked so beautiful in that moonlight as the wind blew her hair around. I walked to her and she looked at me with tears in her eyes. “What is it?” I asked her.

“It’s so crazy how wrong you can be about people.” She started to say. “I used to have wonderful friends… A wonderful life… Now look at me. I’m nothing. My world is falling apart right before my eyes and I can’t do anything about it. I want to. I really do. But I don’t know what to do. I keep hoping it will all go back to normal. In the morning, I’ll wake up and everything will be perfect again.” She went on. “But it won’t ever be perfect again.”

I could tell in that moment that she was really hurt. Hurt by people who didn’t deserve her presence and didn’t deserve to hear her laugh and see her smile. She was hurt by people she thought were her friends. I didn’t know what to say besides, “Brooke, nothing can stay perfect.”

She looked at me like I couldn’t understand. “My whole life lately has been nothing but disappointments… All disappointments!” She exclaimed as she wiped her tears on her cheek away with her sweater sleeve.

I laughed a little bit and starred into her blue eyes and told her, “Mm, I guess that’s an insult to me. I didn’t know I was another disappointment to you.” I scoffed. “I guess I should have known, I didn’t fit well into Brooke’s world.” I started to turn to walk away.

“Stop!” I turned around to see her. “You’re kidding right? You are the disappointment to me.” I felt my heart drop to me stomach as she went on. “I wasn’t suppose to fall in love with you. I wasn’t even suppose to like you. You were suppose to not stick around and leave. Leave a long time ago… But you didn’t … You made me love and you made me want you. I can’t believe you did that to me. You were SUPPOSE to hurt me. But you didn’t. I don’t know why but you didn’t. That’s why you’re a disappointment to me. A really great disappointment that I am crazy about… That was not suppose to happen.”

“My god, you don’t think I don’t know that?” I said as I got closer to her. “It was not suppose to happen but it did. YOU let it happen, Brooke. It’s because you wanted it to happen. You wanted us to happen… Don’t blame me when you had just as much part in this as I did. I wasn’t suppose to love you either but I do. I really do and I don’t think I’ll ever stop because you’re beautiful and broken and amazing and funny and just so wonderful.” I caught my breath as I went on. “I love you. I love you. I love you.” I stopped for a few seconds. “I’m in love with you … I won’t deny it.”

She looked at me for a really long time. She nodded and got up from where she was sitting. The moon was no longer shining on us and the wind was no longer blowing. My heart was back in my chest and I knew… I knew what she wanted to say.

She grabbed my hand and smiled. A smile worth every dime I ever owned in my entire life. The kind of smile I wanted to see for the rest of my life. She leaned forward and buried her face into my shirt and put her long skinny arms around me. “I’ve never loved anyone else, Luke.” I put my arms around her and pulled her closer.

She kissed me. I knew she really did love me.