A Wish On The Wrong Star

by Mike Fontanini

        It was a hot summer afternoon. Bobby and Mark were hanging out after school. They lived close to each other out in the country, which made it easy for them to hang out together when they had free time. They were both in 7th grade, and they had less free time this year as they had more homework to worry about than they had in previous years. Sometimes they would get together at one or the other's house and work together on their homework, helping each other when they could.
        On this afternoon, they got together at Bobby's house after school and played Nintendo games and computer games together as they so often did. Sometimes they would blow off their homework all together because they had far more fun playing games than they did doing their homework. They were annoyed by people who thought games were a negative influence, and that they kept kids from doing their homework. In defense of their games, Mark and Bobby joked that saving the world was definitely more important than doing their homework.
        Several weeks later, on a gray, cloud covered day, Mark was diagnosed with cancer. He'd been complaining of headaches and a few other symptoms. It was found that he had a tumor in his brain. Unfortunately, it wasn't caught early. The doctors could tell by its size that it had been there for quite a long time, but there was no way to know for just how long. That afternoon Mark and Bobby got together again, but it was not their normal fun and games atmosphere. Mark told Bobby of the bad news. He could see the fear in Bobby's eyes.
        "Are you gonna be ok?", Bobby asked, his voice trembling with fear.
        "There's know way to know yet what will happen." replied Mark.
        "You're my best friend, Buddy." Bobby said.
        "And You're mine." Mark replied.
        "I'm here for you all the way no matter what, Mark." Bobby said from his heart, "Because a true friend is always there even when your world begins to crumble and fall apart."
        "You're the best friend a boy could have." Mark said feeling a bit better.
        Mark had just learned the power of true friendship, and he'd discovered the way the compassion of a best friend can stop the rain, part the clouds, and make the sun shine again when you're feeling down. Mark also now realized just how lucky he was to have Bobby as a friend. They decided to try to forget about Mark's tumor for a while. They decided to play some of their Nintendo and computer games and save the world a few times. Their decision to play games worked, and they were able to escape the somber atmosphere for a while and just be carefree kids again.
        The days went by, and as always, Trevor would pick on them at school. Trevor was a bully, who, like all bullies, got a kick out of picking on the weaker kids, and also like all other bullies, this picking on the weaker kids somehow made him feel better about himself.
        Each day when Bobby and Mark walked to school together, they would both worry about what tricks Trevor might be planning, but after school was out, they would sneak away from school to avoid Trevor, and go home together and spend time playing games at one or the other's house for awhile.
        As a result of Mark's tumor, Mark and Bobby spent far more time together than they had in the past because they had no idea how much time they had left to spend with each other because of the ever present threat of Mark's tumor.
        A whole year went by, and they had moved on to 8th grade. They still spent tons of time together, but it was getting tougher for them to do that since their schedules seemed to get tighter and tighter each year as they got older.
        Over several weeks, Mark's health began to deteriorate. Bobby knew that it meant Mark might soon be gone, but he never let that thought enter his mind. He blocked it out; it was too hard to face. Instead, he focused on every minute he and Mark got to spend together. There was no way he was going to face that thought until he had to.
        One dark stormy day a few weeks later, Bobby got the bad news that he'd been dreading for so long and hoping would never come. Mark's battle was over; the cancer had won. He would've had a better chance had his cancer been caught earlier, but it wasn't. Bobby could no longer block out that thought of Mark being gone. Now he had to face it. So he played with his dog because it was the only friend he had left.
        The following day, Bobby didn't want to go to school, but he had little choice in the matter. So he went to school. As he walked down the hall to his locker after math class, Trevor snuck up behind him and knocked his books out of his hands. They fell to the floor and landed in a messy pile. Bobby looked down at the messy pile of books; then he turned around and looked angrily at Trevor. A flash of lighting came in the windows of the classrooms that lined the hall and illuminated the hallway for a split second . Bobby began to yell, and the hallway became silent as all chattering and movement ceased; all eyes watched and all ears listened.
        "Why can't you leave me the hell alone?" Bobby shouted angrily.
        Trevor said nothing.
        "I'm in a very bad mood. My best friend just died of cancer yesterday, but you have no sympathy. Hell, you don't even have a clue what true friendship is so you couldn't understand it if you tried."
        Still, Trevor said nothing. Bobby started to crack as he thought of his friend Mark.
        "I'm sick of you and your shit. Just go to hell." Bobby yelled as he began to run.
        Another flash of lightning flooded the hall as Bobby ran to the bathroom to hide his tears that were starting to fall. He missed his friend so much. It was the first time he'd ever lost a best friend. It was also his first experience of true pain. He had locked himself in one of the stalls so no one could see him cry. He felt so alone; there was no one there for him. The only one who cared was now lost in time.
        As he sat in the stall crying, he heard footsteps enter the bathroom. Then a voice started talking to him. It was his classmate Jimmy.
        "I heard it all." Jimmy said, "I admire the way you just stood up to him, but that's not why I came. I came in here because I know how you feel; I've lost a best friend before, but not to cancer. My best friend moved away. I know it's not quite the same thing, but it's not that different either. We both lost a best friend; the only difference is the circumstances under which it happened. Anyway, I came to tell you that I'll be your friend if you want. I'm doing this because when I lost my friend I had no one to talk to. Having someone to talk to is far better than having to keep it all bottled up inside. I learned that the hard way. Like they say, misery loves company."
        Bobby slowly opened the stall door and looked at Jimmy's face. There was only understanding in Jimmy's eyes. There was no reason not to trust him. After all, he wasn't the bully, Trevor was. Being picked on all the time causes a kid to be less trusting toward other people.
        "You really understand true friendship don't you?" Bobby asked.
        "Yes, I do." said Jimmy, "Friendship is a form of love that can be just as strong as any other."
        "Whoa, that's a good quote, Jimmy, and it's true." Bobby replied.
        "I learned that the hard way when I lost my best friend." Jimmy said.
        "Well, thank you." Bobby said feeling a little better, "I'll be your friend too."
        "Friends forever?" Bobby said.
        "Yes, Definitely." replied Jimmy, and they put their hands together in a high-five.
        That night, Bobby was outside sitting on his front step enjoying the nice weather and looking up at the stars as he thought about his new friend. He decided to wish upon a star hoping it would change his luck. He picked a star and made a wish upon it. He wished that he and his new friend would never lose each other. He just wanted one friend that would never slip out of his life like others had. As he finished making his wish upon the star, he starred at it. A few seconds after he made his wish, he watched as the star fell from the sky, turning into a bright streak as it fell, and then disappeared completely.
        A few nights later, Bobby and his new friend Jimmy got together after school. They played video games and saved the world a few times. They immersed themselves in the game worlds in an attempt to hide from reality, but they couldn't stay there playing games forever.
        The next day after school, they got together again. They ended up talking about society and things of that nature.
        "Don't you hate that crap about being yourself?", said Jimmy.
        "Well, yeah, it hasn't worked for me yet.", replied Bobby, "but why do you hate it?"
        "I haven't told you yet, but I'm a lot like you. To be honest, you're the only friend I have. I'm so tired of being alone and worthless. Existence seems so pointless when you're all alone."
        "So that's why you came in the bathroom the other day after I hid in there so no one would see me cry. You know the pain. You... You understand me.", Bobby said.
        "Yes, I do. They say being different is good, but look what it has done for us. It was our similar trait of loneliness that brought us together, not being different." Jimmy said.
        "So true." replied Bobby, "But then again, a little difference is good; it's just that society can be so intolerant." Bobby said in reply.
        "That's a good point." Jimmy said.
        Bobby and Jimmy had their own little hideout where they spent some of their time together when they didn't want to play games. The hideout was in a tree house that Bobby and his old friend Mark had built by the stream a few blocks down the gravel road from their houses. It wasn't a very fancy tree house. It was just built of some scrap wood and things they found laying around at their houses.
        Bobby and Jimmy spent lots of time together whenever they could, because they both valued each other's friendship deeply. Their friendship was strong, and they knew it could stand the test of time. Despite that, they still wished time would slow down. Time, however, had other plans. They noticed that time seemed to move faster the older they got. They remembered when 10 minutes seemed an eternity to them back in elementary school, and how now 10 minutes seemed more like 10 seconds. As much as they would've liked to, they couldn't slow down time.
        Another year went by, and they graduated from middle school and were now 9th graders. They weren't exactly thrilled about being freshman in high school. They had heard rumors of what the upperclassmen did to freshman. Luckily for them, most of it wasn't true, but was just crap the older kids said to scare them.
        As the new school year got under way, it didn't go as well as they hoped. Bobby and Jimmy had almost no classes in common in their schedules, so they never saw each other except when they could get together after school.
        They both hated most of their classes, because some bored them out of their minds and others had too much homework or just plain sucked. Despite the classes they didn't like, the year progressed anyway.
        Before they knew it, the school year was half over. They had drifted apart a little bit, because of the fact that they weren't able to see each other very often anymore.
        Three weeks and a few days later, Bobby and Jimmy were spending time together at Bobby's house. They played games as usual, and were there for each other when ever they needed to be. As usual, though, their time together seemed to come and go so quickly. They didn't really like how time flies when you're having fun. It seemed to rob them because of how fast their time together slipped away.
        The next day when Bobby got home from school, he found out from his mom that his dog had died. He was devastated. He loved that dog. It was one of the only friends he had. Once again he felt so alone. He wished he could spend some time with Jimmy, but Jimmy couldn't come over because he had to go to the orthodontist on this evening.
        Bobby went to his room and listened to music for a while. He allowed his tears to fall. There was no use in holding them back.
        A little while later he turned off the music, and then he cried himself to sleep. As he fell asleep, he entered the world of dreams. Reality was of no concern here, but he couldn't sleep forever. Eventually he would have to wake up, but for now it didn't matter.
        As the school days went by, Bobby became steadily lonelier. He didn't see his friend Jimmy very often anymore, and he missed him so. He wondered how much longer he could stand it, how much longer before his mind would crumble under the power of such emotions. He was learning the dangerous power of being lonely for way too long. It puts an enormous strain on the mind and heart.
        Two and a half weeks later, his grandma passed away. He wondered why there had to be so much pain in his life. Sometimes he felt like a guinea pig, as though fate or the world was experimenting with him to see how much he could take. Sometimes it seemed as though the world got a kick out of being the biggest jackass it could be. His thoughts could last for hours. One would lead to another and so on.
        The next day, he started to crack inside. After school, he wrote a letter to Jimmy and taped it to the outside of Jimmy's bedroom window so he would be sure to see it. Then he went to their secret hideout down by the stream. He had packed some food, water, a pillow, and his sleeping bag. Now he waited.
        That night when Jimmy got home, he didn't see the note. He didn't see it the next morning either. His eyes were still too full of sleep.
        The next day was dark and stormy. It rained off and on, and there was lightning and thunder from time to time. It was a very dreary day.
        After school when Jimmy came home and set his bag down in his room, he caught site of the note on his window out of the corner of his eye. The note was soggy because of the pouring rain outside, but the writing was still legible. He turned to look at it, and when he saw who it was from, he opened the window and took the note in his hand. He closed the window as he began to read what his friend had written:
        "Jimmy, I can't take it anymore. The pain of my recent losses of my grandma and my dog combined with my loneliness has just become too much. In my loneliness I've been haunted by memories of my old friend Mark. Happy as those memories are, they bring more pain than joy now. I'm thinking of suicide. You're the only one who cares about me, the only one I can turn to. I can't stand feeling so alone and pointless anymore. I just need to spend some time with a friend. Please come meet me at our hideout. I know you'll come, but if you don't come, then I'll have to assume that our friendship has faded away during the past several months, because I know you'd come as quick as you can. That's just the kind of friend you are. I will wait 24 hours and no more because I know you would never wait after reading this if you're still the same friend you were. I placed this note on your window at 4:30pm. See you soon, Buddy."
        After reading these words, Jimmy was alarmed. He realized that Bobby must have put the note on his window the day before because it was only 4:15pm. He dropped the note on his bed and ran outside to his bike in the garage with only 15 minutes to spare. He got on the bike, but soon discovered he had a flat tire. He hurried as fast as he could to seal the leak. At first he couldn't find it, but finally he found it and sealed it. Then he inflated the tire. As he worked, he glanced at his watch from time to time. He knew precious seconds were passing by.
        After completing repairs to the tire, he glanced at his watch as he hopped onto his bike. It was 4:25pm now. He rode his bike through the pouring rain as fast as he could, but it seemed like an eternity even though the hideout was only a few blocks away.
        When he got to the tree house he got off his bike, and yelled his friend's name. There was no reply. He climbed to the top of the ladder and into the tree house. He was too late. He looked at his watch and realized he had two minutes to spare. Then he looked at his friend's watch in puzzlement of why his friend was dead sooner than he had said he'd kill himself. He discovered that Bobby's watch was three minutes ahead. Then he noticed a note on the floor by his friend. He read it:
        "I guess you don't like me anymore or you didn't find my note on your bedroom window in time. You're the only friend I have. Without you I have nothing left. Goodbye, Buddy."
        "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO", he yelled.
        "DAMN IT!" he yelled, "DAMN THIS WORLD!"
        As Jimmy yelled, a bolt of lightning struck a tree a short distance down the road from him. It was followed by an enormous, crackling roar of thunder. The tree was split in two right down the middle of the trunk in just a fraction of a second.
        His emotions were out of control. He was angry that his friend's watch was three minutes ahead, and he was angry about his bike having a flat tire, because they were both such cruel twists of fate. He laid down on the floor beside his friend.
        "No... ...how can this be? How can you be gone, Buddy?" He said to his friend, "I need you. I've missed you every bit as much as you've missed me. You're the only friend I have. I'll always be your friend."
        His eyes filled with tears as he said those words to his friend. He could no longer see Bobby through the blur of tears in his eyes. He felt so alone and lost. His only friend, the only one who cared about him, was now gone. It was just too much to deal with.
        He sat for a minute and thought. His tears continued to fall. Then he came to a conclusion. There was only one thing left for him to do. He picked up the gun that lay at his friend's side and raised it to his head.
        "I'm coming with you, Buddy. I can't stay in this world without you." he said to Bobby.

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	A Wish On The Wrong Star by Mike Fontanini
	It was a hot summer afternoon. Bobby and Mark were hanging out after school. They lived close to each other out in the country, which made it easy for them to hang out together when they had free time. They were both in 7th grade, and they had less free time this year as they had more homework to worry about than they had in previous years. Sometimes they would get together at one or the other's house and work together on their homework, helping each other when they could. On this afternoon, they got together at Bobby's house after school and played Nintendo games and computer games together as they so often did. Sometimes they would blow off their homework all together because they had far more fun playing games than they did doing their homework. They were annoyed by people who thought games were a negative influence, and that they kept kids from doing their homework. In defense of their games, Mark and Bobby joked that saving the world was definitely more important than doing their homework. Several weeks later, on a gray, cloud covered day, Mark was diagnosed with cancer. He'd been complaining of headaches and a few other symptoms. It was found that he had a tumor in his brain. Unfortunately, it wasn't caught early. The doctors could tell by its size that it had been there for quite a long time, but there was no way to know for just how long. That afternoon Mark and Bobby got together again, but it was not their normal fun and games atmosphere. Mark told Bobby of the bad news. He could see the fear in Bobby's eyes. "Are you gonna be ok?", Bobby asked, his voice trembling with fear. "There's know way to know yet what will happen." replied Mark. "You're my best friend, Buddy." Bobby said. "And You're mine." Mark replied. "I'm here for you all the way no matter what, Mark." Bobby said from his heart, "Because a true friend is always there even when your world begins to crumble and fall apart." "You're the best friend a boy could have." Mark said feeling a bit better. Mark had just learned the power of true friendship, and he'd discovered the way the compassion of a best friend can stop the rain, part the clouds, and make the sun shine again when you're feeling down. Mark also now realized just how lucky he was to have Bobby as a friend. They decided to try to forget about Mark's tumor for a while. They decided to play some of their Nintendo and computer games and save the world a few times. Their decision to play games worked, and they were able to escape the somber atmosphere for a while and just be carefree kids again. The days went by, and as always, Trevor would pick on them at school. Trevor was a bully, who, like all bullies, got a kick out of picking on the weaker kids, and also like all other bullies, this picking on the weaker kids somehow made him feel better about himself. Each day when Bobby and Mark walked to school together, they would both worry about what tricks Trevor might be planning, but after school was out, they would sneak away from school to avoid Trevor, and go home together and spend time playing games at one or the other's house for awhile. As a result of Mark's tumor, Mark and Bobby spent far more time together than they had in the past because they had no idea how much time they had left to spend with each other because of the ever present threat of Mark's tumor. A whole year went by, and they had moved on to 8th grade. They still spent tons of time together, but it was getting tougher for them to do that since their schedules seemed to get tighter and tighter each year as they got older. Over several weeks, Mark's health began to deteriorate. Bobby knew that it meant Mark might soon be gone, but he never let that thought enter his mind. He blocked it out; it was too hard to face. Instead, he focused on every minute he and Mark got to spend together. There was no way he was going to face that thought until he had to. One dark stormy day a few weeks later, Bobby got the bad news that he'd been dreading for so long and hoping would never come. Mark's battle was over; the cancer had won. He would've had a better chance had his cancer been caught earlier, but it wasn't. Bobby could no longer block out that thought of Mark being gone. Now he had to face it. So he played with his dog because it was the only friend he had left. The following day, Bobby didn't want to go to school, but he had little choice in the matter. So he went to school. As he walked down the hall to his locker after math class, Trevor snuck up behind him and knocked his books out of his hands. They fell to the floor and landed in a messy pile. Bobby looked down at the messy pile of books; then he turned around and looked angrily at Trevor. A flash of lighting came in the windows of the classrooms that lined the hall and illuminated the hallway for a split second . Bobby began to yell, and the hallway became silent as all chattering and movement ceased; all eyes watched and all ears listened. "Why can't you leave me the hell alone?" Bobby shouted angrily. Trevor said nothing. "I'm in a very bad mood. My best friend just died of cancer yesterday, but you have no sympathy. Hell, you don't even have a clue what true friendship is so you couldn't understand it if you tried." Still, Trevor said nothing. Bobby started to crack as he thought of his friend Mark. "I'm sick of you and your shit. Just go to hell." Bobby yelled as he began to run. Another flash of lightning flooded the hall as Bobby ran to the bathroom to hide his tears that were starting to fall. He missed his friend so much. It was the first time he'd ever lost a best friend. It was also his first experience of true pain. He had locked himself in one of the stalls so no one could see him cry. He felt so alone; there was no one there for him. The only one who cared was now lost in time. As he sat in the stall crying, he heard footsteps enter the bathroom. Then a voice started talking to him. It was his classmate Jimmy. "I heard it all." Jimmy said, "I admire the way you just stood up to him, but that's not why I came. I came in here because I know how you feel; I've lost a best friend before, but not to cancer. My best friend moved away. I know it's not quite the same thing, but it's not that different either. We both lost a best friend; the only difference is the circumstances under which it happened. Anyway, I came to tell you that I'll be your friend if you want. I'm doing this because when I lost my friend I had no one to talk to. Having someone to talk to is far better than having to keep it all bottled up inside. I learned that the hard way. Like they say, misery loves company." Bobby slowly opened the stall door and looked at Jimmy's face. There was only understanding in Jimmy's eyes. There was no reason not to trust him. After all, he wasn't the bully, Trevor was. Being picked on all the time causes a kid to be less trusting toward other people. "You really understand true friendship don't you?" Bobby asked. "Yes, I do." said Jimmy, "Friendship is a form of love that can be just as strong as any other." "Whoa, that's a good quote, Jimmy, and it's true." Bobby replied. "I learned that the hard way when I lost my best friend." Jimmy said. "Well, thank you." Bobby said feeling a little better, "I'll be your friend too." "Friends forever?" Bobby said. "Yes, Definitely." replied Jimmy, and they put their hands together in a high-five. That night, Bobby was outside sitting on his front step enjoying the nice weather and looking up at the stars as he thought about his new friend. He decided to wish upon a star hoping it would change his luck. He picked a star and made a wish upon it. He wished that he and his new friend would never lose each other. He just wanted one friend that would never slip out of his life like others had. As he finished making his wish upon the star, he starred at it. A few seconds after he made his wish, he watched as the star fell from the sky, turning into a bright streak as it fell, and then disappeared completely. A few nights later, Bobby and his new friend Jimmy got together after school. They played video games and saved the world a few times. They immersed themselves in the game worlds in an attempt to hide from reality, but they couldn't stay there playing games forever. The next day after school, they got together again. They ended up talking about society and things of that nature. "Don't you hate that crap about being yourself?", said Jimmy. "Well, yeah, it hasn't worked for me yet.", replied Bobby, "but why do you hate it?" "I haven't told you yet, but I'm a lot like you. To be honest, you're the only friend I have. I'm so tired of being alone and worthless. Existence seems so pointless when you're all alone." "So that's why you came in the bathroom the other day after I hid in there so no one would see me cry. You know the pain. You... You understand me.", Bobby said. "Yes, I do. They say being different is good, but look what it has done for us. It was our similar trait of loneliness that brought us together, not being different." Jimmy said. "So true." replied Bobby, "But then again, a little difference is good; it's just that society can be so intolerant." Bobby said in reply. "That's a good point." Jimmy said. Bobby and Jimmy had their own little hideout where they spent some of their time together when they didn't want to play games. The hideout was in a tree house that Bobby and his old friend Mark had built by the stream a few blocks down the gravel road from their houses. It wasn't a very fancy tree house. It was just built of some scrap wood and things they found laying around at their houses. Bobby and Jimmy spent lots of time together whenever they could, because they both valued each other's friendship deeply. Their friendship was strong, and they knew it could stand the test of time. Despite that, they still wished time would slow down. Time, however, had other plans. They noticed that time seemed to move faster the older they got. They remembered when 10 minutes seemed an eternity to them back in elementary school, and how now 10 minutes seemed more like 10 seconds. As much as they would've liked to, they couldn't slow down time. Another year went by, and they graduated from middle school and were now 9th graders. They weren't exactly thrilled about being freshman in high school. They had heard rumors of what the upperclassmen did to freshman. Luckily for them, most of it wasn't true, but was just crap the older kids said to scare them. As the new school year got under way, it didn't go as well as they hoped. Bobby and Jimmy had almost no classes in common in their schedules, so they never saw each other except when they could get together after school. They both hated most of their classes, because some bored them out of their minds and others had too much homework or just plain sucked. Despite the classes they didn't like, the year progressed anyway. Before they knew it, the school year was half over. They had drifted apart a little bit, because of the fact that they weren't able to see each other very often anymore. Three weeks and a few days later, Bobby and Jimmy were spending time together at Bobby's house. They played games as usual, and were there for each other when ever they needed to be. As usual, though, their time together seemed to come and go so quickly. They didn't really like how time flies when you're having fun. It seemed to rob them because of how fast their time together slipped away. The next day when Bobby got home from school, he found out from his mom that his dog had died. He was devastated. He loved that dog. It was one of the only friends he had. Once again he felt so alone. He wished he could spend some time with Jimmy, but Jimmy couldn't come over because he had to go to the orthodontist on this evening. Bobby went to his room and listened to music for a while. He allowed his tears to fall. There was no use in holding them back. A little while later he turned off the music, and then he cried himself to sleep. As he fell asleep, he entered the world of dreams. Reality was of no concern here, but he couldn't sleep forever. Eventually he would have to wake up, but for now it didn't matter. As the school days went by, Bobby became steadily lonelier. He didn't see his friend Jimmy very often anymore, and he missed him so. He wondered how much longer he could stand it, how much longer before his mind would crumble under the power of such emotions. He was learning the dangerous power of being lonely for way too long. It puts an enormous strain on the mind and heart. Two and a half weeks later, his grandma passed away. He wondered why there had to be so much pain in his life. Sometimes he felt like a guinea pig, as though fate or the world was experimenting with him to see how much he could take. Sometimes it seemed as though the world got a kick out of being the biggest jackass it could be. His thoughts could last for hours. One would lead to another and so on. The next day, he started to crack inside. After school, he wrote a letter to Jimmy and taped it to the outside of Jimmy's bedroom window so he would be sure to see it. Then he went to their secret hideout down by the stream. He had packed some food, water, a pillow, and his sleeping bag. Now he waited. That night when Jimmy got home, he didn't see the note. He didn't see it the next morning either. His eyes were still too full of sleep. The next day was dark and stormy. It rained off and on, and there was lightning and thunder from time to time. It was a very dreary day. After school when Jimmy came home and set his bag down in his room, he caught site of the note on his window out of the corner of his eye. The note was soggy because of the pouring rain outside, but the writing was still legible. He turned to look at it, and when he saw who it was from, he opened the window and took the note in his hand. He closed the window as he began to read what his friend had written: "Jimmy, I can't take it anymore. The pain of my recent losses of my grandma and my dog combined with my loneliness has just become too much. In my loneliness I've been haunted by memories of my old friend Mark. Happy as those memories are, they bring more pain than joy now. I'm thinking of suicide. You're the only one who cares about me, the only one I can turn to. I can't stand feeling so alone and pointless anymore. I just need to spend some time with a friend. Please come meet me at our hideout. I know you'll come, but if you don't come, then I'll have to assume that our friendship has faded away during the past several months, because I know you'd come as quick as you can. That's just the kind of friend you are. I will wait 24 hours and no more because I know you would never wait after reading this if you're still the same friend you were. I placed this note on your window at 4:30pm. See you soon, Buddy." After reading these words, Jimmy was alarmed. He realized that Bobby must have put the note on his window the day before because it was only 4:15pm. He dropped the note on his bed and ran outside to his bike in the garage with only 15 minutes to spare. He got on the bike, but soon discovered he had a flat tire. He hurried as fast as he could to seal the leak. At first he couldn't find it, but finally he found it and sealed it. Then he inflated the tire. As he worked, he glanced at his watch from time to time. He knew precious seconds were passing by. After completing repairs to the tire, he glanced at his watch as he hopped onto his bike. It was 4:25pm now. He rode his bike through the pouring rain as fast as he could, but it seemed like an eternity even though the hideout was only a few blocks away. When he got to the tree house he got off his bike, and yelled his friend's name. There was no reply. He climbed to the top of the ladder and into the tree house. He was too late. He looked at his watch and realized he had two minutes to spare. Then he looked at his friend's watch in puzzlement of why his friend was dead sooner than he had said he'd kill himself. He discovered that Bobby's watch was three minutes ahead. Then he noticed a note on the floor by his friend. He read it: "I guess you don't like me anymore or you didn't find my note on your bedroom window in time. You're the only friend I have. Without you I have nothing left. Goodbye, Buddy." "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO", he yelled. "DAMN IT!" he yelled, "DAMN THIS WORLD!" As Jimmy yelled, a bolt of lightning struck a tree a short distance down the road from him. It was followed by an enormous, crackling roar of thunder. The tree was split in two right down the middle of the trunk in just a fraction of a second. His emotions were out of control. He was angry that his friend's watch was three minutes ahead, and he was angry about his bike having a flat tire, because they were both such cruel twists of fate. He laid down on the floor beside his friend. "No... ...how can this be? How can you be gone, Buddy?" He said to his friend, "I need you. I've missed you every bit as much as you've missed me. You're the only friend I have. I'll always be your friend." His eyes filled with tears as he said those words to his friend. He could no longer see Bobby through the blur of tears in his eyes. He felt so alone and lost. His only friend, the only one who cared about him, was now gone. It was just too much to deal with. He sat for a minute and thought. His tears continued to fall. Then he came to a conclusion. There was only one thing left for him to do. He picked up the gun that lay at his friend's side and raised it to his head. "I'm coming with you, Buddy. I can't stay in this world without you." he said to Bobby. Go Back to Writing Hompage