Wow, she's really beautiful today. How does she do it? The other girls with all their makeup and brand clothes doesn't stand a slightest chance against her. Maybe it's the air she gives off? That calm and soothing atmospehre. You can relax around her.

I could never dream of confessing to her. I know she just likes me as a friend but I can't help but want more. I have liked her since kindergarden, since the first time I saw her.

It was the first day and I had never been away from mom before. We had also recently moved and I had to leave all my friends in the other city.

I was crying my eyes out and the teacher didn't know what to do. I hide beneath one of the tables in the pain room because it was empty. Then she appeared.

She walked into the room, probably to get something to draw with but then she saw me. For some reason, instead of going to tell the teachers she sat down right beside me. In the beginning she didn't say anything, she just sat there but then she began to pat my back.

At first I tried to make her go away but she stayed. I started crying more. And that it happened. She hugged me. I still remember what she said till this day.

"There there. It's Ok to be scared. I'm here, I'm here."

Those words affected me. For me, who was so vulnarable right then, they were like cleansing water.

I hugged her back and cried till there were no more tears. Since that day we were inseparable and I always had the luck to be in the same class as her.

When I was young I was incredible shy, cried a lot short and weak, therefore I were bullied a lot. But she was always there besides me, helping me out. They also tried to bully her because her family was poor but she did not care. So what if my family is poor, she would always say. She was stronger than I.

One day after school ended and she and I was on our way home a couple of bullies cornered us. They started to tease me by pulling my hair and taking my bag, pouring everything out on the ground. I cried, as usual.

But she fought back. She fighted them with all she had, even giving one of them a black eye.

She drove them away, some of them even crying. I was so happy. But then I saw that she had gotten hurt. One of the boys had punched her right above the eye and her eyebrow were bleeding.

But she didn't care. The only thing she wanted to know was if I were Ok. It was at that moment I realised that I couldn't always depend on her, because she too could get hurt. So I started taking martial arts classes.

I started to cry less and less and during the summer I went through a growth spurt. I grew atleast 15 centimeters and I got buffer. According to some I also got pretty handsome. I don't know about that but what made me happy was that I would finally meet HER. We had not seen each other nearly all summer but finally!

I was the first one to arrive to the classroom on the first day on the new term. I wanted to see her so bad. More and more people poured in. I recognized all of them and they all got shocked when they saw me. I was not that wimpy kid anymore. Some of my female classmated started to talk to me, but I didn't care about them. Where was she?

Then she arrived.

She had also grown during the summer, atleast 5 centimeters and her figure had gotten slimmer, more curvy. She had let her black hair grow too and let it be loose, fluttering behind her when she walked. Her skinned was tanned but not burned; no, it just showed all the hours she had spent outside (she had always been an outside person).

Her eyes looked around the classroom and when she saw me she smiled.

"Marcus!" she exclaimed and rushed towards me. When she was close enough she hugged me. For a second I just stood there, with my arms at my sides. Then I regained my senses and hugged her back.

The others in class started to whisper to each other but I didn't care. At that moment nothing mattered more than her warm pulsating body against mine. It was at that moment I realised I loved her.

When our hug was done she inspected me from head to toe.

"Wow, you sure grew a lot during the summer! Guess I can't call you beansprout anymore!" She poked my forhead and laughed. I laughed too. Despite her changes she was still herself. The same strong girl that was afraid of storms.

School went on and soon years had gone. Our class was great. Even if my old bullies went there they had grown out of their ways and were now our friends. She never got together with someone, even if many asked, she always said that she wasn't interested in a relationship. While this made me sad it also made me happy. It meaned that no one else would get togheter with her either.

I also had my fair share of confessions but I always said no. I always came up with different excuses but I never told the truth. She once asked me why I didn't ever say yes and I just told her I was searching for the right one. She could never have know she was the one I wanted.

We spent everyday together, sometimes doing absolutely nothing, but it was Ok, we had each other. It was perfect. Why did it have to end?

It was a clear winter day. She, I and a couple of our friends went to M*Donalds after school. We discussed an upcoming test, if we should go watch a movie and if the old school building really was haunted. It was a regular conversation. They asked what school she would apply for after high school. She said she didn't know. She asked me. I told her I didn't know either.

Afterwards we decided to go to one of our friends home to play video games. We often did that. She was a real gaming fan. Heh. People always got suprised when the heard it, but she didn't care. She did what she wanted to do.

We walked a way we had walked many times before. We knew the way in the back of our minds. If only we had taken a different route that day...

We walked over the road; the sign said we could go so we went, why wouldn't we? But then... A car. It was speeding towards me. The driver was probably drunk, didn't see the people on the road until it was too late.

I saw it approach me. In my mind I made myself ready for death. I wanted to continue living, continue being with her, but I was ready.

Then, a small pair of hands pushed me out of the way. I turned around. No. It can't be true, I thought.

There she was with a determined face, pushing me to safety. And putting herself infront of the car.

BAM!

The sound of the car hitting her body echoed through the street. Nobody moved. Nobody said anything.

Then a scream could be heard and I returned to reality.

"Someone call 911. She's been hit by a car!" I scream as I ran towards her body. The snow was getting colored red by her blood and her limbs were twisted in a unnatural manner. She was still breathing, but her breaths were heavy, raspy and were getting weaker and weaker each time.

I sank down on my knees beside her, crying like I had done all those years ago.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Please don't die!" I were shouting weakly, my voice barely being able to make it out. I closed my eyes, trying to deny the truth.

Suddenly a felt something warm on my cheek. I opened my eyes. She had placed her hand on my cheek and sh was smiling, as always, even in a situation like this. I tried to say something but she cut me off.

"Sshhh... There there... It's Ok... To be scared... I'm here..."

Her hand then fell down to the ground and she stopped breathing. In the distance I could hear sirens screaming, but they didn't matter. Nothing did anymore.

Her funeral took place 4 days later. It was snowing. I went to it but... In the midst of it all I left... I couldn't deak with it all. It was too much. How could she be dead? No, it had to be a lie, it had to. It had to...

I spent weeks isolated from the world. My friends tried to visit me but I never let them in my room, that was in shambles. They said that they understod my sorrow but that she wouldn't want me to be like this. I frowned. How could they know how I felt!? They had no idea!!!

Five weeks went by until I had enough. I ventured outside without anyone knowing. It was still snowing. I hated it. It reminded me too much of that day.

I went to our favorite place; a bridge by the docks. We would often stand there, watching the boats when they arrived. We used to discuss where they had been, what they had onboard ecc. Today it was only me and no boats were in sight.

It was cold. I was not dressed for that kind of weather but I didn't care. It was all meaningless without her.

I climbed up on the ledge of the bridge and looked down. It was a high drop, atleast 20 meters and where was ice and cold water below.

I looked out over the city one last time and remembered all our time together. Yeah, a life without her is not a life worth living. So I jumped.

"See you soon..."

I closed my eyes and prepared for the hit. But nothing happened. I opened my eyes. Everything was white all around me. Is this the afterlife, I thought. But then the light became weaker and I noticed other people around me. Two boys and two girls around my age. Where was I?

Suddenly a loud voice could be heard.

"Greetings, men and women of another world! My name is Wyen Ilyen Latverra II, the king of Latverra. We have summoned you here in hope that you can help us defend ourselves from the evils threatening our kingdom!"

...

What is this?