Remembering Rae

When they told us the news I didn't cry. Everyone was crying, even the boys, except for me. I just sat in my mustard yellow seat, staring at the peach tree in the quad, remembering how she loved that tree with its low hanging branches that were perfect for climbing. I remembered her smell; rain, lavender, and fresh cut grass. I was remembering every detail of her long, lanky body. Every dimple, every freckle and every scar. She had been well liked. A hero to the nerds and a laugh to the cool cats. To me though, to me she was a savior. She was a saint, a shoulder to cry on, a hand to hold. When things started to get bad, she hid it from me. I had never seen this coming. To me, Rae Storm had been perfect. At least until the found her hanging from the rafters, her delicate neck swathed in tan, frayed rope. That day, I died a little along with her. I wasn't able to picture life without my Rae of Sunshine at that moment, she had always been so involved in my life. I looked up to see the Principal's mouth moving, but I heard nothing but the wind whistling through that damned peach tree. It was at that very moment when I decided to write a story of our life together, as tragic and joyful and wonderfully mad as it may be. This is not a particularly happy story, but it's my story. It's our story.