We've Proven Our Love Over Time So Strong.

I woke up with a horrible pain that felt like it was eating me from the inside out. I felt nauseous. This was the day. The day that I had been dreading. When I rolled over, I saw that Brian wasn't there. I caught the faint smell of breakfast food cooking as I got out of bed and headed downstairs. I caught sight of guitar cases and luggage stacked neatly by the door as I went into the kitchen. He was there, cooking.

“Morning,” I said, sitting at the table.

He smiled towards me. “I thought you weren't gonna wake up,” he laughed. “You slept like a baby last night.”

I had nothing to say, but I knew the grin on my face showed my agreement. Words came shortly after as I rested my head on the table. “Except for feeling like shit when I remembered what today was,” I grumbled.

“I know, but it'll be fine because the time will fly by.”

I nodded as he set a plate down in front of me. After breakfast, we got dressed and ready to leave. After making sure his place was prepared for being untouched, we packed his car and took off to my place. As we were getting closer, my sadness was getting harder to hide. I didn't budge when we pulled in my driveway until he opened my door. I leaped out of the seat and into his arms, holding on tightly as I began to cry. “I don't wanna do this,” I said.

“I know, baby, I know.” He held me against his solid frame, trying to comfort me. “But if we're going to make this work, we need to accept this and believe that it'll be fine. If we have confidence in our relationship, then everything will work out.”

I couldn't speak so I just nodded, still crying into his chest.

“I never want to do this either. Trust me. I have to get going now, and I know you do too. I promise that I'll write you everyday when I get the address, and let me know when your graduation is, and I'll be there..”

I nodded again. “Alright.”

“I believe in you, and I know that you can do this. It's something that a lot of people can't do, and you can prove to them that you're better than they are. You're sacrificing a lot by this, and I think it's great. When I found out, I gained so much respect for you.”

“I know.”

“And even though we'll be apart for a while, our time together will be just that much more special.”

I finally mustered up a smile. “You're right.”

He still held onto me tightly. “I may hide it well, but honestly, this is killing me too.”

I pulled from him and looked into his eyes, giving him a kiss. “I know. I guess you'd better get going so you don't miss your flight.”

He just nodded, and I could see his eyes brimmed with tears as well. He planted a kiss to the side of my head and hugged me. “I love you,” he whispered in my ear.

“I love you too.”

I gave him one last kiss and watched him walk away. I fought every urge and temptation to run after his car as he drove away. This was one of the hardest things I've ever had to deal with. I went inside to greet my parents and went to my room to pack the few things I'd bring before laying on my bed for the last time.

“You okay?” my mom asked.

“I'm going to Boot Camp, and I just watched Brian leave, not really.”

“You guys will be fine. There's a way to keep in touch with him right?”

“Yeah.”

My mom left me with my thoughts, and I texted Brian until he was boarding his plane. I said a last goodbye to him, then went to be with my parents for a while before we had to leave. The moment got more emotional again at the recruiting office when I was getting dropped off. Once I was on my own, a numbness washed over me. After getting to the hotel, I stayed in my room for the most part. I'd be there all night, wake up at four in the morning for breakfast, then leave for the processing station. There I would go through one last quick screening to see if we were ready to go. Then after swearing in, we would leave for the airport.

I was numb. I was in pain. I was questioning myself if this was the right decision. If I knew it wasn't, then I knew I wouldn't be sitting in this government vehicle. While being numb, I knew I was also excited to be doing something new. Once I arrived at the hotel, I went straight for my room and bed. I pulled out my address book and looked through it. I had everything I needed to hopefully be able to write to Brian. Something else caught my eye. A picture. I pulled it out and looked at it, almost instantly bursting into tears. One of his friends had taken a picture of the two of us comfortably curled up on his couch. He was awake, but I was asleep, and he was watching me. I then pulled out a piece of paper and wrote my first letter to send as soon as I could.

(#1 May 26th) Dear Brian,

It's only been a few hours, but I already miss you so much. I'm sitting at the hotel right now, and tomorrow morning I go to the processing station to do a last screening, swear in, and then I fly to Chicago to begin my adventure. I wish I had told you sooner about what I was doing, but I didn't think that we'd end up actually falling for each other. I guess it was because I hadn't expected it. After I'd been hurt, I tried to close myself off from the world, but you somehow managed to break that barrier down.

I don’t know when I’ll get phone calls while I’m there, but I’ll write every chance I get as well, and I will let you know when I’ll graduate. I’m excited about this because I’ll experience new things, but I will miss you so much. I will be so excited to see you on my graduation day. I’ll tell you everything that I do, every experience I encounter, every tear shed, every smile that I wear, and just everything.

I don’t know what else to say. Thanks for last night though. It was great. Something I’d never felt before. Something that I’ll never forget. Something that’ll make me want to see you even more. I’m just here relaxing now, decided to write the first letter. Times will be rough, but we will get through this. Love you.

Love, Lisa

After I finished the letter, I laid in bed watching some TV and trying to relax. I wasn't able to, so I wandered around the hotel a bit, grabbing a bite to eat and surfing the internet a bit. I logged into my Myspace account and posted a last bulletin saying goodbye to my friends for a few months. I did the same with my Facebook page too. Once I was bored with the internet, I went back to my room to try and fall asleep. It was only around seven, but I had to be up early and knew I'd be up for a long time, so I had to try and get as much sleep as I could. I couldn't get Brian off my mind, and how much I already missed him. I also couldn't get the fact that I loved him out of my mind either. We'd only known each other for barely a month, and we were already dating. I'd never jumped into a relationship this soon with any confidence, but I had a strong feeling that it would be okay.

I managed to fall asleep, but I slept uneasily, and the phone ringing at four in the morning scared he half to death. Groaning, I got up, got dressed, and went to try and eat some breakfast. Today was going to be a long day, and the one thing I wanted was to hear Brian's voice one last time to listen to him tell me that it would all be okay. The day dragged, and by seven at night, we were on a bus in Chicago heading for Recruit Training Command, or RTC for short. After a long few hours of processing in, getting the basic clothing items and changing, it was almost three in the morning when we were allowed to sleep in a real bed. Well, real to them. I laid on an inch thick pad with one pillow and an itchy wool blanket. I couldn't figure out what I was getting myself into, and I was scared.

As exhausted as I was, I couldn't fall asleep right away. I laid on my side, crying to myself. I wanted to be back with Brian, curled up in his arms, laying as he held me protectively. I knew I'd get to do so in a few short months, but I wondered if those few months would go by quickly, or if they would drag.