Remember tonight, for it is the beginning of always

o1. it's been a crazy couple of years for us, hasn't it? i actually adore you, and now i remember why. we've put each other through so much, but at the end of it, we've become amazing friends and i wouldn't trade a single moment with you—the tears, the laughs, the late nights, the texts, and every single song. with you there are no pretensions; there are no mirrors. thank you for always being up for an adventure. SECOND CHANCE

o2. some people talk about bravery. you go out and live it, and i admire you so much for it. i'm scared for you and what the future holds, but i'm also beyond proud. keep in touch, because whenever you come home, i'll always be here to say hello. i love our lifechats across the miles; you may not be here in front of me, but nothing's changed. FEARLESS

o3. you have talent that some of us would kill for. that, coupled with a sincere humility and incredible humbleness, makes me admire you so much. you're the most naturally gifted person that i've met in this field, and i am so, so jealous. you have an entire world of potential at your feet. you inspire me just by existing; the fact that you're so good makes me want to do better. you are going to do great things someday. A LOGICAL MIND

o4. i don't want to hate you. it's not worth it, because i think that we could potentially be good friends. you are so much fun, but you need to watch how your words and actions affect others. CLASS ACT

o5. i never meant to hurt you. i'm sorry, because you gave me everything and i could not have asked for more. i care—so much—and i always, always will. you need to know that i will never forget the way that you turned my world around. i was yours at the perfect time. RAINFALL

o6. the world doesn't owe you anything. you're talented? a lot of people are talented. good intentions don't stand for anything. hard work makes all the difference; don't you dare ever forget that. PROVE IT

o7. who am i to you? i'm a real girl, and don't you forget it. i can't make up my mind about you. i'm only half joking when i say that you stand for everything that i hate, yet i like you as a person more than i intended, and more than i care to admit. i like that you're ambitious yet utterly unpretentious. conversation is a lost art, but you have got it down to a science. i'm charmed. SIX SECONDS

o8. i wish i could be there, looking out for you. he'd better not break your heart. i worry about you, but as long as you're happy, then i'm pleased. everyone deserves to know the butterflies. ANGELS

o9. you taught me a lot about life at a time when i was figuring everything out for the first time. and though i've grown up and learned a lot about the world and about myself and found that maybe we disagree on some things, i'll always carry your words with me. STAY BEAUTIFUL

1o. you have my heart. A CINDERELLA STORY

The Heart's Map

They were drunk.

But curiously enough, they hadn’t had anything to drink all night.

“What time is it?” she asked. 

He tapped his watch, its numbers glowing in the early morning darkness. “Five o’clock,” She winced, willing the time to pass slower—fighting dawn. 

They sat in silence, watching the moonlight glittering on the dark water. The city was occasionally bitingly cold despite the fact that it was July. She was still in her red tank top and skirt from last night— clothes that advertised her non-local status—topped off with his five-sizes-too-large-for-her cardigan. 

Like the tourist she was, she had arrived early at the bar, forgetting that the French were notoriously, fashionably late. She had found herself alone with only a scowling bartender and a stranger. The latter was playing the piano on stage, totally oblivious to her arrival—or the presence of anyone else around at all. She had turned away, feeling like an intruder on an intimate moment. 

But soon enough, she had found herself swept onto the dance floor by a stranger with an unapologetic grin and confident rhythm. She had been about to extricate herself, when she realized he was the boy from the piano. “I’ve been looking for you. I thought you’d left,” he told her in an American accent—a sound she had missed since leaving New York.  

And that was how Isabella and Felix found themselves walking hand in hand on the streets of Paris, drinking each other in. 

He was a summer student at Le Cordon Bleu. She was an American tourist. 

They were perfect strangers with captivating chemistry.

She would be on a flight halfway across the world in twelve hours. 

The summer air was breathtaking, yet the only way to breathe. They had watched as a Parisian night transformed into morning—a suffocating bar had turned into a patio—a dimly-lit coffee shop—a walk along the Seine. Felix asked her where she was from—and it escalated into each of them spilling their guts to a nearly perfect stranger; intoxicated. 

The sun was rising on the water, heralding another day. Isabella could feel their time together slipping away with every ray of daylight. How ironic that such beauty brought misery. She blinked back tears. She dropped his hand. Felix turned to her, millions of unanswered questions and unwritten promises in his eyes. 

“I don’t want to miss you,” she whispered. She leaned in, breathing him in, and kissed his cheek in one fleeting moment. 

“Wait—"

But she was gone. 

~

Felix walked the path to his temporary home. If he hadn’t been able to feel her unforgettable kiss, he would have wondered if it were a dream. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, missing the warmth of her touch. Startled, he pulled a scrap of paper from his pocket. 

7 Garden Street

America 

Meet me in the city that never sleeps.

Hopefully yours,

Isabella Laurentia