Well I made it through half of the school year without any incidents. But when mid- March comes along, I get the worst news ever.

When I get home from school on March 14th- pi day- and my mom is waiting at the table for me.
“Nike, I’m sorry,” she says. Uh oh. This isn’t going to be good. “We’re moving again.”

“WHAT?” I yelled. “WE CAN’T BE MOVING! IT’S ONLY BEEN 2 YEARS!”

“Yes, sweetie, and I’m sorry,” she repeated. “But I just feel the only place for you is where I spent the first 6 years of my life.”

“You mean we’re moving to Spain?” I ask. “We can’t! I can’t just leave my friends and my boyfriend!”

“I'm sorry, but I feel the only right place for you is in Spain,” my mom told me.

“But mom! I can’t leave!” I plead.

“Honey, I’m so sorry,” she said. “I know you’ve met some really great people, but you’ve also met some bad people. This school isn’t right for you. Lo siento mucho cariña.”

I start to cry; my mother cradles me in her arms. I couldn’t believe it. We were moving sooner than we ever had before. I knew I should get to like people. I’m really going to miss Rosie and Jess. How could I tell them I was moving away?

Finally I got the breath to say something to my mother. “When?” I ask.

“At the end of this school year,” she responded.

“I’ll still be able to communicate with all my friends, right?” I hope. I doubted it since I’m moving to another country.

“No la hija, Los siento,” she said. She speaks to me in Spanish when she’s upset.

I begin to sob again. I’ve only been at Stoneville High for two years, but it feels to me as if I’m leaving my entire life here. For once in my life, I had actually enjoyed one of my schools and now I had to leave it all behind and go to a completely different country across the ocean! How will I ever tell the people I’ve come to love?


The next day was hard for me. I tried avoiding Jess and Rosie, but they kept bothering me. At lunch, they finally asked me what was wrong.

“I’m moving again,” I finally tell them.

“What?” Rosie asked. “What do you mean you’re moving? Where to?”

“Spain,” I say. “My mother wants to find the best possible school for me and she says the only place for me is in Spain.”

“But you can’t leave me!” Jess says.

“I’m so sorry Jess,” I apologize. “I can’t help it. I didn’t think we’d be moving again until I graduated.”

“No, you’re staying with me!” Jess demanded, pleading me to stay.

“Los siento. I’m sorry. I can’t,” I say.

“But what about me?” Rosie asked. “What am I supposed to do? You promised you'd always be my best friend, Nike!”

“And I meant that,” I say. “I can’t help that I’m moving. It’s not my fault!”

“But you can’t just go!” Rosie repeats. “You promised me you’d always be my best friend!”

“Rosie-” I began.

“No Nike! Don’t even talk to me!” Rosie stormed off. I had accidentally hit Rosie in her weak spot.

“But Rosie, it’s not my fault!” I call after her. I turn to Jess. “You believe me, don’t you?”

“Well, of course I do,” Jess tells me.

“Good,” I say.

“But I can’t continue dating you if you’re going to be out of the country,” he continues. “I may as well break it off now. Nike, I’m breaking up with you.”

“But Jess, no,” I sobbed. “You can’t.”

“I have to,” Jess said. “I’m sorry but I’m not gonna say goodbye to you when you’re on a plane to another country forever. I’m doing it now as to where I’ll have time to get over you and feel nothing when you leave me. I’m sorry, Nike. I love you but I can’t do that.”

“Jess,” I wept for him, yet he had already sauntered off.

I wept the rest of the day. I couldn’t help myself. I wept and sobbed until I went to bed that night. My mother tried to comfort me- she was at it for an hour. But nothing would comfort my aching heart. My best friend is furious at me and my boyfriend just dumped me. I knew I shouldn’t have told them. It only made things ten times worse for me. I knew trying to make it right with Jess would be a waste of my time, but maybe I could get Rosie to at least speak to me again. I needed somebody to guide me through the rest of the school year. Right then and there, I realized why my life at all my schools had been so miserable. I needed a best friend.

The next day, I tried to get Rosie to at least speak to me. I met her at the morning locker break and in homeroom, but she refused to say a single word to me. Finally, I made up my mind. I had to break the locker schedule. If I meet Rosie when she can’t get away from me, she’ll have to talk to me. Since we can both afford tardies, I’ll just make her stay in the hallway after the bell rings.

I waited for her by her locker after 5th hour, her time to be at the lockers. She finally spoke to me for the first time today.

“It’s not your time to be here,” she snorts.

“Well I need to talk to you,” I say.

“Too bad,” she says. “I don’t wish to have an audience with you.”

“Rosie,” I say, stopping her from sauntering off like Jess did. “You know I meant what I said. If I could be your best friend forever, I would. If I had a choice on whether I wanted to stay or not, I’d choose to stay here. Since I don’t have a choice, I have to go. Rosie, I really do not want to break the promise I made you. I have to though.”

“Why don’t you just talk your mom into letting you stay here?” she questions.

“I tried all last night,” I lie. That’s the first time I've ever lied. It felt bad, but all I wanted was for Rosie to be my friend again. “She’s unbreakable on this. She wants me to move to Spain where she believes I can get an excellent education.”

“I guess I was kinda out of line yesterday,” she says in the softest voice I've ever heard her speak in. “Look, I know it’s not your fault and that you have to go. I was just being completely selfish. It’s just that, well, you knew that I couldn’t stand it when my ‘best friends’ aren't my best friends anymore. I guess I just felt like you were doing it on purpose, like all the others.”

“Remember what I told you on the second day of school last year?” I ask. “In detention?”

“We’re not like everyone else,” Rosie remembers. “I know. I just forgot. When you told me you were moving, I just forgot all of that.”

RRRIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGG!!!

“We should get to class,” Rosie suggests.

“Probably,” I agree. At least Rosie’s my best friend again. It makes me feel better. On our way to class, I told her how Jess broke up with me. It was painful thinking about it, but it made me feel better knowing that I had a best friend to tell it all to.

The end of the day came. Then the end of the year. It was all normal. Jess wasn’t in my life. He actually avoided me as much as possible. It’s understandable, since that’s what he told me he’d do and all. It still kinda hurt my feeling though. I still loved him. The last day of school was the worst, but it was still ok.

Right after school, Rosie and her mother came with me and mine to the airport. Rosie wanted to say her final goodbye right before I left forever.

“Well, this is it,” I tell her right before the plane.

“Yeah,” she responds. “Goodbye forever.” We hugged. I was really going to miss Rosie.

“All I ask of you Rosie.” I begin. “And you have to promise me.”

“Anything,” she said.

“Just remember me,” I tell her.

“Ok,” Rosie responds. “I will.”

Then I boarded the plane with my mother. I was off to Spain. Goodbye Rosie.