Monday, June 12th, 2017: 

Remember that bet we made back in October? That I'd never be able to listen to This Town without breaking down? (See what I did there?) Yeah, you were right. I cannot listen to that song without breaking down.

But I can't help it. All it does is make me think about you. And you're gone. I have no idea where you are. All I know is that you're somewhere in this world and you're happy no matter what. Not even tragedy itself could keep you locked up in this "sleepy town" as you call it.

I remember when we first became friends, you always told me about how when you graduated, you would leave this town the same night and bounce around from city to city, never letting yourself get situated in just one place. I thought you were being facetious. I didn't realize you were actually gonna follow through with it. But, I guess you have. 

You know how my mom always says the best way to get comfort your feelings is to write them down in notebook and lay them out where you can see them on your worst days. That's exactly what I'm doing, Ross.  

You didn't even stop before you left and say goodbye. What kind of friend are you? You could've at least left me clues to where you are like that girl did in that movie we always love watching. What is it called again? Oh right, Paper Towns. Why couldn't you have been more like Margo and left me clues? 

So here I am, writing to you with the utmost of my heart, hoping that maybe you'll get ahold of these before I leave for Connecticut at the end of the summer to go to Yale for college. And if this doesn't work, I don't know what will.  

But for now, let me get you caught up with the latest Los Angelean gossip. First off, remember when we were in your old treehouse, we always made these crazy bets? For one, I remember one of the most common bets we made is that your neighbor, Ellington (but we like to call him Ratliff in secret) would never work up the gumption to ask Rydel out.

Well guess what? He did. They're going out for Italian on Friday and we don't even get to make our little inside jokes about Rydellington, like we always do. 

Second of all. Speaking about that old treehouse, I hear that Stormie is having it torn down by the end of the month. So, if you wanna have one last memory with that old house in the trees, you better get home quick, because in the blink of an eye, it'll be gone. 

Last of all, your ex, Maia Mitchell is in town. Again. And she won't shut up about you. The way she talks about you, like she knows you any better than I do, I could just wipe that malicious smirk right off her face.  

I always did warn you about her. She's an annoying person and I still can't believe she was the one who did the breaking up not you.  I mean, you always did plan on breaking up with her, you just didn't wanna hurt her feelings, that is, until she hurt yours when she broke up with you. I still don't understand what went wrong on her end, not that it's any of my business. I just wonder sometimes. 

I better get going. The pork-off with my family is tonight and I don't plan out on missing free bacon and pork. So, au revior until the next time I get into my journal. The smell of a roasting pig is flying up to my bedroom. 

- Laura S. Marano