"Just be safe you two, okay?" 

Noelle and I had our bags packed and were about to leave to go on our road trip to her dad's house. Juan and my mom were slightly apprehensive about just the two of us going on the long drive, and Juan kept telling us to be safe, but I was just excited and ready to go. 

It was now the beginning of April. It seemed as though each month Noelle and I were together, we kept growing stronger. She was more than just my girlfriend, she was my best friend. I loved learning more and more about her as time went on. And not just the basics, that her favorite food was pizza and her favorite color was green- but how her mind worked, how she reacted to situations, and her aspirations. 

She had been spending pretty much all of her free time at my house. It was like we didn't want to be apart. I had this feeling inside of me- that was small at the moment- but I was fearful would keep on growing as it got closer to September- that our time was limited. Noelle was pretty much set on going to college in West Virginia, and I of course, would never try to stop her. It wasn't exactly even the fear that we would break up either- it was the fear of the unknown of having to be without her. Knowing that she was there, but she was seven hours away. Knowing that everything was about to change. It scared the fuck out of me, but I felt like it was something I shouldn't reveal to Noelle- at least not yet. I didn't want her to feel any guilt for doing what she wanted. 

Noelle was going to drive the first three and a half hours and I was going to drive the last half of the drive. We were leaving early- at 9 AM so we could get there at around 4-5 PM. We were going to be staying for three days- from Tuesday until Friday morning. 

"Are you okay? You seem apprehensive. I know you get nervous driving places you haven't before, but don't worry. It's literally nothing but open land out there and I will make sure you don't get lost." Noelle put her hand on my knee as she drove with the other and smiled at me. 

"I am nervous about that, but I also just hope your dad likes me." I smiled at Noelle. I was slightly lying about this. I was getting nervous about asking Noelle if it could be a possibility that I could move to West Virginia after a year- and I was also just feeling apprehensive about how far it was- and knowing that was how far Noelle was going to be from me in months. 

How you know that the person you're dating is right for you- you can spend close to seven hours with them in a car and not get bored or antsy. And when you freak out about getting lost, they drive the rest of the way. Both of which happened with Noelle. Somehow driving that long while with her did not get boring and I did not get annoyed at her- which I knew I would have with anyone else. 

"We are getting super close." Noelle said, as we drove in what looked like the absolute middle of nowhere. We had just passed an very small shopping center- I mean with like four stores- a liquor store, small food mart, hair salon, and paint store. 

"I cannot believe you grew up around here." I said, looking out the window. "Did you not go-"

"Stir crazy? I absolutely did." Noelle said, "I often had to create my own fun. That's not a problem where we live now. Maybe it would be different if it wasn't with my mom there, but I do find myself actually missing how open it is around here." 

"I get that." I agreed, "I honestly could never live in the city or anything like that. I would much prefer a big house with a lot of land." 

"Maybe we will have that one day." Noelle smiled at me. 

Anytime she mentioned future plans, it always made me feel happy inside. Hopeful. But also nervous- because I knew if those things didn't happen, I would feel crushed. 

There were three houses in a row, all pretty far off from each other- off of the road we were driving on. They were fairly large houses, and the third one, which was Noelle's father's house, was white with red shutters. There was a long driveway that led off the road to the house. It looked tiny placed in the middle of the green grass that seemed to go on forever. 

"We're here." Noelle said, pulling into the driveway. 

"Wow. I can't believe I am actually here- in the house you grew up in." I said, looking at the long porch that was in the front with a swinging bench. 

A tall, nice looking man with light brown hair and glassed emerged from the house excitedly, like a little kid about to run through a candy store. A woman who looked a bit younger than him with long strawberry blonde hair and a blue sundress on followed in suit. 

Noelle got out of the car and I followed in suit. The man came over and gave her a massive hug. 

"I've missed you, Noey." he said. 

As the two of them hugged, the woman came up to me and wrapped me in a hug as well. 

"You must be Harley. It's so nice to meet you, I'm Mary, Noelle's stepmom." she said. She smelled like lavender and lemon. 

Noelle broke away from her dad and went to go give Mary a hug. Even though Noelle's dad married Mary pretty quickly after he divorced Noelle's mom, Noelle had grown to like Mary a lot over the year- and I could see why. She was already a dream compared to her mom. 

Noelle's dad came up to me and gave me a hug. "It's so nice to meet you, Harley. I'm Ed." 

"It's really nice to meet you as well." I smiled at him. Noelle had his eyes- the exact unique color hers were, his were as well.

When we walked into the house, which was spacious and decorated in Southern farmhouse decor, two large golden retrievers ran over to us. Samson and Lucky. Noelle had told me all about those two dogs. She didn't grow up with them, but she met them over Thanksgiving. 

Mary and Ed prepared a dinner for the four of us that smelled and tasted delicious. They made roast chicken with lots of vegetables on the side. 

"These vegetables taste amazing. My mom would be very happy you're getting me to eat so many veggies." I said as the four of us ate. 

Ed and Mary laughed. "We grow all of our vegetables out in the backyard." Mary said, "They are fresh from the garden."

"Don't worry, we will send you home with plenty that you can share with your family." Ed added. 

Part of me now really understood why Noelle wanted to live close to her dad and Mary. It was a world of difference than her house back near me. She seemed so much more relaxed in this environment already. It made me sad to see now how tense she was back with her mom. 

"Harley, Noelle told me that you are going to be going to school to be a cosmetologist." Mary smiled at me, "That is what I do as well, I do hair as well as waxing." 

"No way!" I said, "It is what my mom does as well. I want to follow in her footsteps. College has never felt quite right for me, but doing hair and other beauty services does." 

"That's wonderful." Ed nodded, "Never feel pressured to go to college," 

"I'm only going because I have to. Can't exactly become an engineer without it." Noelle grinned at me. 

As we finished up dinner, Ed said, "Noelle, you and Harley should take a walk. Show her how you can see all of the stars around here at night." 

"It's amazing." Noelle said to me, "Let's go for a walk." 

It was. I felt such a sense of peace walking hand in hand through the grass with Noelle under the stars. It was simple around here- but there was beauty in this simplicity. As the two of us walked together in a comfortable silence I looked up at the stars and started to feel emotional, realizing that in September, Noelle would be under these stars and I would be seven hours away looking at the same sky, but not under it with her. 

Tears couldn't help but spring to my eyes. I was glad that Noelle couldn't notice as we walked in the dark. 

"Isn't it beautiful?" she asked me, as I tried to be as quiet as possible, tears, rolling down my face. 

"Yes." I nodded, trying to not have my voice sound shaky. 

But Noelle noticed that it was. She paused and turned to me. She looked at me intently in the dark. "Are you crying?" she asked me, concerned. 

"I wish I wasn't." I said, trying to force a laugh, but it made it even more obvious that I was crying. 

Noelle immediately pulled me in for a hug. "Oh my god, Harley. Why are you crying?" Noelle ran her hand down my back. 

"I don't even know exactly." I said, "It just kind of started really hitting me...how far apart we are going to be from each other." 

Noelle put her hands on my shoulders and looked at me. I could see her looking into my eyes, even in the dark. 

"Just know that even though I am very positive about us and that we will be okay, don't think that it doesn't make me extremely scared and upset as well." she said, "You are not alone. And I want you to tell me how you're feeling. Don't keep it in. Please?" 

I nodded, "I won't keep it in anymore. I promise." 

"Good." Noelle said, and took my hand. "I love you, Harley. Never forget that." 

And I knew I wouldn't. Even if we didn't work out.