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Two Years Later

Juliana didn't realize how much she missed home until she drove down the street she grew up on. Though it seems to have been recently repaved, many memories have been made on this very street. Juliana and her sister learned to ride bikes in the middle of this street and had lemonade stands in their front lawn.

It's been a whole since she has been home. Attending a college a few states away, Juliana hasn't been able to come home for Christmas or New Year's. It was simply easier to stay in Georgia and spend the holidays with her friends' families.

The road trip home wasn't an easy one to make alone. With one night to rest in a motel in North Carolina, she was on the road for a long time. Energy drinks and bags of potato chips helped to make the trip easier.

It never felt so good for Juliana to simply be back home. That is, until, she looked directly across the street as she parked her car in the driveway.

A bunch of college-aged boys were on the front lawn, kicking a soccer ball around. Tanned, toned, and barefoot, they all seemed happy and carefree. For a hot second, Juliana wondered if Anders was still around. She only glanced at the group of boys and didn't recognize a single one of them. However, they all sported cowboy hats, so that's a promising sign that Anders is home.

Juliana sighs, slinging her backpack on one of her shoulders before climbing out of the car. Two years ago, she forgave Anders for kissing another girl, and two weeks later, he did it again. Juliana thinks he wasn't ready to have relationship commitments yet, so she ended their romance with a clean break. It was fun while it lasted, but it wasn't all that rewarding of an experience for her.

Juliana opens the truck of the car, and a bunch of boxes filled with clothes tumble out. "Hey, we'll help you out!" a southern voice yells from across the street. "Yeah!" someone else says.

Before she can even stop them, about five boys helps her pick up the boxes. "Thank you," she tells them all. "You can just stack them all in the living room. The door should be open already."

As the tall men disappear, Juliana slings her backpack on her back and grabs a box. "Howdy, miss," a familiar voice greets from behind her. Juliana turns around. Her eyes land on none other than Michael Anderson.

He's more refunded than he used to look, but he's still got that cowboy hat on his head. "Hello, Anders," she cordially greets, shifting her weight. "How are you doing?"

"I'm doing mighty well. How are you? I haven't seen you in a long time."

Juliana nods. "Yeah, that's because I go to school in Georgia now."

"Really? What school?"

"Georgia Tech."

Anders' eyes widen. "Wow, that's a terrific college. I go to Texas A&M, so I guess I wasn't all that far away from you."

"That's true, I guess. And I didn't know you decided to go back to Texas."

"Yeah, it feels more like home down there."

As the college boys pile out of the front door, Anders calls them over. "Boys, meet my neighbor Juliana. She just finished her sophomore year at Georgia Tech."

"Wow, she must be smart," one of the guys says. A bunch of them laugh, and Juliana has no idea how to interpret that reaction.

"What's your major!" someone else asks.

"Uh, biochemistry."

That makes them laugh even harder.

"Well where are you guys from, and what's your majors?"

They collectively yell "TAM-U!" and spit out a bunch of different majors at the same time. Juliana laughs, shaking her head. Boy, do they have a lot of energy.

Luckily, the boys were nice enough to help unpack the entire car while she was talking to Anders. It was nice, in her opinion, to catch up with him again. He knew how to keep her interested in the story and how to make her laugh. As much as Anders hurt her, it was good for her to get some closure.

Juliana is home for the summer, and she couldn't be happier. Though she'll definitely keep herself from being romantically involved with Anders. She's made that mistake far too many times, and she not going to make it again.

Love comes when the moment is perfect, and love goes slowly but surely. The love Juliana and Anders had for each other is long gone, but a cordial friendship has replaced it. Love like this, though, doesn't come around all that often.

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