Aria's Story

~ Chapter 27 ~

It was finally graduation day. The last few years of high school have went by so fast that it was hard to process everything. I lost friends, I gained friends, I lost my sister due to a car accident, I gained back my relationship with my parents because of it, and most of all, I got the opportunity to be with the most amazing and supportive guy for me. I got Hunter, and he's been the main reason to why I've been the happiest I've ever been lately. He has seriously been there to pick me up through everything and I am so thankful for him. High school was officially over, and I will forever keep the memories inside me.

I watch as Mr. Stephens calls people on to the stage to get their diplomas, and I notice how each person here has people there rutting for them. Today is going to be a long day and a really good day. It's supposed to mark the last day of our high school career and it marks the beginning of the rest of our lives, scary right? I somehow was remaining calm while others were crying in joy and sadness. 

"Please welcome our valedictorian, Nicole Parker!" I get up the same time Nicole did and I went to give her a big hug, smiling at her with so much pride and greater. I am so happy for my best friend, she truly deserves this. I pull away from her and wipe the tears that were already threatening to fall. Nicole walks up to the stage and walks over to the principal, giving him a tight hug. When she pulls away, you can instantly see tears in her eyes. She smiles at the crowd of people and I can tell she wasn't going to be done crying for quite a while and I think she's okay with that since it was the final day we would see most of the people we usually did everyday.

"Oh gosh," She starts, wiping the tears from her eyes, "I never thought this day would come. I've been dreaming of this day for as long as I can remember but I never thought it would actually come true. It did, and I am so blessed and thankful for it," She stops suddenly and looks right at me, "I couldn't have done any of this without the crazy support of my best friend and my best guy friend so thank you, Aria and Hunter."

Hunter looks at me and puts his hand in mine, smiling at me in pure happiness. I lay my head on his should while listening to Nicole's incredible speech, "The beginning of our lives are waiting for us and when we are done here today, we will officially be a part of it. I know it's scary but I know all of you will succeed in whatever you decide to do with your life," I look down, trying my best to ignore the fresh tears that were falling, "Thanks to everyone at this school, we got the education we needed and we are now ready to move forward in life. We should be thankful to everyone who has helped us in any way, they have helped you get here. We are prepared to move on and face whatever challenges that are coming our way in the future."

She stops for a minute, just letting tears fall, not caring about what kind of looks she might get later,"Fellow graduates, I want you to know what a great gift it is to be as prepared as we are, because not all schools offer such an advantage. Here we have had a high degree of academic excellence and whether you intend to continue your education or not, you will benefit from what you learned here. Finally, we can be thankful for each other. The friendships that we have made here will last a lifetime. In the same way we have supported each other and helped each other succeed in these years here, I hope we will continue to provide support and encouragement for each other in future endeavors. Often on graduation day we look outside for heroes but I see them right here among us. I have seen in my years at Peterson that we don't have to look far for inspiration and that we each have the potential to make an inspiring contribution to others, by being true to our values and committing ourselves to lofty goals."

I watch her as she reaches the final few sentences of her speech, "When you leave here today, celebrate what you have accomplished, but look forward with an eye toward how you, too, can be the inspiration for others," She bows down to everyone and smiles in pure happiness, "Congratulations Class of 2015!" She makes her way off of the stage and back to me and Hunter, giving us hugs before sitting back down.

We all watch Mr. Stephens walk back to the center of the stage and continues to call on people. After what feels like hours, he stops and looks at me and Hunter, "I'd like you all to welcome to the stage, our Senior Prom King and Queen, and the couple that have been through so much together, Mr. Hunter Williams and Miss Aria McAndrew!" We get up and walk to the stage hand in hand, and we accept our diplomas. I hug our principal and I thank him, for everything he has done.

The graduation came to an end and we were basically all bawling our eyes out by then, and it was just a memorizing day. The future is the future and the only thing you should really pay attention to right now is the present. After four years of hard work, we had finally finished our high school career and now we are moving forward. With that said, Hunter and I decided to go to the park and talk about the future, about us.

Hunter comes up behind me and picks me, spinning me around and kissing me on the lips. I kiss him back, with all of the love and passion I can give him. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and push him closer to me, and I smile through the kiss, enjoying the moment we're having. He wraps his arms around my waist and wraps my legs around his waist as he kisses me deeper and more passionate than before.

Hunter has been my rock through everything and I'm really glad we get to spend the rest of our lives together. I just want him to hold me in his arms forever and never let me go. I want him to be mine, forever and always. I love everything about him and the way he looks at me, makes me believe that we are meant to be together and he just makes me feel so happy and special. I love him so, so much.

"So, babe," Hunter starts, sitting down next to me on the bench, sliding his hand into mine, "Did you bring your college acceptance letters with you, like we promised?" I nod my head and smile at him, "Good. I did too."

We both pulled them out and set them on our laps, taking a deep breath, in a way to wish us good luck. We both applied to one of the same colleges because we both really wanted to go there and then we have separate ones we applied for just in case we don't get into the college we wanted; The University of Pennsylvania. "Are you ready for this?" He asks me as we both grab the acceptance letter to that university.

We decided to take turns and Hunter was going to open his letter first. I watch him as he opens the envelope and scans the paper inside of if. After a minute of looking at the paper, his face brightens up and he smiles up at me and says, "I got in!" I hug him and give him kiss on the cheek. I walk back over to where I was and picked up my acceptance letter to the same University. I open the envelope up and scan the piece of paper in front of me. I scream in happiness while reading it from the paper, "I got in! I got in! I got in!" I run right into Hunter's arms. He gives me a kiss on the lips and I kiss him back, ignoring everything else around us.

After a while of discussing the future for college, we went to my house and sat down on my blue, comfortable bed. "I love you so, so much," I say to him as I give him a quick peck on the lips. He smiles down at me and grabs me by my waist, pulling me closer to him, "What are we going to do? About the baby? How are we supposed to take care of the baby and go to college?"

"I'm not sure but we'll figure it out, alright?" He says to me, looking me right in eyes, "We'll stick together. As long as we are together, everything will be okay. I will never, ever leave you, for anything or anyone. I love you, so much."

I smile and snuggle up to him, "I love you too."

I believe that everything will be okay because I will always have Hunter by my side and to me, that's all that matters. We are about to start a family and we need to stick together no matter what. He's everything to me and I know that with him, nothing bad can ever happen to us. We have each other and that's basically all that matters. We'll find what we need to get through and we'll be okay. I know just that.

I love that boy and he is all mine.