From that moment on, we were inseparable.
Noah was brilliant and funny, with a quiet kind of kindness that made people feel safe. He could turn the most ordinary moment into something interesting.
And most importantly, he never treated me like I was broken.
We grew up side by side.
Neither of us was ever adopted.
So we became each other’s family.
Leaving the Orphanage
When we turned eighteen and aged out of the system, the world suddenly felt enormous and frightening.
But we had each other.
We shared a tiny apartment near the community college. The building was old, the heating barely worked, and the furniture came from thrift stores and sidewalk giveaways.
But we made it ours.
Noah studied computer science. I worked part-time at a bookstore while attending classes.
Money was always tight.
We counted coins, stretched groceries, and celebrated small victories—like when we could finally afford a secondhand couch.
Somewhere along the way, our friendship turned into something deeper.
One evening, after a long day of classes, Noah looked at me and said quietly:
“I think I’ve loved you longer than I realized.”
I smiled.
“Me too.”
For illustrative purposes only
The Proposal
See more on the next page
