MOST MIXED-UP NON-DELINQUENT ON THE BLOCK

i love you when: you lay and let me pretend that it is you who needs comforting, not me for my disasterous portrayal of a daughter. when you listen without comparing or interrupting or telling me i'm wrong, and offer me one of your favorite cookies when i'm done. when you drive me downtown and we split a pizza for dinner. when you don't go downtown by yourself like you used to because i can't come and so you don't want to go. when you let me sit on your lap as we listen to music and i show you new webcomics. but mostly i love you when you hold on to me like you will never let me go.

i promise: i promise to never tell you i love you. i promise to pretend to not care about your ex-girlfriends. i promise to have a life outside of "us," and to not flip out when you leave town. i promise to come visit for a day this summer, and i promise to dress so your mother will like me. i promise to not break up your relationship with your best friend. i promise to not make fun of your town more than you. i promise to at least pretend i want to talk to you every time you call. i promise to call you back. i do not promise to leave you a message. i promise that if you bring something to my attention, i will care about it. i promise to attach silly meanings to things we have done together. i promise to support your work, and you, and make sure you eat, occasionally. i promise to never lie to you.

here's to leather couches, grayscales, and golden paint. to studios, final projects, plexiglass, and math. to rumors, to friends, to family. to audis that break down, and volvos that never do. to beds, coffee, more coffee, and ihop. to memories that will last a lifetime. to girlfriends, to parties, to new boyfriends, and to ex-girlfriends, as sad as that may be. here's to archi-torture, to never getting enough sleep, lasercutters, breaking up, and shutting down. here's to computer labs, getting trashed, making out, and waking up. here's to first fridays, art displays, chargrill, and napkins, please. here's to best friends, and here's to roommates. here's to movie nights, popcorn, late kisses, and new music. here's to umbrellas, drives home, and pretty random phone calls. here's to never knowing what we want to do or where we want to eat. here's to the future. here's to the nights we felt alive.