Norman

The time had finally come.
The commute to college, while she didn't have to make it that often, was really taking a toll on the General. He was getting old. He couldn't handle the highways. He needed to retire from active duty, and spend his twilight years at her parent's place. In front of her sat her new used car. Her eyes glazed over it, and she glanced back at her old friend. Hey, at least her parents wouldn't sell it, just keep it in the driveway for hauling leaves and the sort. General Norman wasn't leaving forever. She gently placed her hand on the black hood and gazed absently inside the cab.
So much had happened in those two seats. Laughter, tears, self-realizations, and a whole damn lot of just thinking. General had seen people come and go, and even seen the few that had stuck around. She felt a lump in her throat. God, she loved that truck.
"Bye G. Norm," she muttered under her breath. "You've been great." As she watched the truck putter out of sight, her parents driving it back home, she almost shed a tear. With a deep breath, she turned to the new car. Hm, she thought. He looks kinda like a "Captain"...

Ryan

She was feeling incredibly lonely nowadays. It wasn't for lack of trying, she just couldn't get acclimated to this whole "college" environment. She'd always been just fine on her own, but this was getting ridiculous. Her laptop was open, and she got a instant message from one of her friends from her acting troupe. She hadn't seen him or talked to him in the past few months, so she replied to him, and they were chatting casually for a minute or two, just comparing college experiences and all. Suddenly, his tone changed. I need to tell you, he said, that I am very very very gay. She sat there for a second. Then laughed. She replied with a smiley and said yay! In her mind she said that she's known that for years. A strange mix of emotion, both nostalgic and longing, seeped into her mind. Longing because she missed him. And her acting troupe. It had always been difficult for her to fit in anywhere, and her troupe was one of the few places she knew she could be accepted. Nostalgia was a little harder to place. Even after she signed off, closed her laptop, and got ready for the evening ahead, she was still wondering where it had come from. Later that night, she realized. It was roughly a year ago when all this madness had started, and since then, so much else had changed. Once the confidant, now hardly any of them spoke to her. She had no idea how they were doing, much less how they felt about it. She sighed and figured well, I guess we're all growing up. Growing apart. Despite the turbulent rollercoaster she and her boys had gone through, she knew she wouldn't trade it for anything.