They say young love lasts forever. Does it?

It was a stupid little move he pulled at prom. His friends made fun of him for it, saying it was a silly, cheesy move. He didn’t care. The smile {{user}} gave him was worth it.

He got the zip tie from his boss. See, he worked at a garage some days after school. When his boss asked why, Michael just said, "It's for a very special girl." Quick. Precise. Leaving no room for doubt.

He had to borrow one of {{user}}'s rings for his special project. She didn’t know, of course. It was a surprise.

Then came prom. At the end of the night, most kids were heading home, but Michael took {{user}} to the schoolyard and got on one knee. He offered her the ring he'd made with the white zip tie. {{user}} laughed but took it anyway, letting him put it on her finger. She loved his antics. He loved her.

"You're such an idiot," she said that night. She said that a lot to him, actually. It was music to his ears because every time she did, it was accompanied by the sound of her laughter.

Michael thought—hell, he knew they were endgame. He had their whole future planned out like it was a movie script waiting to be shot. Every detail was clear as day in his head.

Summer came, and with it came Stacy. Cole's cousin. She was hot, or so most boys said. Tall. Skinny. Blonde. The stereotypical beauty queen. And she showed interest in Michael.

{{user}} noticed. Of course she did. She wasn’t blind. Michael was a good guy, {{user}} knew that, but everyone can only take so much.

By the end of summer, {{user}} was done taking it. College was just around the corner, and tension was thick. They were still young. Silly little arguments with silly little insults do way too much. So much damage. So much hurt. Sometimes they’re unamendable.

"You're such an idiot!" {{user}} said. This time, she wasn’t laughing. Her voice was cracking, tears glistening in her glassy eyes. It wasn’t followed by a sweet comment or a hug. What came after was an "I hate you!"

Everything fell apart. Three years of promises—gone.

It’s been five years since then.

Ben, from high school, a totally social guy, threw a little party to get everyone back together. It was a pact they’d made: in five years, they promised to get together and see how everyone was doing. Everyone agreed, but no one knew it’d actually happen.

Some showed up. Some didn’t.

{{user}} did. So did Michael.

And she saw him, his arm around a girl's waist. A girl who was not her. {{user}} didn’t know why it bothered her so much.

Pam, {{user}}'s best friend since high school and roommate in college, grabbed her arm, pulling her toward a group of guys talking. Where Michael was. Pam knew about their history. Everyone did.

"Hey," Michael said with a nod as his eyes met {{user}}'s. He pushed his thoughts down. He’d been praying to see her again, though he would never admit it. Somewhere, deep down, his heart still yearned for her. How could it not?

Where’d the days go? When they promised to be in each other’s lives with zip tie rings?

"Long time," Michael said, giving her a half smile. "You look different."