So Long Astoria

Lucas is in his bedroom packing up his belongings getting ready for his big move to his new house. His best friend Jimmy is with him giving him a hand. “So this is it, eh Lu?” Jimmy asked. “Yep, this really is it” Lucas responded. “I had a lot of times here in this old place. A lot of good times and a lot of bad. Lucas looked around the bedroom reflecting on all of his memories.

He thought about the day he first moved in: it was a warm Friday summer night just a mere week after he graduated high school in June of 2011. He was exhausted after moving for a whole day and ended the night by hooking up his tv, plugging up his DVD player and watching his series collection of the movie Final Destination. The present date and time was August 25th, 2024. Jimmy was taking some of the boxes from his room down stairs to his car.

On the way down he thought a lot about the time he almost got evicted from his apartment, but everything worked out in a nick of time and he was able to rest. Lucas laughed to himself while reminiscing on the past. He remembered all the times that made him afraid, as well as the times that made him shed tears. “I know what you’re thinking” Jimmy started. “Was it all worth it Lu?” “As a matter of fact, it was” Lucas answered. “Though the hard times brought me a lot of pain, I learned and grew from all the pain I went through. It was all a big lesson I needed to learn.”

“You really have grown” Jimmy added. As they put the last couple of boxes in the trunk of Jimmy’s jeep Jimmy hopped in the driver’s seat and cranked up his ride. Lucas paused for a brief moment and then started walking back up the stairs to his now vacant former apartment. “Where you goin, Lu?” Jimmy called out. “Just one more thing I gotta do and I’ll be right back” Lucas responded. Lucas made his way back into his former apartment and went into his former bedroom, slowly taking one last looked around.

While examining this room that was no longer his he thought about all the great times he had in this space. He thought about the day he came home and hung up his associates degree and while he sported his cap and gown. He also thought about the day the love of his life kissed him while sitting with him on his bed and telling him she loved him for the first time. Lucas smiled to himself thinking about these great times. He knew through all the good and the bad he was thankful for every moment he experienced in this small space because it helped him grow into his best self.

As Lucas turned around and grabbed the handle of the room door he took one look around the room and with a slight smile he was happy to be moving forward, but he also knew that he was going to miss this small room that was a safe space for him for over a decade. After one final hard look he closed the room door and headed out the front door. When he made it back to Jimmy’s truck and hopped in the passenger seat.

“Did you find what you were looking for?” Jimmy asked. “Yeah, as a matter of fact I did” Lucas answered while looking up at his former home with a smile. “So long, Astoria” Lucas thought out loud. “No matter what, we’ll always have our memories.”