In the time of innocence untainted,
With lips untouched and nails unpainted,
Living in a world we both created,
…I met you by the slide.

Then the soccer ball began to roll,
Our only thought was making goals,
No knowledge of peer pressure or birth control,
Because the games we played were safe.

Spending years away from you,
We changed our looks, but somehow knew,
Call it intuition or déjà vu,
We recognized each other.

You were adored for your natural beauty,
I was applauded for hilarious comedy,
An equal yearning for gaining maturity,
Separated, we grew together.

Exchanging stories of the boys on our minds,
Shows and movies we knew line by line,
Improvements in grades and in clothes (mostly mine),
We were closest at the end.

The hug good-bye was genuine and strong,
Though I whispered, “Don’t forget me”, I knew you were gone,
Days and weeks and months went on,
High school was over.

Different paths that intertwined,
Honestly, you never crossed my mind,
Until I needed you for a time,
I called you and you answered.

Even now it’s the same routine,
Love ya, see ya, until you need me,
If years from now, you get the machine,
Say “It’s Laura.” And I’m there.