Free Bruno by Stephanie Pokorney

things like rainstorms, burnt cookies, and broken vases. At the top, written in bright red paint, were the words “LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL.” Written directly below, in a slightly smaller printer, was “In remembrance of Bruno Castino – who always knew and appreciated just how beautiful life is.”
    Melanie’s voice is in my ear, her hand around my waist. “It’s gorgeous,” she says.
    “It’s amazing,” says Sam.
    “It’s out of this world,” says Kevin and Kyle in unison.
    “It’s beautiful,” I say.
    The music starts up and the crowd disperses around the room. I dance with Melanie and other girls from the cheer squad that I had recently become closer with again.
    Between songs, Tim finds me lingering around the snack table. Melanie told me a couple days ago while we were getting our hair done that she had heard Tim was taking Adrian. She wanted to make sure I was going to be okay with it. I hadn’t thought about Tim since that day in the mall. It seemed so long ago. I really wished the best for him and Adrian. I’m not just saying that either, everyone deserves to be happy and to love and be loved in return.
    “I’m sorry about Bruno,” he says, filling a cup with punch. He hates punch.
    “Thank you,” I say, taking a small cupcake and stuffing it in my mouth. I hate cupcakes.
    He pours the punch back into the bowl. I spit the cupcake out into a napkin.
    “I knew you loved him, Saige,” he says, looking into my eyes for the first time in two years.
    “You knew?” My voice is weak.
    “I knew when you knew, even if you didn’t want to know. I saw the way you looked at him, even if you tried to tell yourself that you were looking past him. I knew Saige, but I didn’t want to know. I wanted to keep pretending that you loved me and we were supposed to be together. Bruno taught me things, too, ya know. You can pretend for a long time but you can’t pretend for forever. And when you stop pretending, that’s when life’s truly beautiful.”
    Adrian rounds the corner, heading for the snack table. She is stopped by Melanie and two other girls on the cheer squad. Adrian is smiling so I’m sure they’re talking about something of interest to her. Probably about her trip to Paris she’s been bragging about since Valentine’s Day.
    “Adrian’s coming,” I point out to Tim.
    He glances over his shoulder, not bothering to really look.
    “I know I’m not the one for you,” he continues, “and I know you think Bruno was. I don’t have a right to say anything, but I will anyway. Love is forever. Everyone lives their life in search of only one person to love forever. But our hearts are so big they were meant for loving more than one. You don’t just have one love per lifetime, Saige. You’ll love again. You’ll love yourself to death. Then, after you die, you’ll be the most happy in the most beautiful place because you’ll have every single person and every single thing you’ve ever loved in your whole entire life.”
    I stare into his blue eyes. They look sad and happy at the same time.
    “I’ll always love you, Saige, just like you’ll always love Bruno. Love doesn’t have a limit. Love is forever and love is a lot.”
    Adrian appears beside him. A smile is forever plastered on her face. For the first time I really look at her. Her hair is darker than it was in the fall. Maybe life finally decided she was meant to have brown hair after all. Her freckles are covered by pounds of makeup, but her eyes can’t cover up her inner soul. She’s pretending, too. I can tell. One day she’ll stop pretending, just like I did. Then she’ll really be happy. I make a mental note to speak with her in private later, offering a friendly ear if she ever needed it. Tim and Adrian turn, heading back to the dance floor. Tim doesn’t look back. He doesn’t have to. I’ll forever be in his heart, the way Bruno will always be in mine.
     
     
    “Are we going to see roses? Are we going to see lakes? Are we