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July 27th, 2022

Dear Cami,

Happy 19th Birthday! I wonder what you are up to today. Are you at the library doing something cool with the kids? I always loved that about you, you are the coolest girl I’ve ever known! I hope you end up eating chocolate cake, I know it’s your favorite. Maybe I'll go to the store and get a cake too, in honor of your birthday. Wherever you are, I hope you are being spoiled.

Also, congratulations on graduating from high school a few months ago. I saw the picture of you with Ivy in your cap and gown. You looked beautiful and so happy. I should have texted you to congratulate you. I just didn’t want to hurt you or upset you on your big day. There have been so many times I’ve picked up my phone to text you.

Anyways, Colorado has been good for me. The mountain air is so clean and refreshing. I started hiking to help rehabilitate my knee. Every day I push myself further and further. I started journaling and taking pictures on my hikes, documenting what I see and feel. It’s been healing. I smiled the other day, for the first time in a long time. I think I’m going to start a travel blog. It’s the first time I've felt a spark since the accident, so maybe this is what I'm supposed to do with my life. Anyways, I miss you, and Happy Birthday. I love you, always.

Drew

My hands shuffle through each handwritten letter. I’ve laughed, and I've cried. I can’t believe he’s been writing to me for years. I pick up a beautiful postcard, with clear blue waters and sprawling green mountainscapes.

May 11th, 2023

Dear Cami,

Hello from Bali! It’s beautiful here, the photo on this postcard is exactly my view as I write this letter to you. A big-time travel magazine has noticed my blog. They are paying me to go on trips. Who would have thought someone would be interested in my pictures and my words? Not me! For the first time in so long, I feel like I'm finally finding myself again. I just wish you were here so I could tell you my good news. That's the only downfall: it gets so lonely, not having anyone to share this with. But no matter where I am, I like to climb on my roof and watch the stars. It makes me think of you. Do you still sit on your roof? Or did you move out on your own? I wonder where you are and what you're doing. I hope whatever it is, you are happy. I miss you, and I love you, always.

Drew

January 18th, 2025

Dear Cami,

Cooper called. He told me you just completed your Master's in Library Science and you’ve landed the head librarian position at our local library. I’m so damn proud of you, I cried when we got off the phone. My heart still aches for you, Camille. There isn't a day that goes by when you aren’t on my mind. I thought I was freeing you to live a life unburdened by my broken pieces. But I’m starting to think maybe I got it all wrong. I love you so much it makes it hard to breathe, and leaving you behind was the stupidest thing I’ve ever done. I would do anything to come home, if it meant I got a redo.

Drew

A fresh sob escapes me, pressing my hand against my ribs where my heart is hammering. He had been there. Behind my greatest achievements, the man I thought had abandoned me was weeping from thousands of miles away.

February 14th, 2026

The day I found out I’m going to see you again.

Dear Cami,

Happy Valentine's Day! I hope someone is showering you with love today. Cooper and Ivy called, and it looks like the wedding is set for August. Six months. I’ll be honest, I’m terrified. I’ve pictured what it would be like to see you again, to see you as an adult now. Six years have passed between us. I’ve been a coward. I never should’ve let it go this long without talking to you, without giving you an explanation. I hope when I see you, you’ll give me a chance to explain, but if you don't, I understand. I know I don't deserve it. As always, I love you, and I miss you.

Drew

I pick up the last letter, only dated a few days before we ran into each other at the airport. My chest tightens as I unfold the paper, realizing this was the headspace he was in right before he stepped back into my life.

August 13th, 2026

Dear Cami,

My hands are shaking just writing this out. My bags are packed, and my flight leaves in forty-eight hours. I’ve kept these letters with me through all my travels for the last five years. I decided I'm going to bring them. I am terrified that when you look at me, all you’ll see is the boy who broke your heart and walked away. I’m so scared to see the hurt in your eyes. If I get the courage, I’ll give them to you. If I don't, I’ll leave them with Cooper or your Mom to give to you when I'm gone. I don't know what the wedding week will bring, Cami, but I do know one thing: my heart has belonged to you since I was sixteen, and it’s stayed with you ever since.

Drew

A shaky, breathless laugh escapes my lips through the tears. He had been just as terrified as I was. He had been carrying these love letters around the world, waiting for the right moment, only to leave them in my mom's hands when the goodbye at the airport proved too hard to bear.

I pull the entire stack of pages tightly against my chest, closing my eyes. For the first time in a week, the suffocating anxiety is completely gone. He loves me, he’s always loved me, just like I’ve never stopped loving him. It feels like the weight of the world has been lifted from my shoulders.

I carefully slide the letters back into the worn envelope and tuck it safely into my bag. Taking a deep breath to steady my shaking hands, I leave my desk and head straight to the women's restroom.

I look in the mirror. My eyes are bloodshot from the tears that just washed away the pain of my past. I turn on the faucet, splashing cold water over my face to cool my cheeks.