After Two Decades, The Boy Across the Street Knocked on My Door With a Secret

He stood there taller than me now, shoulders broad, but the way he shifted his weight from foot to foot was painfully familiar. For a moment, neither of us spoke. Then his voice cracked. “I’ve wanted to come back for a long time,” he said. “I just… didn’t know if you’d remember me.” I laughed through tears I hadn’t planned on shedding. “Dylan, I never stopped.”