The love I kept

Chapter One Willowbrook Village was the kind of place where everyone knew your name before you had the chance to introduce yourself. It was small, surrounded by endless fields of green and narrow dirt paths that turned muddy whenever the rain came. The houses were modest, many with faded walls and rusted roofs, and most families survived by farming, selling produce, or doing whatever small jobs they could find. There wasn't much money in Willowbrook. But there was community. And there was a little boy named Adrian. At ten years old, Adrian Blackwood had already learned that life wasn't fair. His family had very little. Some nights, dinner was barely enough for everyone, and his mother often pretended she wasn't hungry so that Adrian could have more. Yet Adrian rarely complained. He was quiet, hardworking, and unusually determined for a child his age. But there was one thing that could always make him smile. Amara. "Adrian!" He turned at the sound of her voice. Amara came running down the narrow path, her sandals kicking up little clouds of dust. Her long hair bounced behind her as she hurried toward him, holding something carefully in her hands. Adrian's face immediately brightened. "What took you so long?" Amara stopped in front of him, trying to catch her breath. "My mother sent me to help at the market." "You could have told me." "And how exactly was I supposed to tell you when you ran away before breakfast?" Adrian frowned. "I didn't run away." "You did." "I walked." Amara burst into laughter. Adrian tried to remain serious, but her laughter was contagious. Within seconds, he was laughing too. They had grown up together. Their houses stood only a few doors apart, and neither could remember a time when the other wasn't part of their life. They shared everything. Food. Secrets. Dreams. And sometimes, when their families had enough money, they even shared sweets. That afternoon, they walked toward their favorite place a large old tree at the edge of the village. It was their secret place. Nobody else went there often, so they had claimed it as their own. Amara sat beneath the tree while Adrian dropped beside her. "What do you want to be when you grow up?" she asked. Adrian looked at her. "A rich man." She laughed. "You're serious?" "Very." "Why?" "Because I don't want my mother to worry about money anymore." Amara's smile softened. She understood. "My father says money doesn't make people happy." "Maybe." Adrian picked up a small stone and tossed it into the grass. "But it can make life easier." Amara was quiet for a moment. Then she smiled. "I think you'll become rich." Adrian looked at her. "Really?" "Yes." "How do you know?" "Because you're stubborn." He laughed. "That's your reason?" "Yes." She leaned against the tree. "You're the most stubborn person I've ever met." Adrian smiled. "Then you'll have to stay with me." Amara looked at him curiously. "For how long?" "Forever." She laughed again. "Forever is a very long time." "I don't care." He reached into his pocket and pulled out something small. Amara's eyes widened. It was a little silver locket. It wasn't new. The metal was slightly dull, and one side had a tiny scratch across it. "My mother gave me this," Adrian said. Amara carefully took it from his palm. "It's beautiful." "I want you to have it." Her eyes widened. "Me?" Adrian nodded. "Keep it." "Why?" "Because..." He hesitated, suddenly embarrassed. "Because you're my best friend." Amara smiled. "I'll keep it forever." Adrian held out his little finger. "Promise?" She hooked her finger around his. "Promise." Neither of them knew then how important those words would become. They were only children. They didn't know about heartbreak. They didn't know about wealth. They didn't know that life could separate two people for years and make them strangers. All they knew was that beneath an old tree in a tiny village called Willowbrook, they had each other. And for a little while, that was enough. But life had already begun writing a different story for them. One neither of them could see coming.