Then, I was consumed by you.

Now, I have forgotten you.

Every girl has a love story, whether it is a good one, a bad one, or one that never actually existed. We latch onto what we cannot obtain as easily and it begins to eat away at our insecurities. We look back at the things that broke us a part and realize we learned and grew from them. We realized we deserve better.

So, to the boy who wasted my time and was never worth it to begin with, this is a formal thank you. Thank you for not staying. Thank you for not caring, because now I know that I am someone who deserves to be cared for. Thank you for being a bad friend, because now I know the kind of friends and people I want to remain in my life. Thank you for making me fight for you, only to lose and realize what priorities I should be fighting for. Thank you for making me feel like a moron every time you came back and hit me with "I miss you," because now I've returned with a vengeance of words. Thank you for realizing I am too real for you to handle. Thank you for being an incompetent ass, because now I know I deserve an aspiring, intelligent man.

Never again will I settle for being second in a man's life. Never again will I let someone control how I view myself. Never again will I stunt myself for a guy who refuses to watch me bloom. Never again will I let someone's negative clouds consume my positive rays of light.

Girls in this generation have a tendency of letting boys control their thoughts and how they feel about themselves, only adding to their insecurities and taking away from how truly beautiful they are inside and out. I have been one of those girls. I have seen the darkest days where I thought I would never get over the boy who walked away, but here I am today filled with confidence in sharing my story, because I know I am not alone. I share my experience to plead with young girls and women who have felt what I felt, and to remind them not to let someone's negative words and unloving actions depict how you see love. Most importantly, I beg that you always put yourself first because you matter.

To the boy who walked away, there are so many things that I want to say to you. I will make it short. When you find a girl who looks past all your negativity and pushes you to be a better person, keep her. If she cares for you even when you break her heart, keep her. If she stays up until the middle of the night with her phone on loud to save you from the drunken escapade you most definitely got yourself into that night, keep her. Put your ego aside because it will not last a lifetime, but a good girl who cares for you and wants to love you will.

When all you do is push a girl away, and she is smart enough to turn it into nothing but a lesson learned, keep her.