For starters, thank you.

Thank you for opening my eyes to the real world. You made me realize that first loves aren't always your only, even though I wanted you to be. We were best friends. We texted all day long on my green slide-up phone with a fancy keyboard and you had your purple sidekick (yes, I do remember this perfectly). We would play "21 Questions" and end up asking if we liked each other. Of course we said yes. This all started because of middle school. Meeting you in middle school, having you close to my locker, looking at each other in the hall ways but never saying a word; yet this was the turn out.

I never thought I would experience love the way I did. Many people are going to react by saying I don't know what love really is but in reality, I experienced love for four years during high school. I fell in love with somebody who was my best friend prior to those four years. On August 11, I lost my best friend for good. I never expected it, and it broke my heart like no other.

You left me when I needed you the most. Even though I begged you to stay because of how bad I THOUGHT I needed you, you just wanted to let go. I had to learn to accept it. I didn't think I could ever get over the thought of you being gone or you ever leaving. I expected us to be forever. Forever is a long time but when you are in love, everyday goes by so much faster when you have somebody by your side at all times. I don't regret having you by my side. I regret wasting my time on somebody who I thought loved me and would never hurt me the way that you did.

I remember the last day I saw you to this day almost a year later. I wish it wasn't the last, but it was. It was the last time I looked you in the face. The last time I got a kiss from you. The last hug. The last everything.

What you did for me was open my eyes and make me realize that the first love is important, but somebody else will come around to remind me what love is again.

If somebody asked me right now what my experience with love is, I wouldn't have the best answer because it would be about you. But when we did love, our love was indescribable in the best way. I never felt sad. I was always happy just looking at you and staring into your eyes and sharing a kiss with you. My favorite part is when people would say: "You're perfect for each other." But now look.

People come and go every day, it is a part of life. I learned to remind myself that even when people say they will never leave, they actually might if you don't treat each other correctly. My relationship of four years was full of memories, but unfortunately, the bad overpowered the good. In four years, we had plenty of laughs and plenty of tears. Times were harder than others but in all honestly, I don't regret it one bit.

You opened my eyes for me to realize that every relationship does have a lesson. You taught me to let go - let go of what I thought was real to the both of us.

You opened my eyes to the fact that one person can't play both sides of a relationship. I tried to love for the both of us and it was just too hard.

Going back almost a year later, I am somewhat happy you decided to leave. Besides the fact of how much I miss you, I learned the true meaning of a lot in my life. Love isn't a game and I feel like I was being played. I am human and you damaged me. I have my guard up and I am scared to let it down for somebody else. I am scared to be hurt again. I am scared of somebody else pretending like they love me. I am scared of love, and it is all because of you.

But this is a thank you. Thank you for showing me what is right and what is wrong. Thank you for the good and the bad, showing me what to do and what not, how to treat somebody and how to love somebody. Thank you for letting me experience all of that with you because I will never forget what we had.

Love,

Your Ex-Girlfriend