Alex walked along the long road through the white snow, he felt it crunch beneath his leather boots as he walked. He never usually felt the cold but today he did, it was as if the temperature had dropped drastically over the past three hours. Alex pulled his jacket closer to his body to keep him warm and walked silently, it was unusual for there to be not a single person outside after three days of nonstop snow. There was always children running around throwing snowballs at each other or passersby, making snowmen or who was brave enough to slide on the ice that had formed. However it was deadly silent, because today was different for not only Alex but for the whole village as well. The only sounds he could hear was the light crash of waves and the crunching of his feet on the untouched snow, Alex was headed for the pier that was near the end of the village and he knew the way like the back of his hand. He reached the steps that lead up the pier, he made his way slowly up the steps and turned round to find nothing but white snow and the marks of his own footprints. Alex looked down the pier and pictured it in the summer children running up and down with kites in their hands laughing, adults looking out over the clear water talking and soaking up the sun and old men trying to catch some unlucky fish that swam their way. He made his way down the pier slowly and silently thinking of the time him and his best friend Jack had spent every day on that very pier no matter what was happening in their lives. Alex and Jack had been best friends ever since their first day in primary school where Jack stole Alex's purple crayon, after that they were stuck together. Their parents became best friends as well and they were then know as the 'twins' by everyone in the village, as it was a rare sight to see one without the other. As Alex walked all the memories flooded his mind, there was the time where Jack had bought a cheap fishing pole out the old shop and him and Alex had spent all day trying to catch something. "Told you we wouldn't catch anything" Alex moaned at Jack as they were walking back home. "Shut up, know it all" Jack said now annoyed at Alex. "Aww C'mon Jack" Alex said as he watched his best friend walk away quickly. "No I'm not talking to you!" Jack shouted back and Alex laughed, he knew Jack couldn't last a day without talking to him. "You're talking to me now dumb ass! Alex shouted still laughing. "No I'm not and I'm not listening to you" Jack said his long brown hair getting messed up by the wind, "Jack stop it, you knew as well we wouldn't catch anything" Alex said to his friend now annoyed himself, Jack stopped and turned to his friend and smiled. "Yeah your right" Jack said smiling and Alex smiled back "I always am" He said and Jack laughed. "Don't flatter yourself Alex" Jack said shoving Alex a little. Alex walked up to a plank of wood on the old pier and brushed off the snow with his cold hand, to reveal a blackened mark on the wood from the time they had tried to camp on the pier and make a fire. They got grounded for being so stupid but he couldn't stop smiling when he thought of that memory and quite a few stuck out to him through their thirteen years of being friends, their first day of high school. "Lex I'm scared what if we're not in the same classes?" Jack asked looking at Alex with his huge brown eyes. "We will, don't worry Jacky even if we're not we're still gonna be best friends" Alex said patting Jack in the shoulder and realising that wasn't working pulled him in for a hug. "Jack it's fine I'm scared to but it will be okay, let's be strong together" Alex whispered and Jack nodded his dyed blonde fringe falling into his eyes. "Let's go" Alex said pulling Jack by his wrist to his father's car. "Good luck today boys" Alex's father shouted as the two boys got out the car slowly, Alex shifted his bag onto his shoulder while Jack picked at his nails nervously. Alex and Jack both had the first three classes with each other, break, lunch and last two, so that was only two classes without each other but even Alex had to admit it was hard to concentrate without the lanky kid that was his best friend. He had just came out his computing class when he saw Jack standing in the corridor talking to some boys, he was glad they were talking but when he got closer they weren't talking they were making fun of Jack. "Skunk hair" said one boy. "Giant" Said another. "Gay" Said the other and Alex could see how upset Jack was becoming, so he ran down the corridor and pulled Jack away from them, "Oh look out here comes the boyfriend" Shouted one of them to Alex as he lead Jack away "Don't listen to them" Alex said as he pulled Jack out the school, they caught a bus home and went to the pier and sat at their spot. "Alex I don't want to go back" Jack whispered looking out at the water, his eyes nearly full with tears. "Jack their just bullies, you can ask to get switched into my classes" Alex said but Jack shook his head a tear rolling down his cheek. "Alex that will make it worse, what if I always get called that and I get you brought into it? I don't want that" Jack said looking at him and Alex pulled him into a hug. "Jack you idiot, I will always be here for you no matter what" Alex said smiling. "Me too" Jack replied. Alex smiled to himself thinking how much things had changed in the small years of high school and most had been for the better, the cold air ripped through him again and made Alex shiver. The village had started to awake, a few cars drove slowly due to the ice and snow and some shops were opening but Alex knew they would shut again as no one would be out; not today anyway. Everyone would be too busy elsewhere and so should he but Alex needed this, he walked to the small bench and sat down on the snow not caring that his skinny jeans would get wet. "Happy 16th Birthday!" Alex sang as he sat down beside Jack on the new bench that had arrived on the pier and handed Jack his present. Jack opened the card and Alex smiled as he watched Jack's face light up at what he found inside, "Alex no way! I can't take this!" Jack said handing the money back to Alex and he sighed. "Yes you can and you will, I know how much you wanted that guitar and now you can get it" He said smiling and Jack grabbed his face between his two hands "Alex thank you so much, you're the best friend ever!" Jack said laughing and smiling like an idiot and gave Alex a quick peak on his lips. This was now normal between the both of them as they both believed they were gay, their friendship became more loving as Alex liked to tell himself. The way they just hugged randomly, held hands whenever they felt like it and kiss each other nearly every day. "I'll even teach you the chords and then how to play some Blink songs" Alex said while Jack grinned like crazy, "Sounds amazing, wait till my mum finds out how much money you gave me! She is gonna flip!" Jack laughed "Hey I probably owe you that much over all the years we've been friends" Alex joked. Alex remembered how that day turned out, him and Jack taking a trip into the city centre and bought Jack's guitar, some picks and Alex even bought him his lunch. They then spent the rest of the day in Alex's back garden while he taught Jack the guitar and laughed to himself at how bad Jack had been at the start, and how he would get annoyed if he messed up once. These were all happy memories but there was a bad one which Alex hated thinking about but it was alright because Jack had been there. "Thought I would find you here" Jack said smiling a sad smile as he sat down next to Alex and the blonde haired boy wiped his eyes and gave Jack a small smile. "Their gone Jack, and their never coming back! I can't ever see them again" Alex burst into sobs and Jack pulled him into a hug stroking his hair silently for a few minutes before he said anything. "You might not see them Alex but they will always be here-" Jack touched Alex's chest were his heart was, " and they will be watching you" He finished and Alex tightened his grip on Jack's shirt "I've lost to many people Jack! Please don't leave me, I don't think I could handle it if you left me" Alex sobbed and looked up at Jack with huge scared eyes, tears rolling silently down Jack's cheeks. "Lex I will never leave you, I promise" Jack said kissing the top Alex's head and he felt the boy smile slightly. "Jack?" He asked, "What Lex?" Jack asked back, "I love you" Alex said leaning into Jack's shoulder closing his eyes, not expecting Jack to say it back but he did. "I love you to Alex" Jack said smiling and they sat like that for a few minutes to let Alex calm down, "Now let's get out of here it's getting cold" Jack said standing up and pulling Alex up with him, wrapped an arm around his waist and pulled him closer and lead them off the pier. Alex was now at the end of the pier and he looked out across the water and thought about what him and Jack would be doing at this moment. Probably out in the city centre shopping for Christmas presents, catch a movie and then back to their flat and cuddle up on the old couch with a blanket and some movie; no doubt Home Alone for Jack. A tear rolled silently down Alex's cheek as he looked down to his finger and played with the plain gold band that was there, thinking about how Jack had asked him to marry him right where he was standing. Even though had only both been nineteen at the time they both knew what and who they wanted, "You left me Jack and you promised you wouldn't" Alex out loud to the water as if Jack was standing there himself, more tears rolled down his face. "You would be twenty three Jack, we would have been together and married already and out this village" He said getting angry at himself, just then he felt a hand on his shoulder and he turned to see his friend Rian standing there looking worried. "C'mon Alex, it's time" Rian said and Alex just nodded knowing what he meant, "You okay Alex?" Rian asked and all Alex could do was shake his head. "I miss him so fucking much Ri it hurts and I can't even tell him how much I love him, how much I'm sorry for all the stupid fights, for everything I done wrong or even see his face again" Alex broke down into sobs and Rian pulled him into a hug, trying to help his friend. "Alex you will one day and Jack is always with you now please try to calm down and let's go" He said and all Alex could do was nod and follow after his friend, but the thoughts of how soon that one day would be for him where in the front of his mind.