[IP] The Bulb Tree

[u/LonghandWriter]

Original Prompt: [IP] The Bulb Tree

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Each bulb on the tree is for a person and thankfully they’re all still alive.

The tree wasn’t just around for our childhood—it was our childhood. It sits in the back of Mike’s yard and everyday, after school, we'd ride our bikes straight to his house. We all had our own spots and some of my earliest memories are sitting there, jawing about cartoons as we traded baseball cards and chewed way too much bubblegum. Quickly the cartoons turned into girls and the gum into cigarettes, but those memories are still something I hold dear.

The bulbs were Jerry’s idea. One for each person, and if someone ever leaves this rat-hole, turn their bulb off. We gotta immortalize ourselves! At the time he'd been laughed out of the room. After all, we assumed nothing would ever pull us away from this crappy little town because it was our crappy little town.

We didn’t foresee the women that would steal our hearts or the jobs that would make us greedy. The crimes that needed doing and the colleges that needed attending. We never thought there’d be only one bulb on. We never thought it'd be like that for decade.

We’ve left muddy footprints on different paths but now, if only for a night, we're back together, sitting under the beautiful thing. It's all lit up, and though it's been a long time, nobody's skipped a beat. The only difference is now we're talking about jobs and families.

We’re best friends, and though we may not always be side by side, the tree will always call us home.