21

My loved ones would always tell me “Make sure you’re always sweet to everyone, you never know if that’s the last time you'll see them or not.” That quote shook me, so I always tried my best to be kind to everyone. I never thought I would ever have a last goodbye though. But one day I did. Around late September of 2016, I went into work. Just another normal day, did my job and talked with my manager, Travis, who was working with me that day and went home. Little did I know that was the last time I would ever see him.

A couple days after that, one of my friends asked me to come to their high school homecoming football game, so I grabbed a friend and headed off to Skyline High School to watch them play. Fast forward to that morning around 6 AM. I got a call from my OP manager saying Travis never showed up to work that morning and needed my help opening the store. I had a gut feeling that something was wrong but I ignored it and got up to help her get the store up and running. As the day went on and we still didn't hear from him despite the several calls and texts we both sent him, that gut feeling of mine got worse. I found myself checking news articles for his name in between customers and my manager was calling his friends to try and track him down. I worked that shift and headed home to start getting ready for the game.

It was a dark and cold night, and all I could think about was what happened to Travis. I couldn't enjoy myself, my gut wouldn't let me. After the game, I started heading back to my car. I remember it clearly, the weather was cold and damp, and it was dark and windy and all you could hear was the sound of high schoolers laughing and talking amongst themselves. Then I get a call from my boss, her voice sounded strained as if she'd been crying. I asked her what was up, and she told me that the reason Travis never came to work was because he had passed away. Everything got blurry and my stomach dropped. How did this happen? Why did this happen? I just saw him. God, this isn't fair, he was only 21. He had died from an overdose of heroin, a problem many people knew he had, but nobody said a word about until it was too late to do anything.

It may be almost two years later, but I still remember it clearly. I still cry when I think about him. He was sweet. A 6” kid with a smile that brightened any room and who was fun to be around. He wanted nothing but the best for everyone, and he was a shoulder for you if you needed it. All I can hope for is they find who sold him the heroin that ended his life, and they learn the hard way that all they did was end an innocent life and ruin countless others for a couple extra bucks.