That evening, I found Emma sitting beside Felix’s cutout, her diploma resting on her knees.
“Are you okay?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” she admitted. “I thought graduating without Felix would mean leaving him behind. But when I got my diploma, I was happy. Then I felt guilty.”
I held her hand.
“Remember what Felix told you? If he couldn’t do everything you planned together, he didn’t want you spending your life feeling bad because you still could.”
Emma nodded, tears filling her eyes.
“I’ve been trying so hard to remember him that I forgot that part.”
“You can miss him and still have a wonderful life,” I told her.
She looked at his photograph.
“I wish he’d been there for real.”
“Me too, sweetheart.”
After a moment, she asked, “Do you think Felix would have been proud of me?”
“He would have bragged about you to everyone.”
