I’m sitting in the passenger seat of my mom’s blue Honda Cr-V at the end of a three hour car ride. We pull up to the stoplight across the street from his house. It’s red, of course. My heart is pumping furiously as my hands begin to sweat and I crane my neck to see his yard.

Where is he?

All of the sudden, the door to the town house flings open and out pops exactly who I’m looking for. He’s tall, handsome, and all smiles, as eager to see me as I am to see him. He’s just as I remember him, even though it’s been months since the last time we were together.

The red light lasts an eternity and a half, and when we pull into the driveway I can’t get the door open fast enough. I leap from the car and fling my arms around his neck. I breathe in his scent. For just a moment, nothing else in the world matters. It’s just him, me, and our love for each other.

It’s moments like these that make our long distance relationship worth every bit of the pain and agony of missing the one I love so deeply.