unforgettable | bene schulz

O N E

L IN A ' S  P O V

So, another period of my life has flown by and I've learned a lot. I've not only found myself in who I am and liked the version I've become but I've also found peace in who I have around me. I've found people that like me for me and that wouldn't want me to change. It's been a tough time, I'm not going to lie. But it's throughout those tough times I've learned the most. It hasn't always been perfect and I haven't always solved the issues or situations as flawless as I've hoped but that it's the part of learning and growing up. At least that's how I see it. I've learned the most valuable lesson a young adult can learn, I will never be the main character of anyone else's story. I'm the main character of my own and everyone else is a side character. And letting someone else become the main character of your story is the biggest mistake you can make. Letting someone make you give up yourself and your whole world is something you will learn from, it will hurt because you will realise that you were never the main character of theirs. 

I'm not the same person as I was when it all started. I've grown into a woman. I've learned my worth and what to value. I've learned to prioritize and to keep myself as my number one priority. And this year has brought me joy, laughter, tears and endless memories. 

S I X  Y E A R S  E A R L I E R

"I think I will go with the green satin dress," I said as I was holding my two choices in front of me in the mirror. My best friend Josephine was sitting on the floor painting her nails in white to match her silver sequin dress. 

"That is what I told you." She said and blew on her nails to make the nail polish dry. 

"I know, I just needed to come to that conclusion myself," I said and she chuckled. I changed from my checkered pyjama pants to the green satin dress. I felt like I was going to go to the red carpets. My light blond curled hair laid perfectly on my back and I felt like I owned the world. It hugged my waist perfectly and ended right above my knees. 

"The wow factor on that dress is remarkably high," Jo said as she looked at me twirling around in the dress. 

"So, I was thinking, maybe having my hair up in like half a ponytail thing or bun with like a few strings of hair out by my face," I said to see what Jo was thinking about the idea.

"I mean having your hair like that gives more a cute vibe if that's what you are going for. Having your hair like a low bun gives a sexy vibe and just out a more neutral, fun vibe. What are you going for?" She asked and I turned back to the mirror to take another look.

"Low bun for sure," I said and she smiled lightly.

"Someone hopes to get lucky tonight." She said with a grin. 

"One can only hope," I said with a chuckled as I put my hair in a low bun. 

Jo put her dress on quickly and we took a few pictures to our Instagram to post. We obviously had to post when we were invited to our first LA party. No way were our friends not going to see what fantastical life we were living. They were stuck back in boring Southampton and here we were, studying in LA. It felt unbelievable, to be honest. We had worked so hard to get in and now here we were.

"Let's go, sistah." Jo said and dragged me out of the apartment. We had filled our bags with alcohol that we had bought from this guy my classmate said bought for minors. Well, we were minors here in LA. In England, we were considered full-grown adults that could both drive and drink legally. Guess the USA has trust issues. To say the least.

We walked across the streets up to the hills where this party were being thrown. We were invited by the same classmate who had given me the number of the alcohol guy. We were very thankful to get to spend New Year at an actual party and not sitting at home watching the ball drop in our sweatpants, because that is just sad.