Turning Ten

“You need to get to bed!” a low, persistent voice rumbled through the twilight air. “Not yet! It’s
almost midnight” replied a different voice, more childish with a high pitched resonance. “And

that's exactly why you need to get to bed!”. This exchange was that of an unorthodox duo: June-
who would be turning 10 at midnight - and Beanie, her staunch, imaginary friend. To June,

Beanie was more than a naive suspension of disbelief. He was a true companion. Her immutable
partner in crime. June was a banal girl aesthetically, par for the course of a fourth grader. Beanie,
on the other hand, was much more whimsical in appearance; A thick coat of purple fur bedaubed
his paunchy frame. He had round, auburn eyes with a glossy tint, like mildew smeared over
autumn leaves. Two foxish ears perked out from the brim of his fedora, which contradicted an
austere wardrobe of denim overalls and faux leather loafers. June’s friends were often disturbed
by his appearance. “He sounds like a weird monster” they would say... But June never saw him
that way. “I can’t wait to be an adult...” She whispered to him “Then we can stay up as late as
we want!” Her voice exuded a surfeit of youthful naivety. Beanie smiled. “Well... It’ll happen
before you know it.” He replied softly. June dismissed Beanie’s comment, her attention
sporadically shifting to a new topic, in true 9-year-old fashion. “Hey... Amy told me she hasn’t
seen JonJon much since her birthday... Have you seen him? I’m thinking maybe all the
imaginary friends talk to each other when they’re not around...” Beanie hesitated, his mien
digressing into a subtle panic. “Oh... No... I don’t know where he's been." He stammered. June
noticed the shift in his demeanor. She could tell something was off. “Beanieee” She murmured
teasingly. “You promised that you’d never lie to me... Are you lying to me?”. Her triumphant
stare coiled and tugged at Beanie’s heartstrings. He couldn’t defile the integrity of his word.
Dishonesty just wasn’t in his nature. Unable to quench his guilt, he began choking up the truth.
“June... Remember when we were on the playground... The day those older kids were teasing
you for talking to me?” June reared her head towards him “That didn’t bother me! They just
don't understand. Not everyone is as lucky as you and me. Our friendship is one in a million."
She said with an idyllic twinkle in her eye. “I know... I know... The thing is, there was a time
when all of them had friends just like me.” June shuddered, daunted by what Beanie was
implying “And eventually...” Beanie paused “I’m gonna have to go too...”. June felt an
immediate rush of panic and anguish. The thought of losing Beanie was unimaginable. She
despised it. She couldn’t fathom a life without their friendship. “Well... At least we have a long
time, right?” She asked. Beanie would not meet her gaze. “Beanie... How long do we have?”. He
scarcely conjured the will to speak “Until your 10th birthday” he murmured with reluctance.
“What!?” June was shocked “Beanie that’s tomorrow... Why didn’t you tell me!?... We were
talking about it for so long. You said this would be our day, Beanie!” Lament sputtered from her
mouth with every syllable. “You lied to me... How could you lie!?” Silence occluded the room.
June’s anger coalesced with grief and fear until the symphony of her feelings muddled into
dissonance. “I’m sorry... You know I’d never mean to hurt you... Tomorrow is your big day... I
didn’t want to ruin it for you.” Beanie scrambled to justify his actions “Well THIS ruined it for
me.” June wailed indignantly. “There has to be something we can do... There has to be some
way we can still save you, there has to be.” June didn’t want to accept the unequivocal truth of

Beanie’s statement. As she frantically maundered, Beanie could only hold a discomposed
silence. June had never seen him speechless before. Beanie always knew what to do. But this
time his optimism had wavered beyond recognition. He was intransigent. June’s tirade came to
an abrupt end, and Beanie coughed up two words in utter defeat: “I’m sorry.” She didn’t know
what to say, and so she said nothing at all, burying her face in the refuge of a thick, chartreuse
blanket. “Do you want me to give you some space?” Beanie asked. Being as stubborn as she was,
June responded only with a steadfast cold shoulder. “Please June... I don’t want things to end
like this.” he said. As time ticked by, June steadily rallied her composure. She didn’t want things
to end like this either. And she wouldn’t let frustration and pride snub her final moments with her
best friend. Her disbelief and anger renewed itself as profound sorrow, and she was ready to talk.
“Hey, Beanie?” she asked, her voice timid and doughy. Beanie reared his head in her direction.
“Yes, June?” He replied, his tone characteristically compassionate. “Do you remember that time
we got lost in the park?" A playful grin coiled Beanie’s plump face. He released an exuberant,
teasy chuckle, trying to lighten the mood. "How could I forget!? I've never seen you so scared."
"I never thought we'd find mom. I was ready to lie down and give up. But you. You knew just
what to do." Beanie paused... "You knew too. You just needed a reminder." "Yes but I never
would have stopped crying or remembered the last digit of mom's phone number without you.
Did I ever thank you for that?" Beanie hesitated, tongue-tied "No. But you didn't have to. I
already knew how you felt." June stammered, her frail voice beginning to break. “Beanie... I
don’t think I can do this without you...” “Of course you can, June” he replied, cradling her with
unconditional support. “You can do everything that I can and more...” June winced at the
thought of his departure. She felt helpless, ineffably frightened by the prospect of losing him.
“You’re so strong, June” he coaxed “you always have been... But all good things must come to
an end...and it is my time to go”. The words hung heavy in the air. June’s thoughts digressed into
a chaotic mess. She tried to articulate what she was feeling, but it was futile. All she could do
was sit paralyzed, her teary eyes in a silky stare growing heavy as time ticked by. Beanie gazed
back with a bittersweet grin, tears welling at the crests of his marmalade eyes. “Please don’t
cry...” He choked “If you cry, I’m gonna cry too.” At that moment, June experienced an
overwhelming swell of emotion: Fear and acceptance, grit and grief, yearning and nostalgia. She
closed her eyes and lunged towards him. “Beanie...” she croaked with a bashful tone. “I don’t
want to be an adult anymore.” As she wrapped her arms around his fuzzy frame one last time,
she felt his warmth dwindle, his touch growing indistinguishable from the bitter embrace of the
night. “As long as you remember me, I’ll always be with you” His voice came from an intangible
place, just barely out of reach. The same place that accommodates evanesced nostalgia and the
words on the tip of your tongue. Distant inklings of fragmented thoughts, never to be made
whole. With that, she heard the stifled chime of a grandfather clock trickle through the narrow
hallway. It marked the dawn of a new day. Her 10th birthday. And as her eyelids folded open, her
vision confirmed the harsh reality she’d already begun to reckon with: She was finally growing up.