The Last Walk Home (From High School)

I bumped into a couple of classmates last night. 

Kind of.

It was all a dream (funny I should type the previous line considering I started reading a book titled that last night!), but - it really was all a dream.

In said dream, I walked to school with Chris and Rachel who are related to each other as cousins in reality. As we walked I commented about how good it was to walk with them to school because of how fast they are. They actually were athletes back then so that comment does make sense in hindsight. 

Anyway, I don't remember any other part other than that. I walked to school with two people I haven't really thought about in a very long time. 

Was that all there was to it? Absolutely not!

I spent a few moments earlier this morning wondering why, of all people, they came up overnight. And it struck me. 

Remember a few weeks ago when I wrote about my last day at high school? That was about the time when we were official let go. We still had exams to do. Well - deep down in my subconscious, I had stored away a memory of my last official day. I walked home from my final exam alone. One of the  stops on the way would be to cross through a small park nearby. On that day, I saw Rachel and Chris walking on the other side of the gates, so I detoured and exited the park to see them.

We walked for a little bit before they had to turn to finish off their journey. I walked on to complete the final steps of mine. 

In hindsight, and I don't even recall if I thought about this back then, it was a fitting way to end the last walk home from school because - up to that point - I had been through the education system with those two since nursery. All three of us were born in May as well, if I remember correctly. 

Reflecting further on the dream. It makes sense as to why my subconscious allowed that memory to escape overnight and create a story in which we walked TO school. It's because for the past few days, we've been working out a plan for my nephew to get his taxi pickup early after taking his morning GCSE exams next week.

That has to be it.