Dear Kiki, I’ll start off by saying I don’t have a way with words like you do; Everything I say comes out clumsy, broken, and slightly contorted from its original meaning; My writing is no different; But I guessed, since you were a writer that you’d appreciate the words on paper, no matter how awful I am at expressing myself; Thank you, for treating me with such kindness; I was wary of you at our initial meeting, when you greeted me with a strange comment; I think it was about me smelling funny, but I’m not quite sure; We hadn’t known each other for too long before you gave me a flower, a gift I keep preserved, even now; I was delighted of course, but so confused as to why anyone would give me something so precious; Why anyone would shed benevolence on me; But you continued to do so, even after I attacked you (not in the right state of mind, but that doesn’t matter, doesn’t mean I don’t regret doing so); You wouldn’t hurt me, even then; You believed in me, despite the monster you knew I was; Even though your faith is misplaced, I thank you for that; My gratitude, it cannot be expressed with any amount of words, in any language; That one thing you said to me, I don’t think I remember it exactly, but: You illuminate; I cannot stress the times when simply being in your presence would grant me such uninhibited joy; You may disagree with me, but believe me when I say that you’re a wonderful, irreplaceable person; One of my few regrets in life is not meeting you sooner; I know that something has been off about you lately; I won’t pry on the matter, but if talking about it will help, I’ll gladly listen; I just want you to know that no matter what happens, we’ll always be friends; And you’re a better person than you give yourself credit for; I’m sure whatever you’re going through, you’ll pull yourself out of; And if it’s too difficult to do so alone, I’ll be sure to lend a hand; You can’t see color though; I think you’ve mentioned it a few times before, but I’d forgotten about it until recently; Oh, please forgive me for allowing the matter to slip my mind; I’m pretty useless, but if there’s anything I could do to thank you for all that you’ve done for me, I’d like to help you gain your sight for color once more; It may seem like a difficult task, but I’d like to think it’s not impossible; There must be some way, some way; I must be able to do something, anything—; And finally, thank you for being my friend; We’ve had our ups and downs together, in the short amount of time we’ve gotten to know one another; And I’m grateful for every moment spent with you; May your life be as vibrant as you are, dear, wonderful snake;;; —Your Friend, Elliot