To whoever holds him next,

He’s kind of animated-- you’ll figure that out almost immediately. He likes to act out his stories and talk with his hands and make up these scenarios that sometimes make no sense. They’re embarrassing and corny, but don’t tell him to stop. They make him happy, and his smile is something you’ll never forget.

Don’t tell him he’s fat or unhealthy, he tells it to himself enough.  He’s a real person with real feelings and you might be the only person who can tell him he’s worth something-- the only person he’ll listen to. He’s a beautiful human being with a heart of gold and the smallest muffin top in the world-- don’t make him think any less of himself.

He’ll accompany you wherever you want to go and never worry about himself. He won’t complain that you’ve gone to the same Chinese place four night in a row even though he wanted Mexican because he only wants you to be happy. Don’t drag him around even though he’ll gladly follow, he deserves a say.

Sometimes he gets angry. Do not be afraid. He yells at inanimate objects and will beat a pillow to shreds, but will never harm you. Give him his space to release his anger, he will calm down. When he does let him rest his head on your lap and play with his hair-- he’ll feel girly but he’ll love it. It’s a silent reminder that you still love him and will be there for him even at his worst. And if he’s ever mad at you, be honest with him. He values honesty and will work with you to figure it out. Don’t leave him in the dark.

For the love of God tell him you love him. Don’t ever forget all that he does for you and all that he wants to do for you and how much he loves you. You will be his everything and he will treat you like the most beautiful girl in the world because, to him, you really are. Treat him like you know this, like you appreciate this. Make sure he knows you do.

He’s passionate about little things and big things alike-- he’s passionate about you. Talk to him about everything that he loves. Let him teach you little things, like how horsepower and torque work, and the difference between a Rolex and Omega watch. Tell him things you’re passionate about, he’ll try to be passionate about those too. He’ll listen to you talk about everything you love for hours and will join you with hobbies he has never tried before.

Talk to him. He’ll talk for hours. He’ll talk about things he loves and about his day and about his family and about dumb things that you find irrelevent. But it’s because he likes talking to you. He likes to be the last person you talk to when you go to sleep, even if it’s 3am and he’s so sleep deprived that his voice is raspy and quiet. Let him be the last person you talk to, and be the first thing he wakes up to. He’ll appreciate it, he only wants you.

Sometimes he’ll question himself. Remind him he’s doing everything right, and that he’s not a failure. Sometimes he’ll call you in a panic, and his voice will crack and he’ll tell you how stupid he feels for forgetting something or failing something. Tell him that you love him and that he’s doing fine, and that it’s okay to be stressed or to fail. He is on the right track, he’ll succeed with everything he wants. Remind him to keep trying. He will never give up on you, don’t ever give up on him.

He’s really bad at playing with hair. He’ll play with the roots and then try to pull it out and will have only tangled it. Don’t yell or fuss at him, he’s focused on something else while trying to make you happy. He’s trying his hardest.

When he comes over late at night to spend time with you, lay with him until you fall asleep. Even if he isn’t allowed to sleep in the same room as you, let him stay as long as he can. Don’t ask him to leave so you can sleep and then stay on your phone for 20 minutes. Sometimes he’ll forget a blanket and need to come back and grab one, and you’ll have broken his heart. He loves you and just wants to spend as much time as he can with you. He doesn’t want to feel unwanted.

Appreciate him. Appreciate every goodmorning text and late night phone call and surprise take-out dinners. He wants nothing more than for you to be happy, and that’s hard to come by.

Don’t let him go for selfish reasons, he has never been selfish when it comes to you.

He’ll always love you, even if you broke it off-- don’t make it hard. He will forever be your best friend, don’t ruin every memory you’ve made together. If possible, take some space, and then make more.

He is the greatest guy you will ever have the pleasure of meeting, don’t ever forget that.

--Sincerely, his first love.