As toddlers, Annabell Rodriguez and Xavier Lopez played together at a trailer park where Xavier lived alongside Annabell's relatives. When the pair met again on the first day of fourth grade at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, they had no memory of those playdates, but they liked each other immediately. Within weeks, they were passing notes. Within months, they were texting each other "I love you" before bed, reports ABC News. Their mothers got a giggle out of that. Now, on a more somber occasion, the 10-year-olds who posed together at an awards ceremony shortly before they were gunned down in their classroom will be buried side by side.
Annabel's mother Monica Gallegos and Xavier's mother Felicha Martinez figured they should showcase their children's love, as the children did themselves. Annabell wore "a picture of Xavier strung around her neck," which Martinez had gifted her, ABC reports. "Everyone at school knew about Annabell and Xavier … even their teacher." Xavier "would make things for her, he would write notes for her," says Arnulfo Reyes, who is recovering in hospital. "It brings a smile to your face just to think they really loved each other." Xavier was to be interred at Hillcrest Cemetery following his funeral on Tuesday, according to his obituary. Annabell will be interred Wednesday, according to hers. (More Uvalde mass shooting stories.)
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