My Dearest Dr. Pepper

My dearest Dr. Pepper
You have no idea how much I love you,
How you've brighten my days
In so many different ways.

My dearest Dr. Pepper
I love the way you taste
When I suck you up my straw,
The tingling and giddy sensation you give me
When my throat feels raw.

My dearest Dr. Pepper
I appreciate your touch
Whether it's rain or shine, heat or snow,
You always know how to comfort me,
And which way to go.

I don't choke on you when I drink you, and you don't run out my nose. I like that. A lot.

My dearest Dr. Pepper
You are not Coke or Sprite, Pepsi or Mountain Dew.
You are unique in your own way, standing proudly amidst your competitors,
Even though one of them owns you.

My dearest Dr. Pepper
You have been with me through all of my firsts:

the first time I drove
the first accident I had
the first time I got laid
my first three arrests
my first apartment, and
my first fanfic.

You have been with me though the good times and bad,
Happy and sad,
The forgettable and the wish--it--was--forgettable,
But you've never abandoned me,
Nor treated me like a leper,
Which is why you'll always be
My dearest Dr. Pepper.