Dear Ex-Best Friend,

I remember the first day of fourth grade. You were the new girl in class and I introduced myself right away, knowing I didn't want to miss the opportunity to hopefully make a new friend. We clicked instantly and we were inseparable. The teachers knew that if there was one of us, the other wasn't far behind at all. There was never a moment that we weren't attached right at the hip. I found out that you lived right down the street from me so we got our parents to meet each other and talk so we were allowed to hang out with each other outside of school. Everything seemed so perfect, and I was so elated that I had finally found a friend that I could be so close to.

We were there for each other through everything. You were right there next to me when I had my first kiss, we came to each other for boy advice, period help and anything else we could use a friend for. We took trips together, matched our Halloween costumes, had countless sleepovers and made each other's houses our own. You even retaught me how to ride a bike. There was nothing that we wouldn't do together, and we planned on it being like that for the rest of our lives.

As time went on, I started noticing things that began irritating me. You would constantly do things you knew I didn't like. You were selfish, you would laugh at my pain and honestly sometimes downright humiliate me. I put up with it though because I never had a friend that I was so close to before and I didn't want to jeopardize that. This went on for years. Fight after fight, makeup after makeup. For the longest time, no matter what happened we always seemed to continue to go right back to the friends that we were. Eventually though, I had had enough.

I remember for the longest time I would catch you copying things that I did and it would annoy me beyond belief until my mom told me that I should take it as a compliment instead. I see it that way now, so thank you, but I feel like most of your life you have been a follower instead of a leader. Be yourself, be unique, and be confident. When you don't try to impress anybody else, you are a beyond amazing person. That may have been your biggest downfall in our friendship. Once you made a new friend you would do everything and anything you could to impress them, even though you would have been perfectly fine if you were just yourself.

I'm not going to lie, I miss what our friendship used to be. Whether you do or not, I'm not sure, but I know I personally am extremely glad that it both happened and also that it's over now. You taught me what friendship was, but you also taught me what it wasn't, and I don't know if I could ever repay you for that. Friendship is not about using each other for one's own gain and it most certainly does not involve changing who you are as a person in hopes of the other person liking you more. Whether you somehow read this or not, I will always love and care about you and want the best. From what I know, you are doing extremely well and that is all that I care about.

Best of luck in everything you do, and always remember that the only person you need to impress is yourself.

Much love,

Maddie