I don’t know who I would be without you. As an only child, you are the closest thing I have to a sister. On my darkest days, you have met me at the foot of my bed with cuddles and a good movie, and on my brightest days, you have been there to stand by me and support me.
No one really quite understands our friendship. We speak in code, mostly in inside jokes and movie quotes. We can have a conversation through just eye contact. I know you inside and out, and you know what I’m thinking before I have thought it. I’m not sure if I’ll ever fully understand myself, but you somehow understand me and have taught me more about myself than anyone else.
We’re polar opposites. You’re the loudest person in the room, while I’m trying to fade into the wall. I plan lunch dates well in advance, and you show up at my house and tell me to be ready in five minutes because we’re going to a different state. You see the big picture, while I only can look at the small details. You’re so creative and can form an entire musical in your head in less than 24 hours, when I get writers block on a 300-word essay. You’re the arts, I’m all science. You are perfectly complementary to me and maybe we would kill each other if we ever lived together, but I’d never have learned how to meet new people and you’d still be lost at a Chester’s Chicken.
We have been best friends for longer than I can remember. I can remember playing dress up with you. I see people around me with a group of friends from high school or a couple of best friends in college, but I have always had you by my side and I know I always will. I am so grateful that I never have to question whom my number one best friend is or if I’m anyone’s number one best friend. You have always been there for me, and I’ve always been there for you.
You are my plus one in life. Your opinion is the most important to me. My exes fear you, and I have overwhelming anxiety any time you are about to meet a current prospect. I talk about you so much that my friends who have never met you act as though you’re constantly right next to me.
It’s our second year since we were eight that we’re living in different cities. I thought it would get easier, but it’s almost harder. I miss you like an absent limb on some days. You’re still the number one person I want to stay in with on a Friday night.
A couple of months ago, you called me and asked to speak to my best friend in college. I overheard some of the conversation, only to realize you were asking her to look out for me and to take care of me. I know it probably sounded absurd to her, but I understood the feeling. I want to protect you from everything.
Even though we talk every day, I miss you so much. I never realized how much I relied on having you by my side until I couldn’t just climb into your bed on a rough day.
Thank you for always standing by me. Thank you for coming to my graduation. Thank you for taking multiple trips to stay with me in college. Thanks for answering a text when I don’t really let you know I’m upset but you still somehow know. Thank you for telling me I’m making a wrong decision, but still being there to pick up the pieces when everything falls apart. Thank you for somehow understanding a girl who is the complete opposite of you and not only making me such a better person but letting me be the introverted, organized, analytical girl I am.
I cried the entire time I wrote this.
I love you,
Your best friend.
