6Best Friends
By xInSaNexBlOoDyxPrInCeSs
When I moved in, first grade
You lived just across the street
You played soccer with me
That first day
We went to school
First grade
And I was your best friend
And you were my best friend, too
We played together everyday
We played soccer
And football
And even jump rope
But starting in second grade
My other friends
Didn't like you that much
"But he's my best friend," I'd say.
"But he's a boy," one said.
"Girls aren't best friends with boys."
I didn't say anything.
I looked down at my shoes.
I was very, very sorry.
We didn't play together at school.
But after school
We were always together
But then in sixth grade
We grew too old
Rarely did we find anything
That we wanted to do together
I liked makeup
And reading Seventeen
You liked baseball
And reading Sports Illustrated
I tried to feel interested
And you did too
But it couldn't be helped
We were slowly drifting apart
In eighth grade
You moved away
To another street
A few blocks away
I tried to go to your house
To be your best friend again
But my friends stopped me
"Boys and girls aren't best friends."
I thought that they were right
And so I left you alone
And whenever I saw you at school
I did my best to not feel guilty
But then at the end of eighth grade
You moved away
To Japan, of all places!
And I couldn't even be your friend
Sure, we called each other
But the conversations were stiff
Sure, we instant messaged
But I found it hard to type anything
But one day
My 'friends' told me I was a bitch
A slut, a whore
Someone who has no friends
I began crying
I slumped on the wall
Some people looked at me
But they soon walked away
I missed you so much
I knew you were really my best friend
So I shouted out your name
Even though you lived in Japan
And then you said, "What's wrong?"
I looked up
You were there
It wasn't possible
I asked, "How?"
You laughed
"I came to visit," you said
"What's wrong?"
And I told you everything
All from the first grade to now
You listened very carefully
And at the end, you hugged me
It wasn't a romantic hug
It was a friendly hug
And it was like
You squeezed all the misery out of me
You said, "Gender doesn't matter"
"It doesn't?" I asked
You nodded
And smiled
"You're still my best friend
"Through and through
"And I'm still your best friend
"No matter what those girls say
"Gender doesn't matter
"Or race, or height, or weight
"Because friendship is something
"That makes all those things not matter"
And I smiled
Because I knew you were right
Because I knew you were happy
Because you were my best friend
There are lots of real-life stories like this, apparently. I have a few friends myself whose best friends were the boy who lived across the street—the only kid their age. When they reach puberty, however, the boy and girl usually start drifting slowly apart. They think gender is something they can never bridge with friendship. But you can.
inhyel