I am the good kid. The one that never gets in trouble. The one that studies late into the night. I am the kid that drives the speed limit, who only drinks alcohol when his dad lets him take a sip. I grew up in a cookie cutter suburban neighborhood. All the kids played together in those days. At least the kids in my neighborhood.
The kid across the street is my friend, or, was my friend. When I was little, I mean. Stamped on the forehead as a rebel now. When did that start? Was it in fifth grade when he told Mrs. McLanahan to go to hell? Was it in middle school, when he crushed up smarties and pretended to snort them like cocaine, and got suspended for two days? He’s a real smart, bright kid. Even if he has a bad attitude, he never harmed a soul. Hilarious too. Just all around fun guy to be around. I couldn’t have found a better person to grow up with, if I tried. And he lived right across the street before I moved to that bigger house. He's about ten minutes away now. Buuuut we stopped hanging out. Why is that? It’s not like he’s a different person. In fact, he probably changes the least out of anybody I’ve ever met. He doesn’t strive, if you know what I mean. He merely is. Who has that kind of ability? Just to be, when the world is telling you to be more. I’ve gotten caught up in that, I’d say, the “be more.” But he doesn’t. When I think about it, in my sixteen years of knowing him, have I ever actually seen him smoke pot? Why does everyone tell me that he does? If I ask him, he would most likely just chuckle and write it off as to say, “Would you be my friend anyway? Be my friend just to be my friend, even if the label and rumors came with it?” He definitely doesn’t need me though. He has far more friends than I, and I don’t need him either. I don’t fit in with his friends. He doesn’t fit in with mine; but he would take me in. He would let me hang out with him and his more popular friends, because he knows me, and likes me for who I am. How often do you find someone that truly knows you? If I meet someone tomorrow, will they, or can they, ever know me like a person I grew up with? Someone who has been with me through all the stages leading up to adulthood? We used to always find interesting things to do together. We don’t need friends, but life is better with them. And that’s the beauty of it, isn’t it? We can choose our friends, not because we need them but because we like them. I don’t want to miss my chance for a friend. I’m going to call him. Tomorrow maybe. After school. We can walk to the pharmacy down the street for a candy bar like old times. We have a lot to catch up on. Wouldn’t that be nice. Yeah I’ll text him. I’ll text him “Hi.”
