So when I was in 8th grade, I used to take the bus to school. I had my own clique of friends and we used to sit together, usually at the front (the rowdy boys sat at the back). There was this one girl, who would always usually sit at the front as well, next to the window. She was small like me, quite quiet like me as well, but she seemed more aloof than just shy. She always looked impeccable and tidy, with her hair tied into a pony tail and she had really clear skin that looked super smooth (her hands are smoother. Seriously, they're like silk).
We never talked (she thought I was a snob, I thought she was a quiet loner), until one fateful day. Now, I only vaguely remember this. I always thought that we first bonded over Roswell, and how we seemed to be the only two people who liked Michael Guerin over Max Evans. But she claims that we first talked about Harry Potter...something about Ron and Hermione. I can't remember, I'll have to ask her again.
Then we found out that we both loved Buffy the Vampire Slayer. And that, ladies and gents, is when we both abandoned our own set of friends and ran off together into the sunset.
Okay, well, it wasn't sunset. And we didn't run, cuz, please, we had a bus. But we did forsake our other friends to be with each other...all the time, unfailingly, devotedly, emotionally, spiritually, physica- okay this is getting out of hand. What I wanted to say was, simply, that I found my best friend that day.
We'd spend the entire day sitting next to each other in class, on the bus, and then when both went home we picked up the phone and called each other right again. There never seemed to be an end to all the things that we could talk about. I remember one time, during summer vacation (we became complete hermits then), I called her up in the morning while watching TV, and turns out we were watching the exact same movie: Reality Bites. (Oh yeah, Troy Dyer). I think we had the phone to our ears for nearly an hour, both watching the film silently, til we realised our phone bill was probably going to hit the roof.
And then there was the time when I fell asleep in her lap during PE. And she fell asleep through one English class and one Physics class, where luckily, both teachers noticed but didn't say anything :)
One of my best memories is of her French braiding my hair on the bus every morning. I used to have really really long hair, and she'd love braiding it. Although it would get quite tetchy cuz she'd hit my head and pull my hair whenever I moved (we were on a bus, of course I wouldn't be able to stay still!!), but damn, those French braids were awesome.
We were with each other for only 3 years, which sounds insane cuz it feels like I've known her for years and years. Like we grew up together and knew all the little nuances and mannerisms of each other. I could hear her smile over the phone.
The last time I saw her was on June 9th, 2005. She was leaving for Canada the next day. I was leaving for England exactly the next week, on the 17th. We were both happy, in a way, because we both wanted to leave Dhaka and move on with our lives, but we were also glad that neither of us were left alone in Dhaka. Even if that meant living on two different continents. Across the damn Atlantic.
So that was 5 years ago. Man, that's just crazy. I nearly saw her again earlier on this year. I was visiting my sister in Boston, and she was with relatives in New York. We were in the same country, dammit! At one point, we were even in the same state! I was even on the way to see her! But a fucking snowstorm raged and I couldn't get pass the Massachusetts turnpike.
I love hearing her voice over the phone. That slow 'Heyy..' followed by her smile, trying to suppress a squeal. (Yeah, you know you do :P) You know, we don't talk as often as we used to, but it doesn't matter, cuz every time we do talk, it's like coming home. There's a few hundred miles between me and her right now (3255 miles to be exact), but it's like we never left each other's side.
I've written about her before for an English assignment, and man it's so easy to witter on and on about her. I wish uni essays were this easy. She just told me yesterday that she reads this blog daily. Okay, yes I don't post stuff daily, but I will now. Even if there's one reader. Even if it's just her.
So this is for you.
Happy reading.
I love you.
Twaa :) xx
