Friends...forever???

This post goes out to a very special ex-best friend of mine, S, with whom I shared all my childhood fantasies and aspirations.

Our friendship goes waaay back to 3rd std. Well, back then we weren’t in much amicable terms. We both had a common friend, A, about whom we were both very possessive about, and it was more like competition for A’s attention than friendship (With A enjoying the whole thing immensely, of course). I still remember clearly the day S put a mutton piece inside my beautifully rolled chappathi (by the way, I’m a pure- and I mean, 100% pure- veggie) and I vomited all over the class after innocently eating it (I know, poor li’l me…. U’re a bad girl, S. shame on u!!!)

Fast forward to 7th std. That was the year the students got shuffled into different classes & A got transferred to another class (personally, I think it was all for the best…Coz we’re pretty much drifting apart. ‘swaram nannavumbo pattu nirthunnathalle budhi’). Suddenly we were thrown into each other’s company along with 2 of our other best friends (u know, what these lower grades are like….best friends, friends, OK ones, khadoos ones…total chaos!).

That’s when we started to really like each other and bond with one another. She and I used to stay at school till 5.30 coz her bus came late and my dad, as usual, was always late (rolling my eyes :D )…we used to hang out with a gang of friends who’d leave my 4.30 or so. Then we’d roam around the school premises, gossiping about how we thought ‘this girl’ supposedly had a bf (ohhh…what a shocking news it was, back then!) and similar stuff. ;-)…

We grew much closer over the next couple of years…i.e., until 10th std. After that she joined a school and me another. One thing she (&probably me too) was lousy at was keeping connections. The frequent phone calls became rarer and even rarer…

We still call each other up on b’days and on special occasions like X’mas eve. But it aint the same anymore. What I wanted to tell u, S, was that even though I’m blessed with a few good friends…but I do miss what we had together..…

I still think about the good ol’ times we had…dreaming of achieving goals (however ridiculous it might be) together hand in hand…how u promised me (OK, how I made u promise) that I’d the maid of honour at ur wedding…how we both drooled over titanic for weeks…how u’d roll ur eyes over how often my crushes changed…how I was afraid to talk to u about the trauma u were goin’ through coz I was afraid I’dnt know what to say (I was in 7th grade, for god’s sake, people!)…..

One thing I can promise u, my dear friend, is that the memories are still afresh…after all, it’s hard to forget those ‘first things’…first love, first kiss, likewise…my very first true best friend…

I will always and always treasure u as the friend I lost to time….