Ever since the second grade of high school I had a friend: at that time I was sure that our friendship would last a lifetime. Laura and I sat at the same desk, always went to the bathroom and the cafeteria together, talked on the phone in the evenings, and spent our weekends together.
Laura was good at math in high school, so she helped me with my homework. It so happened that after graduation my communication with my friend dried up. She went to an institute from another town, while I stayed in my hometown and went to college. At first we tried to write to each other and keep in touch, but later life separated us.
After graduation, I started working as a hairdresser – I always had my hands in the right place. On the whole, my life is measured and quiet. I got married, no children yet. I knew nothing about Laura’s fate. We lost contact.
And then recently I got nostalgic, so I decided to look through an old school album. Looking at pictures of me and Laura together made me want to find her. As a result I looked on the Internet and found my school friend in the social networks. Laura responded and we started talking, first through emails, then on the phone. I was very happy to have revived a former friendship.
Long-distance communication is not like meeting in person. I thought it would be cool to invite Laura over and spend the day together. My friend is a woman from the capital: after university, she found a businessman husband and moved in with him. I couldn’t wait to meet Laura and ask her about life in the capital. By the way, my school friend missed her hometown too.
When Laura crossed the threshold of my apartment, I realized that this was not the same person I had seen eight years before. I could see at once that my friend had changed completely inside. Unfortunately, this change was not for the better. Laura acted brazenly in my apartment, as if she were the mistress. Her behavior was rude and unceremonious.
She started touching my personal belongings without permission, looking at my husband’s photos, and making dubious compliments about my repairs (my apartment was long out of date, so she made it sound like sarcasm). Laura told me how cool it was to live in the capital, and that our little town was a shithole that no civilized person could live in. I endured everything until Laura said the following.
– What does your husband do anyway? He should at least give you an iPhone for decency. How do you live with him?
After these words, I sent her friend out of the house on her merry way. I was friends with a completely different person: kind, compassionate, simple, and understanding. Laura would never be the same, alas.
