Everyone in school thought we were gay. Ashley Anderson was my best friend. We didn't grow up together but the minute we set eyes on each other in college, we clicked like the missing piece of a puzzle.
Source
My family was open to receiving her and vice versa. We had each other's back at all times. We could even take the blame for each other without batting an eyelid. But in all of this, we had never had a single issue. Until a week ago.
"Mom she transferred money from our account without asking me first. No details, no explanation, nothing!" I was pacing the balcony making wild gesticulations as I spoke.
"You should take it easy on her, it's not something she did to hurt you intentionally."
"Mom?" My face was frozen in a disbelieving look. "I'm not even really upset at what she did. It's how she's not remorseful that pisses me off"
My mom released a deep sigh. She was one person who had grown really fond of Ashley and truth be told, I got jealous sometimes.
"You need to call Ashley over, both of you need to talk it out."
It was Saturday afternoon when Ashley finally came over. Dad had travelled to see his extended family and mom was on her way to the market. On 'alone' days like this, we often spent time talking about all the things we couldn't talk about when our parents were within earshot. Sometimes Ashley brought a bottle of alcohol over. Once, while we were drinking and laughing happily, we suddenly heard footsteps. We froze for a couple of seconds before I grabbed the bottle and emptied it into the kitchen sink. Ashley grabbed the air freshener spray and doused the house with it then we both ran up the stairs to lick an unhealthy portion of toothpaste. I was trying to ingest some of the things I had been taught at school that week when she knocked.
I knew it was her because I wasn't expecting anyone else. When I got to the door, My hand stayed gripping the handle with my forehead pressed to it for almost a minute before I summoned the control to turn the key and open up.
"Hi" the choleric in me wanted to slam the door right back in her expressionless face but instead I asked her to shut the door and went to take a seat.
Usually, Ashley at this point would have been everywhere beginning from the kitchen. She was a food freak and my mom was a chef so whenever she knew Ashley was coming over, she made a healthy dish for her to consume.
Ashley lowered herself into a seat and endured the silence for about 5 minutes before speaking.
"I know you didn't call me here to stare at my face so spill it. I have to be at choir rehearsal this evening"
I nibbled on the insides of my left cheek while thinking of how best to put it "mildly" as my mom had suggested.
"Why on earth would you transfer money from our account without asking me?"
"That right there" she jabbed a finger at me "is why I didn't ask for your permission. It's my money too you know…"
"No Ash…" I rose to pace the room
"It's OUR money. We worked so hard to save money for our future. Not to use it for charity…"
"Really?" Ashley rose too "Have you ever asked what I needed it for? Have you cared to ask who it was I gave? Of course, you wouldn't because you're too busy looking for who to massage your unhealthy ego"
The piercing pain in my chest made it feel like I had been stabbed from behind.
"Get out of my house Ashley Anderson."
She would have left if my mom had not come in at that exact moment.
"Hi Ashley, it's good to see you" I walked away from them without a word and slammed my room door shut.
Shortly after, I could perceive the aroma of fresh tomatoes rift through the air. I didn't go out to assist my mother instead I lay down to see a movie. I had dozed off when I heard a knock on my door. It was Mom.
"Lunch is ready" she simply said.
The table was filled with pots of different sizes that held white rice, stew, and fried plantain. Then there was a big bowl of chicken right in the middle of the goodness. We sat down to eat
"Hold on, I want to show you girls something." Mom rose to open the drawer where Dad kept some simple tools and pulled out a pair of nuts and bolts. She handed the two nuts to me and the bolts to Ashley.
"Fix them" she simply said.
"Well, we can't. They won't fit" Ashley responded. Mom turned to me
"Honey, I don't know what made you girls have a disagreement but I want to liken you both to these nuts and bolts. So long as you're all about yourselves there would be no perfect fit. You can't understand each other" I was hungry and not in for a lecture but she was my mom, I had to listen.
"The essence of every relationship lies in understanding the basic, essential tenets of friendship. Friendship does not just entail hanging out with one another. It's about respect, love, reliability, trust, and all of this can be achieved through communication."
She turned to Ashley "You admitted to me that you were wrong but you didn't like the way she communicated her dissatisfaction, however, you were not ready to explain properly." I could see Ashley's face drop
"And you, munchkin, you didn't effectively communicate how displeased you were, you were simply ranting. Listen, girls, true friendship endures during the bad days. If you want to up and leave your friend because she messed up just like that, then you have no real love for each other."
Mom changed the direction of our friendship. That day I didn't just see Ashley and I, I saw two girls with two different designs just like nuts and bolts, but when screwed together the right way, they fit in … Perfectly.
