1. The Big Five

                                    

                                          
I laughed with my best friend. Joey had slipped by stepping on a puddle of water. He rubbed the back of his head and smiled a cheeky grin. We were having fun. We were best friends since we were like one.
                          
We were still laughing, but the scene changed. I wasn't laughing anymore. Only Joey was laughing. And he was laughing with his new friends. I was left behind. I was crying now.
                          
"Why?" I found myself asking. "Why did you do it, Joey?"
                          
"Who are you?" Joey asked, no recognition in his eyes. He had abandoned me. He forgot me.
                          
I jerked awake and found my pillow wet. Did I cry in my sleep? Ugh. I sighed and wiped my face. This dream wasn't new. I had it frequently, but with different scenes. Joey was my best friend since we were in diapers.
                          
Note the word "was". You would think that something like falling in love with him broke our friendship or something cliché like that, but sad reality is that he ditched me, his best friend of fifteen years, for hanging out with a group of four other boys in ninth grade.
                          
I was hurt, of course, but Joey had changed so much. He barely talked to me in school. I got over it, but it took two long years, and I still had nightmares about it.
                          
I sleepily looked at my clock. 6:43. Sighing, I lay back down on my pillow. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep, so I left the warmth of my bed and took a long shower. When I was done, it was 7:05. I dried my hair and got ready for school. It was near the end of September so the weather was getting a bit chilly.
                          
I put on a black jacket on top of my long-sleeved white shirt, and wore skinny jeans. Once that was done, I went downstairs. Mom wasn't up yet, so I made a simple peanut butter sandwich. I never liked jam, so I only covered the toast with peanut butter. I downed milk with that.
                          
I was putting my cup in the dishwasher when my mom woke up.
                          
"You're up early," she said. Her voice croaked from just waking up.
                          
"I have school," I told her. We had a long weekend when we had school off on Thursday. Mom must have gotten used to me sleeping in.
                          
"Of course," she yawned and walked over to the fridge, her slippers scraping on the floor. I packed two sandwiches for lunch along with some milk and an apple.
                          
"I'll see you later, Mom," I waved before closing the door behind me. Taking a deep breath, I let the fresh morning air into my lungs. It was wonderful. I got my bike and slung my bag over my shoulders. I liked to ride a bike to school. The air was refreshing and it didn't take too long to get there.
                          
Joey never understood. He was lazy. He always wanted to take a car even though the school was only a fifteen minute walk away--five if you rode on a bike. I let the wind blow my long auburn hair. It needed to dry a bit more anyway, since it was still a bit damp. I didn't know if the cold wind would really help, though.
                          
A car passed me, but it slowed down to match my speed. I looked over at the car, wondering who it was. The window opened and I saw Joey's smug smile.
                          
"Hiya, Nick," he waved.
                          
"You're allowed to drive?" I asked. His dad loved his car and never allowed Joey to take it out for even a simple drive.
                          
"Early birthday present," he said simply, patting the side of the car. I slowed down and stopped. Joey's birthday was in January. He had a really early birthday present.
                          
"I'm not sure Mr. Gordon would give up his car so easily, even if it was your birthday," I said skeptically.
                          
"Well, see you in school!" Joey stated and ignored my comment before rolling up the windows and driving away. I shook my head wistfully. If Joey and I still had a healthy-best-friend relationship, he probably would have asked me to ride with him. I missed the old days. The days when Joey didn't constantly think about what was cool and what was lame. The days when he didn't care about girls. The days when I was the only one he ever played with.