Not too many people can say that they've had the same best friend since they were six years old. The lucky few of us that can say this know that it's pretty darn lucky. They say if you've been friends with someone for more than seven years, it means you'll be friends for life. Multiply that number by two and it'll give you the amount of time that I've known my bestie. In other words, we're stuck with each other. As the years have passed, we have both gained additional BFF's, mutual and not, but there will never be a bond quite like the one that is shared with a girl who has been by your side since you were six.
You went through every single awkward stage together.
Some best friends meet in middle school, so they experience that universally dreadful stage with one another. But knowing your BFF since you first started school means she was there for much more than just the middle school stage; she was there for all the elementary school years as well. She's seen it all: the bossy stage, chubby stage, dramatic stage, narcissistic stage, Abercrombie-everything stage, Hannah Montana wannabe stage, tomboy stage, you name it. She's experienced all of that, PLUS those horrible, horrible, middle school years. And, somehow, she never traded you in.
You know each other's families extremely well. Over the years you've also met a billion of your best friend's obscure extended family members, such as aunts and second cousins. Your twerpy little brother is basically your BFF's twerpy little bro as well. In high school, my best friend had Spanish class with my younger brother and the teacher was beyond confused as to why a little freshman was brave enough to be harassing a senior so much. Little did she know, they were bascally siblings, and that is what siblings do.
You're a package deal.
You two have been by each others sides for so long that it's just expected that when someone invites you somewhere, they'll often expect the other to be coming along. Invitations often go something like, "Yeah I'm having a party tonight, definitely come and of course (insert BFF's name here) is invited too!"
Fandoms.
For every JoBro, Hannah Montana, Simple Plan, T-Swift, One Direction, and Jbiebs obsession, your bestie has been right there, fan-girling with you. The best part is, you always have endless throwbacks to play on car rides together.
You develop best friend telepathy.
Seriously though. You both eventually develop the ability to know what the other is thinking about a person or a certain situation solely via their facial expression or the tone of their voice. A mere glance at one another can say so many things, such as, "omg Sally is being so annoying," or "when is this guy ever gonna stop talking about himself?"
You know each other almost as well as you know yourself. After being by your side for so many years and watching how you react to everything, your BFF is basically an expert on your personality. This makes for some of the most high quality advice around. For example, my best friend knows that I tend to overthink everything. Therefore, whenever I start to become anxious about something trivial, she reminds me right away that I'm probably being ridiculous.
Endless embarrassing videos and pictures.
From middle school video assignments�, to videos from that time in fifth grade when you tried to start your own Youtube channel, to pictures of you running a lemonade stand at age seven, there's no shortage of hilarious artifacts of the two of you throughout the years (for better or for worse).
You know every detail about each other's love lives.
Your best friend was the first person you told about the boy that asked you out on AIM back in sixth grade, and she's still the first person you tell when a boy in your class at school asks you on a date. She also knows about every crush you've ever had, including the embarrassing ones that you wish she'd forget.
SO MANY memories. You both could easily spend an entire day just reminiscing about all of the ridiculous shenanigans you've participated in together throughout the years. "Remember when" is a common phrase used when the two of you are together, and it's often followed by a lot of laughing (and sometimes cringing).
No judgement, ever.
After growing up with someone and going through all the young years when you're at your weirdest, nothing you can say will ever scare them away. It's probably the best part about having a best friend that has known you for almost as long as you've known yourself. You have someone that you can tell absolutely everything to, in complete honesty, and not be the slightest bit worried about being embarrassed or judged. If they've stuck with you through the time that you wore a long plaid dress over bootleg jeans, they're clearly here to stay.
