To my best friend:

This paragraph is the result of me trying out different introductions and deleting them because none of them were good enough. But I'm sure you completely expected that from me, knowing how you're one of the only people in my life who really took the time to understand the way I think. To be entirely honest, I think this will end up being a huge thank you letter for putting up with me for the last five and a half years. I'm not sure yet though, so I guess we'll have to see how this goes.

When I think about where our friendship began, I always remember the first day of freshman year in high school when I walked into IF and saw you (the only other brown girl) sitting in the corner farthest away from the door. I remember trudging over to the seat next to you and plopping myself down. I don't know what you were thinking, but honestly, I found some comfort sitting next to you. I recognized you immediately when I walked into math class a few periods later. Throughout the year, we talked more and more and got closer. We really did spend a whole lunch period listing out all the reasons why chappal were better than Nike Jordans, dude. And we were the only ones who found the stories about Sri-Sheshadariprativadibayankaram on 51 Shades of Brownactually funny (I still think about that story about the coconut oil and cringe) even though everyone we showed it to was weirded out by it. I remember how I used to sit next to you in math in the middle of the aisle and Ms. Nelson wouldn't even say anything because me kicking you was the only reason you stayed awake during class and didn't drift off to sleep.

As the years passed, we got closer and closer until I really couldn't imagine my life without you. You were always the constant in my life, and I knew I could always come to you when I needed a shoulder to lean on.

Thank you for putting up with my terrible sense of humor. It's a pain for me to deal with sometimes too.

Thank you for educating me on things even though it comes with you calling me an idiot and yelling at me for living under a rock. I began to count on you to yell at me to my face rather than say things about me behind my back.

Thank you for knowing how to make me feel better and always being genuine in what you say to me when I'm not in the best mood. You've shown me unparalleled support and love, and I could never ever repay you for that.

Thank you for constantly giving me something to look forward to. I'm still counting on our New York trip, our Japan trip, and our Disney trip, as well as loads of other travels with each other to come.

Thank you for being my anchor when things were not going well for me. At one point, you were the only person who understood how I felt and what I was going through, and you stayed with me through the whole thing. Your consistency is irreplaceable in my life.

Thank you for being one of my only friends who my mom likes. Now, you're the only person I can hang out with without her complaining about me wasting my time (lol).

Thank you for our late-night FaceTime calls. I remember when we used to rant about Thirteen Reasons Why, cry about our IAs and homework, study for exams together, list out all the states from most relevant to least relevant, go off about everything that's wrong about the world, and lose our sanity in front of each other at 3am. But it's fine.

Thank you for your genuineness. I appreciate it a lot more than I let on. You help me improve as a person by pointing out my flaws, but not in a way that makes me feel bad about myself. I can say with total confidence that you were one of the biggest impacts on my life and you shaped me into who I am today.

Thank you for your consistency. This is something I have never really experienced in my life, and you've shown me what exactly a good friend would go through for something they care about. You always have my best interest in mind when you help me, and I don't think I could ever tell you how grateful I am for that.

Thank you for reading 51 Shades of Brown with me. Blow.

Thank you for introducing some of the most important videos in my LIFE to me. These include (but are not limited to): "everybody was in mass confusion and hysteria"/"pass the **** out and don't get up, EVER," "burn them caucasian nails right off your fingertips," and [laughter].

Thank you for telling me about Crystal and promising me that if I ever needed it, you would give me your Superstars to hit someone with. That moment sealed our friendship, I think.

Thank you for fishing out coins with me from your backpack that one day in Starbucks and for walking all the way to Burger King with me just to get a large fries because we were so ridiculously hungry.

Thanks for getting Aishwarya and Deepika on our Starbucks drinks that one day in freshman year when we were studying for AP Human Geography in Barnes and Noble.

Thank you for trusting me enough to show me your tan lines. Also, thank you for trusting me enough to call me every time the cleaning ladies move your bath mats around and crying in front of me while I laugh at you.

Thank you for laughing at me when I forced myself to cry to scenes from K3G because I really wanted to cry so I could feel less stressed.

Thank you for getting caught skipping with me that one day in sophomore year. Officer Rande is such a joke now.

I really don't know what I would do without you. You've been with me through my highest ups and my lower-than-low downs, and even though we're in different states for college, you showed me that if someone matters to you, you will put in the effort to keep them close to you. Thank you for not letting me go and not giving up on me when I felt like everyone else has. This list doesn't even begin to cover how grateful I am to have you in my life. You mean the world and more to me, and I hope you find the same home in me that I find in you.

Niki out.