inner-10-year-old girl

I had the pleasure of spending the day with my old friend, Whitney.

We giggled about boys. We told stories of stupidity, rumored and of our own.  We walked around trying on clothing WAY out of our price range, and inadvertently added Whitney to a special club in a very high-end clothing store.

We bought a cake pop at Starbucks, just so we could use the bathroom. Guess who ended up eating the cake pop... who knew that Whitney doesn't like cake?!
...



I distinctly remember the first time Whitney talked to me: we were at her house, because she was hosting the cast party for the winter comedy. I had worked tech, and she had been the lead. My junior year, her sophomore, she was our high school's sweetheart, and for good reason. She was extremely kind, charming, and unbelievably talented. She was the surreal gift to our little amateur theater department.

I went to thank her and her parents for hosting, and Whitney said something to the effect of, "You are so talented! I can't wait to see you in a larger role!" She said it with a smile that was so sweet, it'd put a lollipop to shame. Her face was sincere and glowing as she held both my hands in hers and thanked me for coming to the party.

I'm pretty sure I actually snorted a giggle out of complete idiocy...
Whitney was complimenting me. I was startstruck.

Somewhere after a long homecoming night, where we were each other's dates, and preparing for a duet musical competition, we ended up best friends.

Lucky for me.

Whitney went off to New York City, to take Broadway by storm, as we all knew she would (and will). And I went off to Utah. She got exposed to the real world that is New York, and I got sucked into a beautifully serene and totally un-world-like bubble that is Provo. She learned how to get into trouble, I learned how to avoid it.

An example of our different worlds: I asked her today if the movies are really crude because it's entertaining, or if that's what people actually act like.  She laughed. "Oh no, Averill, they're so much worse in real life!"

By wonderful fortune, I got to spend the afternoon with her. and through our incessant giggling, we went on the search to get one of those "best friend" necklaces. you know the ones with the key and lock, the two halves of a heart, the puzzle pieces that fit together? So we skipped into "Claires", and spent at least 15 minutes postulating about which necklace to get. There was one with adorable lockets, one with music notes (which seemed appropriate), and one with a heart split in two, that said, "Partners in Crime." We literally could not decide. The woman working the store said, "I wouldn't do that one," in reference to the half hearts.
"Why not?"
"Because when you're apart, all it will say is, 'ners 'n me'. What the heck is that?"
"good point"

We narrowed it down to the other two, then decided to try them on. As we were looking in the mirror with these cheap chains, and tacky pendants, we realized we looked like 10-year-olds, and probably liked the sentiment more than the jewelry.

As we put back the necklaces, two girls that couldn't have been more than 8-years-old were next to the stand with the "best friend forever" necklaces, picking one out together.

A tender moment.
But we were really glad we didn't buy one.

We settled for some keychains.

Angelica and Rosie, respectively.

They fit us very well.

I've got a devil in my pocket to remind me to have fun, and she's got an angel in hers to remind her to not have too much ;)