A Part of My Memory

Zara

I could hear it. And now I had two options. I could either turn it off and get out of bed or sleep for five more minutes.

I picked the latter, obviously.

Without opening my eyes, I reached my hand out and felt for my phone on the bedside table to turn off the alarm. Feeling for my device, I swiped my finger across the screen to silence the incessant ringing and then tucked my hand back into the blankets, relishing the warmth. Sleep hadn't drifted too far from my grasp, and I could feel myself drifting off again.

"Why am I not surprised?" a voice suddenly said.

I only grumbled in response before my brain registered the fact that I was supposed to be the only person in this apartment.

Screaming, I scrambled out of my sheets and frantically scanned the room, aware of how hard my heart was pounding in my chest. The intruder was leaning against my front door and it was none other than Serena, the only one who didn't seem to care about giving me a heart attack. She pushed off of the door nonchalantly as if she hadn't just almost killed me, wheeling her suitcase behind her.

"You sleep in too much," she said before placing a bundle of keys onto the counter and helping herself to a glass of water.

"And you're going to kill me one day." I could still feel my heart pounding, refusing to calm. "You can't just walk in unannounced like that."

"Can't I?" Serena teased.

"This is the last time I tell you where my spare keys are," I grumbled, getting out my blankets.

"Oh, I didn't use your spare keys," Serena said before chugging down the glass of water. "I cut my own key from your spare key."

My brows rose, "and why would you do that?"

"Because when you lose your spare key again, you won't have to break your lock like last time."

"I won't lose my spare key."

"That's what you said last time," she said, pouring herself another glass of water. "And the time before that too."

"You better wash that glass," was all I said in response.

"I'm obviously going to wash the glass, I'm not you," Serena retorted.

"Oh come on, I wash my dishes."

"Only when you have no more clean dishes to use."

"I don't do that anymore," I defended.

"You did it last week. And the week before."

"I've changed now."

Serena rolled her eyes, "just hurry up and get ready before you make us late."

"I won't make us late. I'm not you," I stated before entering the bathroom.

Serena was the one person in this universe who knew me as well as I knew myself. We were best friends, but we were complete opposites. We were like yin and yang. She was extremely extroverted, and I wasn't. She was fashionable, and I wasn't. She was a people person, and I was a book and Netflix person.

We met in college at a fresher party and formed an instant connection. I had psyched myself up to go to that party and didn't plan on going to any parties after that one, but I found myself going to most of them because of Serena. Her extroverted self adopted my introverted self and forced me to be social with her at least once a month. It was horrible but I always found myself having a good time, eventually. We grew closer and closer and now we're basically sisters. She's honestly the only family I have.