Fresh start.
That's what I've been telling myself over and over again. Fresh start. The thing is, it's not like I can just forget everything that happened. Tasha said that fresh starts aren't about forgetting the past but taking the lessons learnt, then putting all mistakes behind you, before giving everything another chance. But I can't believe that. Nope. She also says I'm stubborn.
I reckon Tasha knows me better than anyone else. More than myself even, maybe. I've known her like since forever, meeting her via an online pet game. As a little kid, I was pretty girly and loved to play dress up games and pet parlour etc. I don't believe I was one of those kids who truly,genuinely, 100 percent believed they were actual princesses and expected people to wait on them on hands and knees, though. I'm pretty sure Mum would make sure that now, if I had been like that, I would know. Anyway, I'm getting off track. So, Tasha and I met online and after that when we got older and grew out of the game, we moved onto a different game before finally exchanging emails and also skyping each other. We wanted to give each other our addresses too but when we asked our parents, unsurprisingly they said no. After all, my parents had never met Tasha and vice versa. Plus, there was no guarantee that either of us really were who we said to be. Both Tash and I were both massively disappointed as we had both recently finished reading a book about two best friends (which were what we believed us two to be) who lived far away from each other and sent each other parcels to bridge the distance. Disappointed as we were, we were both reasonably behaved children so although we didn't really understand or parents' concerns, we didn't exchange our addresses with each other.
Tasha and I didn't meet face to face until we were both in Yr 8. Secondary school had pulled us apart a little, as we were both busy trying to fit in and meet the demands that we weren't used to. We stopped emailing and skyping. My last email from Tasha said that she might not be able to do either of those things for a while as she was so laden with homework. I met the same situation and was so busy that I didn't ever even reply to that forgotten email that sat in my mailbox gathering dust (metaphorically). Even when I got the time to borrow my Dad's laptop, my parents didn't like me using it too much, afraid that I'll turn into a zombie teen feeding off electronic devices and that I'll lose the ability to communicate in real life.
So, when I returned in Yr 8, I got a massive surprise. Tasha was sat in my tutor base. I remember the complete and utter shock I experienced as I walked into the room with absolutely no reason to expect to see a friend that should have been on the other side of the world. I thought I was still half asleep then before she turned around and I saw that familar,warm face. She looked older than I last saw her, more tanned but still Tasha. I was struck by momentary shyness. I had never spoken to Tasha face to face (not counting Skype). Luckily, Tasha brought me out of my shock and ever so coolly said - " Hi." I gaped at her for a moment more before words started spilling out of my mouth totally without me permitting them to,"Oh my gosh! What are you doing here? I mean, it's not a bad thing in any way of course! It's just that...well...are you gonna go to school here- you're actually in my class?"
It turned out that Tasha had moved here as her Mum's job had required it. As we had never told each other where we lived other than the country, and Tasha never got round to telling me she was moving, neither of us had realised that Tasha had so happened to move not only to the same country and even city, but to the same school too! It was so much of a coincidence that we always talk about it whenever we reminisce about old times - well, lots of other conversations usually lead there too. I sometimes still can't quite believe that it's actually true. We often joke how we're destined to be together. At that's pretty much the story of Tash and me, at least up until this point,three years later.
