One Hundred Letters for James

003

003:

Arachnids

(I finally arrived a Uni today. My roommate is terrible, but I can handle it)

That day in Grade One, I think, was when I first met you. Or maybe I had known you from before, but this was the day that we became friends. Best friends.

I had cut my hair really short, like a boy, because I was just that kind of girl. Enter Todd Miller, you know the kid.

It was show and tell or something, and Todd brought his tarantula.

"Wow Kathleen, nice hair cut." He had sneered. "Maybe we should call you Manleen, like manly? Yea. Manleen, Manleen!" He taunted. Then you, like some sort of knight in shining armor, or some fairy tale crap like that, came striding in.

"Hey, don't call her that!" You had said, standing in front of me like a wall. I stared at your back, confused, because I had never had anyone stand up for me before.

"What are you gonna do about it, huh?" And then you pushed him, and he dropped his stupid glass tarantula cage, and it shattered. I probably jumped two feet in the air, I was so scared of that overgrown spider scampering across the ground.

Then you took hold of my hand and whispered, "It's alright," before pulling me away and bringing me over to tell the teacher.

We haven't been apart since. Until now, of course. Now, that I haven't heard from you in an alarming amount of time. Our fight was that bad, huh?

And I'm still scared of arachnids.

And I haven't cut my hair since then, ever, in fear of regaining my nickname. It's down to my waist now.