On the first day of sixth grade, I was outrageously disappointed to find that in English, my assigned seat was right next to the class lunatic. But alas, lunatic was a subtle name for him. As to why, there are many reasons and I can only name a few. For starters, he twitched in every class and always turned a statement into some dumb joke which no one understood. He would mock everyone when they talked to him in some cartoon voice and for no good reason- or at least, that’s what I thought. He even obsessed with aliens and exaggerated the value of South Park! It was as though every characteristic of this blond haired, blue eyed and freckled boy was picked out of a hat- the characteristics themselves put in by a dazed five year old. He was not someone you would find walking on the streets of everyday, especially in my world, but I have come to find that that’s why we became such good friends. Of course, it was a wild ride considering my preppy attitude and obsession of school but it was worth it.

The start of our friendship began as I took my seat. I turned my nose up and stared straight ahead in an, I’m-trying-to-ignore-you or you-don’t-exist, kind of way. Almost immediately, our teacher began to go over the usual “rules of the classroom”, and hearing them for the 8th time that day, I swore I could recite them in my sleep backwards. Challenging myself, I began to try in my mind. As I started to repeat the order, my thoughts were interrupted by a nasally impression of a South Park character.

“Three missing homework assignments and your parents will be alerted. Be sure to study for tests because they count as BLAH, BLAH, BLAH!” the lunatic muttered with a content smile on his face. I stared at him as he began to mock every other rule that was stated with much satisfaction. His smile continually got bigger and bigger and it was as though no amount of torture or pain could stop him from living. That was one trait about him that I always envied, he never cared about anything in the world besides what he wanted. It just didn’t matter.

As our teacher came to her conclusion, he did as well. The rest of the period was free time and he went on muttering about how stupid it was to hear the same things over and over. He wasn’t speaking to me, even though I was sitting right next to him, but I don’t know who he was speaking to. Strangely overcome by his thoughts spoken out loud, I began to laugh hysterically and to my dismay, most of my peers stared at me. The lunatic, however, did not and simply began to laugh along. At that precise moment, I grew to find a sense of fellowship with Eric Najimian.

Ever since then, Eric has helped me through the dangers of middle school. With many social problems, I constantly run into trouble without even knowing it. I have to watch what I say in fear that it may be twisted and used against me. My opinions stay unsaid and my mind unspoken- at least during school hours. Out of school, when I’m hanging out with Eric, whether we are doing homework or hiking through creeks, I don’t have to hide who I really can be. I can be musical, a little adventurous, be open to how I feel, and try new things without being worried about being judged. To him, I’m not just a smarty-pants or a know-it-all schoolgirl, and I don’t have to be. I can be me, Sitav.

But above all, Eric is a true best friend because he lets me fight my own battles. In my school, students don’t necessarily like me no matter what I do or say. I could say hi to someone and it would be turned into a word brawl and end up in a month-long controversy. But unlike most friends that would shout out some lame comment to get people to leave me alone when I do get caught in these annoying fights, Eric stands in his place and waits for this dispute to end and then calmly comments on my behalf. He judges fairly and always points out what’s wrong with both sides.

So whether or not Eric buys me a birthday gift or calls me three times a day to tell me about the latest gossip, he’s there. Not because of social groups or because he thinks I’m cool (I’m not), but because he wants to. Unlike most, my best friend looks past what people say to what really is true. And for that, I thank him, my best friend, Eric.