Living on Perfectly Remembered Memories

"So I'll talk to you whenever you can call back?" I asked, sighing.

"Yes. As soon as my uncle has decided my tennis skills are up to par."

"Okay. Bye!"

"Bye."

I placed the phone down, content that I could at least talk to Rafael. Sure, I can't travel all the way to Spain to see him but talking to him will have to do. The way he's described how his summer is going to go, he's in for a lot of work.

His entire summer consists of endurance training to keep up with the extreme weather conditions of tennis. That meant he had to run five miles every day in the sweltering heat with a rest period of a measly minute before continuing on his mark.

All of that sweatiness, I could never stand it. That sucks that he has to go to such extremes for one sport. Eh, I guess when you love something that much, you just have to sacrifice things for it.

Not five minutes after I finished my phone call with Rafael, the phone rang again. I chuckled to myself for no particular reason and picked up the caller.

"Hello?" I chirped.

"Hi best friend! What did you do today?" Matt asked very enthusiastically.

Sighing, I told Matt that I was talking to Rafael for about an hour or so until he had to go get ready for his tennis practice. I also stated that I miss him. I shouldn't miss him because that means I'm getting attached but it's hard not to miss someone when you talk to them once a week.

"What you don't miss me?" he whined. I could epically imagine his lower lip tremble to a pout.

"Matty, we live right across from each other," I reasoned.

"I see how it is."

"That isn't wh-"

Then the phone was silent. I put it down and frowned. Why is he so sensitive all of a sudden? I was going to think about it more since that's what I did a lot of today, but the doorbell rang. I yelled, saying I would get it and walked to the door.

I opened the door to see a smiling Matt and an anxious Amy. "Well I missed you!" he laughed and pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. Amy ran inside to play with Kenny right after.

I rolled my eyes, frustrated I could never predict his next move. Matt trudged into my house without an invitation and immediately went to the fridge. I followed him, taking an apple from the fruit basket.

"So, are you ready for your birthday tomorrow?" he asked while searching into the depths of the refrigerator.

"Sure, the big 1-6," I replied. I didn't expect the middle of July to swing around so quickly.

"What are we doing?"

"A picnic, I think. Maybe we should celebrate our birthdays together like the other times."

"NO!" he begged. His head finally emerged with a chocolate covered strawberry in his mouth. "16 is an important age," he began to explain after taking a bite of the fruit, "you deserve your glory. Besides, I'd rather celebrate mine at the end of the month, like I should. Follow tradition for once you know?"

"Okay, fine, fine."

"I really hope you're ready for tomorrow. It's going to be an awesome day," he said with a calculating gin on his face.

Who's ready to get this birthday over with? I am! Who's ready to turn 16? I am! Who's ready to see Matt's hidden meaning behind his words? I am not!