Loved One

by Aisha Muharrar

This was the thing about friendships. Unlike in a romantic relationship, you could disappear for a few weeks, even months, without a check-in. You’d always pick up right where you left off. Knowing this, the problem was you could easily end up going too long without spending time in person. Since he’d moved, Gabe and I heard about each other’s lives, but we were no longer involved in them, no longer familiar with all the events and players or participating in the weekly ups and downs. Instead we had catch-up phone calls. They were a necessary evil: the conjugal visit of friendships, talking in the car on the way to or from somewhere, or while waiting in line, or during a lunch break, cramming every recent detail into fifteen minutes or less of conversation. It was a perpetual update exchange as opposed to experiencing life together.

thisss.