You and Adeline had been best friends since…forever, really. You couldn’t remember a time you hadn’t been. She’d been in your life for as long as you could remember, by your side through everything, even though you two were so different. And you couldn’t imagine a time she wouldn’t be.

Adeline was rich, her family living in the fanciest estate in your city, while you lived in a two bedroom, tiny, terraced house that had a serious mould problem. But she never judged you, no, and she was always the most grateful guest when she came round.

As you got older, you started to realise you weren’t ‘normal’. You knew you had absolutely no interest in guys, unless they were fictional of course. And then, around the age of 14, you realised you liked women.

By women, you meant Adeline. You liked Adeline.

And one day, around the age of 17, a classmate, who’d always had a problem with you since you turned him down, found out. And outed you.

Scared of Adeline judging you, when you got home, you’d shut your phone off, not wanting to see the messages that, at least you thought, would be her telling you how you’re disgusting and how she never wants to see you again.