Emma's Mixtape

This is me with one of my closest friends, Andrea. You know how charity shops like you to donate "gently worn" clothes? I call Andrea my "gently worn" friend. When I was 11, my best friend, Lizzie, broke my heart by moving to a new school and getting a new best friend. Andrea. I was jealous and heart-achey. But, as adults, Lizzie and I reconnected (she was just as funny and kind as in childhood) and it turned out my mysterious rival, Andrea, had moved out to L.A the same month as me. Andrea and I instantly hit it off, and helped each other ease into this vast, strange city. That Lizzie had loved us both intensely, suffused this new friendship with a depth and trust we didn't actually have yet, like a nostalgia for things you've never experienced. The girl who bullied me the absolute worst at school was Greek, so it's strangely significant that Andrea, my adult-world protector, is Greek too!