I met my best friend in the sixth grade. Together we joined school dances, sat together on field trips, passed funny notes in math class, and finally joined the yearbook club in eighth grade. A few days after our eighth-grade graduation, my best friend messaged me with the words, "I am pregnant." My eyes hovered over the words "I" and "pregnant." We were just kids. We were just worried about getting the backseats on the bus during field trips and writing five-paragraph essays for English class. Now she had to worry about hiding her baby bump from watchful gazes and staying up at night to the songs of a crying baby. Even though I could not see her face, I could see the pain in her eyes. I wanted my encouraging texts to wrap around her like a soft, big blanket. But, I knew my texts wouldn't stop what she was about to experience.

Throughout her pregnancy, she told me stories of strangers passing by with looks of disgust and pity plastered on their faces. But it did not stop there. Someone from our middle school had uploaded an online photo of my best friend's graduation picture with a caption that exposed her pregnancy. When I saw the photo, my heart sank. On top of handling a growing womb, she even had to endure the hurtful comments from the people she knew. It crushed my best friend to know that the people she once called friends were shaming her.
But this did not change my view of my best friend. From middle school till now, my best friend and I supported each other in our hardships. When life was too hard for her to stand on her own, I became a stepping stown, and she was always there to do the same for me. To me, friendship meant unconditional support and that is what held us together. I did not know what it was like to be a teen mother, but I knew exactly what it was like to be a friend.