When did you realize your best friend was fake?

The Onset of Symptoms

I was showering when suddenly clumps of my hair started falling into the shower drain. I instantly told my best friend Amelia to come over that afternoon. When I showed her, she tilted her head and said:

“Okay, that’s definitely weird, but it’s probably just stress. You’ve been studying for finals like crazy.”

She had a point. I’d been pulling all-nighters for two weeks straight. I convinced myself Amelia was right. It was just stress. It would grow back.

By the next week, I was finding hair everywhere. But that wasn’t even the worst part. Every morning my teeth would look even more yellow than the day before. Like really yellow.

Even though I was brushing twice a day and using whitening strips, my smile looked dull and almost brown in some spots.

“Are you feeling okay?” Hugo asked that night.

Something in his voice was different. Despite eating just a box of Tic Tacs everyday, I’d gained five pounds in two weeks. My jeans wouldn’t button. My face looked puffy.

When I cried to Amelia about it, she came over immediately with this huge bag from Whole Foods.

“Okay, intervention time. I’ve been researching and I think your hormones are all messed up.”

She pulled out her blender and started throwing in spinach, berries, and these protein supplements.

“Trust me, my mom swears by this stuff.”

Soon, Hugo started making excuses not to hang out, saying he was busy with his internship applications.

Two weeks later, my nails started cracking down the middle and peeling off in layers. I’d gained another ten pounds. I made an appointment with my doctor and she did blood work. She called me back in with this expression that made my stomach drop.

“With symptoms this severe, we need to rule out some things.”

“Like, what?”

“I don’t want you to panic, but we need to check for any masses.”

I spent the next week getting blood drawn and scans done, googling my symptoms. At 3:00 a.m., Hugo’s texts got shorter and shorter.

Amelia came to every appointment, held my hand. When the doctor called me back, I was sure she was about to tell me I was dying. Instead, she looked confused. Everything came back normal. Thyroid, hormones, no masses, no abnormalities.

Hugo broke up with me over text.

“I need space. This isn’t working for me anymore.”

Blocked on everything.

Amelia came over with takeout and tea from a wellness store.

“It’s supposed to help with inflammation. My aunt swears by it.”

The tea tasted bitter, but I was too exhausted to care.