On Tuesday night I was hanging out with my two best friends. They kept whispering to each other like they were keeping secrets from me, and it made me feel really anxious and excluded.

Yesterday I had a really bad day. I struggle with depression and yesterday was just... terrible. I was worried about my friends, my boyfriend, and the fact that the next day was my 18th birthday. I was also upset because I had been trying to plan a birthday party and couldn’t find a day that fit with all my friends’ schedules. I just generally felt unloved and sad.

Then my boyfriend texted me asking to hang out once he got off work, and it brightened my day a bit, but I was still pretty anxious. I went about the rest of my day, until my best friend got off work, and she came over to pick up some clothes she had forgotten. I noticed she seemed a little off, and I said “You’re planning something, aren’t you?” I watched an “oh shit” look cross her face for .2 seconds before she really quickly said “No! Look at how cute Gizmo [my cat] is!”

At this point I was a little suspicious, but she said she was going out to dinner with her boyfriend, so I brushed it aside.

Then my boyfriend came to get me, and we went and got some food. I noticed he was on his phone a lot more than usual but, as he just got a new phone a few days ago, didn’t think much of it. He mentioned something about forgetting something at a friends house, so we went to the friends house to go get it. I was already suspicious because I’m hard to fool but my boyfriend was playing it off so casually that I honestly wasn’t sure.

When we got there there was a trash can blocking the driveway, and I jokingly told him to run it over. He was about to when my little brother jumped out from behind it and screamed “SURPRISE!” and then ALL my friends came running out from behind the bushes, the fence, everywhere. I was honestly so happy and so shocked at everyone there.

I had so much fun and was so heart warmed by my friends, it made my birthday perfect. When they sang me happy birthday it was the cutest thing in the world and i just kind of had this realization of “Oh, my god, my friends are fucking amazing.”

Love these girls to the end of the earth and back. 💛 (I’m the one on the top right)

20 year old female flying alone...