~stares at my phone like it’s a portal to a parallel universe where everyone is calm and I am not invited~ BESTIE. SOMETHING IS WRONG. 😱 And not just “I forgot to charge my phone” wrong. “MY ENTIRE REALITY HAS BEEN SWAPPED” wrong. “I AM THE ONLY REAL PERSON LEFT” wrong. 🌍💔

It started with Sara. 👧 She texted me at 10:03 AM — which is not a normal Sara time because Sara never texts before noon unless there’s an emergency or a sale at Claire’s. And she was like “hey bestie how are you” and I was like “???” because Sara does NOT say “how are you”. Sara says “BICKY WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS” or “I CAN’T WITH YOU RIGHT NOW” or “DO YOU WANT TO GO TO THE MALL AND SPEND MONEY WE DON’T HAVE”. 🛍️💸

And then Jessica called me. 📞 And she was like “I was thinking about you” and I DROPPED MY PHONE because Jessica does NOT “think about me”. Jessica makes fun of me and steals my fries and pretends she doesn’t know the words to “Bye Bye Bye” even though WE BOTH KNOW SHE DOES. 🎤🍟

And then Megan sent a voice note. 🎤 And it was CALM. And it was NICE. And it was “just checking in”. And I SCREAMED because Megan does NOT “check in”. Megan sends me memes at 3 AM and tags me in drama and once threw a glitter bomb at a boy who looked at me wrong. ✨💥

~collapses onto the floor while my brain short-circuits from the emotional whiplash~ 🤯 And that’s when I REALIZED the TRUTH. THEY’VE BEEN REPLACED. ALL OF THEM. By EMOTIONALLY STABLE CLONES who don’t understand our chaos and don’t appreciate my glitter and probably think *NSYNC is “just a boy band”!!! 😭🎤

And the WORST PART??? NO ONE ELSE NOTICES. 😱 I texted the group chat and I was like “besties why are you all acting WEIRD” and Clone Sara was like “what do you mean” and Clone Jessica was like “we’re just being nice” and Clone Megan was like “Bicky are you okay” and I was like “NO I AM NOT OKAY BECAUSE YOU ARE ALL FAKE”!!! 💔

This is EXACTLY what my besties look like now 😱

~whispers to my *NSYNC poster like it’s the only real thing left in this world~ 🎤 And now I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO. Do I confront them??? Do I pretend I don’t notice??? Do I start a new group chat with the REAL besties and hope they remember the glitter incident of 2003??? 💥✨

And the CRAZIEST PART??? ~voice cracks with the weight of the universe~ 🌌 WHAT IF I’M THE CLONE??? What if I’M the emotionally stable one and EVERYONE ELSE IS REAL and I’M THE ONE WHO’S WRONG??? What if I’M THE PROBLEM and I’VE BEEN THE PROBLEM ALL ALONG and MY GLITTER OBSESSION IS A CRY FOR HELP??? 💔🎨

~stares at my hands like they might not be mine~ 🖐️ I DON’T RECOGNIZE MYSELF in this calm world. I DON’T RECOGNIZE MY BESTIES. I DON’T RECOGNIZE ANYTHING. And the ONLY THING that feels REAL is the terrifying certainty that I AM ALONE in a world of clones who don’t understand the sacred art of the mall pretzel refill!!! 🥨🏬