**Originally written for The Kristen Archive**
Since they were little girls in their first year at pre-school they have been fast friends. They shared lost teeth, ice cream, angry dads, dead pets and all the highs and lows of a friendship that transcends normal boundaries. They are closer than sisters, more intimately involved in each other’s lives than I had ever thought possible. It is impossible to think of one without the other. For the last 14 years I had been watching them play, fight, argue, makeup and grow into beautiful young women.
Amber is her mother’s daughter, open, friendly, dark eyed, dark hair framing her fair skinned oval face. She is beautiful, there is no other word for it. Eve is a red head, but try and call her a “‘ranga” and kiss your eyes goodbye. She has dusky skin, lightly coated with freckles and the greenest eyes I have ever seen. Neither of them are tall, but this is the only physical area they are alike. Amber is slow to anger, whereas Eve is more mercurial, both are quick to forgive and invoke a warmth that draws a lot of people to them. Amber is a thinker, but quick on her feet, showing an impeccable judgment of people and situations. Eve is more reactive, more emotive, but just as smart as Amber. Peas in a pod they are complementing each other. Eve is the social half and Amber the scientist. Watching them at their school work was always fun, Eve always took the lead on humanities and social sciences, and Amber math and science. Together, they taught each other better than any teacher ever could have. Now, at 18, they were taking charge of their own lives in ways parents expect, but usually dread.