By Christine Garcia
High School includes a whirlwind of new experiences and academic challenges; however, the one thing that remains consistent is your relationship with your friends.
Friends are your chosen family. They’re the ones that you call when you’ve had the worst day ever or the absolute best day of your life. These shared experiences or classes and late-night talks allow you to develop relationships that last a lifetime.
So, what’s the secret to a long-lasting friendship?
Photos by Justin Nguyen.
Friends since kindergarten
“[The secret to a long lasting friendship is] listening to your friends and sticking with them, even [through] tough [times] … talking from experience during my quarantine moment,” junior Allyson Luong said.
“[The secret to a long lasting friendship is] making the effort to see each other. It’s really easy to fall out as friends, [if] you go [to] different schools or you don’t get to see each other,” junior Nicole Tran said.
Friends since elementary school
“[The secret to a long lasting friendship is] don’t keep secrets from each other… Also, spend time with each other every day, and physical touch [is also important]. They got my back when [I get in trouble] … They protect me,” junior Shawn Pham said.
Friends since middle school
“I thought Layla was very quiet, and Natalie and Betty were very funny and outgoing. … [The secret to a long lasting friendship is] just getting to know each other and hanging out and spending time as much as possible,” freshman Lily Bess said.
Friends since middle school
“I met her during lunch in seventh grade. She was eating cup noodles, and she brought, like, a whole jug of hot water and I was like ‘Wow, she’s really prepared’ and I really want to eat that with her. We like to walk around school with each other. The secret to a long friendship is … having the same humor,” sophomore Mai-Lan Vu said.
Friends since middle school
“Y’all gotta hop on Fortnite and … y’all gotta have fun on Fortnite and y’all gotta go out. And, y’all gotta play Call of Duty,” freshman Jordan Vui said.
“[The secret to a long lasting friendship is] hooping, playing golf with my homeboy right here, and playing a bunch of video games on the weekends. Go out and enjoy life with your friends. That’s it,” freshman Max Lang said.
“I think that you just got to find common interests, and y’all gotta be kind to each other, and you really just gotta form the bonds,” freshman Jack Wilson said.
Friends since 8th grade
“I would say boundaries—I think that’s really important—and communicating and matching the vibe of your friends. Don’t [be] fake, [be] honest with [your friends],” junior Jay Nguyen.
“If you have a problem with them, you should probably talk it out. Don’t just secretly hate on them and then drop them,” junior Kalynn Nguyen said.
Friends since 8th grade/Freshman year
“Their humor and how …. I can say anything to them without feeling judged… [The secret to a long-lasting friendship is] communication and boundaries. For me, I know that if they asked me to hang out and I wasn’t feeling it, I know that I could just tell them and they would understand… If there’s something I ever needed to talk to them about, anything they would always be [there for me]… And if there was something that I had a problem with them doing, they would hear me out and not argue, but want to listen,” junior Charley Jones said.
