Instant friendship

Christmas Eve has always been a special holiday for me. It stopped being so three years ago when my parents died in a car accident. We were all going to my grandmother's house for the holidays out of town. Moments later, I felt a very strong impact. I woke up in the hospital. I only had a broken arm, a broken leg, and a slight concussion. But my parents and sister were already dead. I didn't find out until three days after the accident. I'd asked beforehand, but everyone assured me my parents were fine and that I'd be infesting them in a few days. I couldn't wait for that day. Unfortunately, it didn't happen. I ended up in an orphanage because my grandmother was already an elderly woman and couldn't cope. I was surprised when they told me she wouldn't be able to cope with me, even though I was already 13! Now I'm 16 and have two more years of shelter left. After that, I have to fend for myself. My grandmother has been dead for a year. And unfortunately, I don't know any other family. I'm not doing well in school, and in a few months, I'm taking the high school entrance exam. I don't know how I'm going to cope. I'm struggling with my grades. And on top of that, no one likes me at school. I sit alone in my desk, I have no friends. We're having a class Christmas party next week. As usual, everyone will be happy, talking about where they're going for the holidays, and what am I doing? No wonder no one likes me; I don't even have anything to talk about. I'm, in a word, boring. I'm worthless. I miss my parents, and my sister will be eighteen on December 30th. Only, she's no longer here... A new girl has joined our class. Her name is Ewelina, she's new to this town and school. For the first time in a dozen months, someone has spoken to me, and it wasn't a teacher! It was Ewelina. I hesitantly replied "hi," thinking she knew everything because her classmates had already spilled the beans. Two-faced girls. How can I be friends with them...? But she asked why I was sitting alone. I felt a strong urge to confide in someone. It's been a while since I've talked so much. I told her everything, step by step, and she seemed sad. She said she couldn't make friends at school either, because everyone was picking on her for living with her grandmother. It turned out we had a lot in common. Her parents also died, not in a car accident, but in a fire. We cried our hearts out, and by Christmas Eve, I wasn't alone anymore. I had a new friend I could trust. And thanks to her, I believed that being in an orphanage wasn't so bad after all. We swore that when we turned 18, we'd study and earn extra money, and we'd buy a small apartment, maybe even a one-bedroom one. I even started getting straight A's, thanks to Ewelina, of course. I'm sure this is a friendship that will last the rest of my life.