As senior year comes to a close, we recognize the seniors who have gotten each other through the years and were recognized as the Best-Best Friend Duos in the senior superlatives.
Haylee Au and Jillian Stachowski, the girls’ dynamic duo, share a friendship that spans from when they were both babies, thanks to their dads’ close friendship and shared love for fishing. Despite being around each other since childhood, Haylee and Jillian didn’t hit it off at first. However, everything changed in the 6th grade when they struck up a conversation that sparked a lasting connection.
Haylee said, “Jill is my ultimate best friend, someone who inspires me to be a better person and keeps me grounded.” Haylee refers to Jill as the “good cop” and herself as “bad cop,” with Jill always encouraging her to take the high road in problems. Through thick and thin, Haylee and Jill have been each other’s rocks, offering support during traumatic times. Their deep understanding of one another ensures that jealousy and negativity never affect their bond. They can go months without talking, but when they reconnect, it’s as if no time has passed. Their ability to always find their way back to each other shows the strength of their friendship.
Jacob Lopez and Cyprian Way are the boys’ best buds. Jacob and Cyprian’s friendship is definitely something that should be recognized for their reconnection and growth. They first met a long time ago in Mrs. Faulkner’s 6th-grade math class at Gridley Middle School. Although they were friendly, their bond didn’t truly grow until they both joined Student Council. However, their connection was interrupted during spring break in 7th grade. The pandemic led to a period where they lost contact, minus the few Xbox conversations that they would have when playing video games.
As we know, fate has a funny way of bringing people back together because, during freshman orientation, they reunited in front of the stairs between the 100 and 200 buildings. Cyprian said, “Hello there” (a nod to Star Wars), which was the start of a new beginning in their friendship. Their friendship got deeper throughout high school, especially in their senior year, as they began exploring topics such as faith and finding God at school, and their future lives. Their shared experiences at their church, St. Melany’s, have further strengthened their connection.
