It's hard to be me

The best friendships have some of the strangest qualities.

I had lunch today with Guy. As we were discussing life, he sniffed out a mildly shameful secret of mine (this in itself is a great quality in a friend: their ability to figure out what you aren't telling them).

His reaction?

He laughed at me.

Coming from most people, I would have probably been a little hurt by his laughter. He had discovered one of my character flaws and proceeded to laugh at it.

Was I hurt?

Not in the slightest.

His laughter meant "Yeah, you're a fool. You know it as well as I do. But you know me well enough to know that I'm also a fool. I'm still in your corner."

At least that's how I interpreted it. He did apologize, saying he shouldn't have laughed. I told him he can always laugh at me. He said "Likewise."

One of the many reasons I'm also in his corner.