As I've mentioned before, Tom and I have known each other a long time, and we lived together for a few years in college.

Back then I had this toy that we called the Ape Stick. An ape head on a stick with a trigger at the bottom that would make its mouth open and close. The Ape Stick amused us for hours. Making it talk. Making it eat food. And when we got bored of that, we just started hiding it in each other's things. I'd hide it in his closet. When he found it, he'd say nothing, and hide it under my pillow. Back and forth like that for months.

That was, wow, over a decade ago.

When I was packing up my stuff back in February, to move in with Sarah, I found the Ape Stick in some box I'd packed it away in, probably two or three moves ago. Since Tom and I work in the same office these days, I brought it in to work and when he was away from his desk quietly slipped it into the back of his bottom right drawer.

And waited. For months. Today, I finally decided I couldn't wait any longer.

Me: Tom, uh... you should check your bottom right drawer.
Tom: Oh, I know what's in there.
Me: Really?
Tom: I've known for a while.
Me: Wait... is it somewhere in my stuff now?
Tom: No. I've been waiting for the perfect opportunity. I wish you hadn't mentioned it.

I guess he's known about it for a couple months. I'm not sure why he didn't just hide it somewhere in my desk. Maybe he was waiting for an opportunity to hide it in my apartment. The higher the level of difficulty for hiding the Ape Stick, the greater the sense of achievement.

Which makes me realize... it's been almost half a year and I haven't invited Tom over to my new apartment yet.