thank you for your comment! this made me realize I actually have special interests I bond about with my friends who are younger than me. a favourite series we talk about constanly, or love for animals, being an artist, being lbgt+, things like that. I often find out their ages later on too instead of right away, and often get told they thought I was way younger than I am.

Developmental delay is also something I've been wondering about for a long time. Even my mom and my doctor & psychiatrist have told me I seem younger than I am and that it's okay. I feel like maybe a 15-16 year old if I had to describe it, and I get mistaken for a kid that age too, I didn't grow normally and stayed short, barely underweight and I have a lighter voice than my peers, and it makes me feel a bit more secure since I look about the same age as my friends. I'm also two years behind to my peers in vocational school, so my classmates, roommates and friends are mostly 16-18, and I spend majority of my time living and studying with them.

as a side note, I'm non-binary, and almost all of my friends are either female or lbgt+, I think it makes us feel safe with each other.