My Boyfriend's Girlfriend

01

He wasn't there to support me. My boyfriend hadn't showed up for one of the most important ballet performances of my life. I was slightly mad at him and hurt but I still gave him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he had gotten sick or something urgent came up. I had talked all month about this performance and how excited I was for it so the possibility of him forgetting about it was not even an option in my mind. I couldn't stop looking at the phone, waiting for him to reply to my text but my phone was as silent as the night outside my house.

I came back inside and was very happy to see my closest friends hanging out with my family in a small celebratory party for me. Skylar was playing with my little sister while my dad and Dylan were talking about golf...like always. They didn't understand my passion for ballet and I didn't understand their interest in golf.

My mom showed up coming from another room with a vase with water with the bouquet my friends had bought for me.

"What do you think? They look pretty, right?"

I touched the flowers carefully, admiring their beauty and I grinned, thankful for having such great friends. I looked back at my mom and nodded.
"They look perfect"

"Just like you looked perfect on that stage up there, honey" She gave me a kiss on the forehead. "I'm gonna put them up in your bedroom and I'll be right back"

She turned away and started climbing up the stairs. I returned to the living-room where everyone was hanging out and cut another slice of my cake. I joined Sky and my sister by the couches. When I looked at the 8-year old girl, her face was dirty due to all the cake she had eaten and I started laughing, handing her a napkin.

"Go wipe your face, you little monkey" I told her and she let out a loud giggle and left to go to the bathroom.

Sky sat down next to me and furrowed her eyebrows before turning to me.
"I don't wanna seem nosy or rude... I just...worry about your happiness so don't take me wrong when I ask you this: Why wasn't Leo - your boyfriend - there to support you on your last ballet performance before you head off to university?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. He didn't text me, he didn't say anything. Maybe something happened, I'm worried about him"

"And I'm worried about you! Are you sure your relationship is doing well? You know I like Leo and support your decisions and your relationship but lately he's been acting like a bit of a... jerk"

I couldn't blame Skylar for saying that. I knew she wanted the best for me and if the roles were reversed, I would probably question the same thing.
But I loved Leo and I was sure he loved me back.

"Well...relationships have ups and downs, right?" I shrugged again without knowing what else to reply.
She nodded slowly and decided to keep quiet. I knew she had more things to say but she made the decision to keep them to herself and I felt grateful for that. I was already feeling sad about the fact that he hadn't been there for me and anything bad that she could possibly say would probably make me burst into tears.

My phone started buzzing and his name showed up on the screen. I showed it to her. "Speaking of the devil..." I gave her a small smile before answering the phone and leaving the living-room.

"Are you okay Leo?"

"Hey V. Yeah, I'm fine. I'm so sorry for not being there for that show of yours. Something else came up"

"Well, it wasn't just a show. It was the last performance I did for the academia. It was very important to me, I told you" I said matter of factly

"I know. I'm sorry, okay? So, how was your show?"

I knew he was just asking to make me happy and didn't really care about my achievements which left me broken hearted. It was something I couldn't change in him. Everyone had flaws.

"It was good, but it would've been better if you were there" I rolled my eyes even though he couldn't see me. "All my colleagues were there with their friends, family and their partners were there to give them a kiss and a hug and congratulate them and tell them how proud they were of them. I didn't have my boyfriend there telling me that."

"Well your friends and family were there"

"It's not the same thing nor the same feeling. We're together. I always support your love for lacrosse and I'm there to watch you in every single match...but you didn't do the same thing for me" My voice cracked because my eyes were filling up with tears. I was very hurt but tried to hide it.

"V. you know I love you. And I support you. I don't need to tell you how proud I am of you, you already know that"

It would still be nice to hear it sometimes. I thought to myself but decided not to throw more wood into the fire.

"Ok, thanks." I replied dryly. "We'll talk tomorrow?"

"Of course"

I hung up and cleaned the tears that were threatening to fall from my eyes. I recomposed myself and joined everyone else in the living-room.

Everyone was sitting on the couch and my dad had put on a video of my early years of ballet.

"Look at how small Vicky was. I'm much taller than she was when she was 8" My sister pointed to the screen.

"Can you do a ballet dance like that with 8 years old? No! So shush" I teased her and tickled her which made her squirm. "And I told you to stop calling me Vicky. My name is Victoria!"

According to her, Vicky sounded a lot cooler and she wanted to seem "trendy" in school. I had told her I hated it, which was one more reason for her to say it - to get on my nerves.

"I remember when she learned how to do a plier and came to school and made me watch her do it like a 100 times that day because she was so proud of herself. By the end of the day even I had learned how to do it!" Dylan said and my family let out a few chuckles.

"She was and is brilliant. She was destined for the stage" Sky added with shiny eyes and a smile on her face. I could feel the pride in her eyes. She was a great and honest friend and I was so happy to have her in my life. Dylan too. Even though I had only been friends with Sky for the last 4 years while Dylan and I had been best friends since childhood, Skylar was as close to me as he was. I considered them family.

I hugged her and sat down on her lap seeing old videos with the most important people of my life...there was only just one person missing, but I pushed that thought away to the back of my mind for the rest of the night.