Life at College

The birthday party

The bus stopped across the street from my house. Matt's car was already parked in the driveway. It had been about two weeks since he had found out about Liam, and we hadn't been in the same room since. I had only seen him a few times around campus. He was ignoring Liam too. We had never argued like this before, and I didn't know what to do to fix it. It didn't seem like Matt was taking any initiative to fix things either. I got a pit in my stomach every time I thought about the situation. Before I opened the door, I took a deep breath. Hoping that Matt and I at least could be civil for the weekend.

«Hello» I walked inside. Announcing my entrance.

«Oh Josefine! It is good to see you» Mom came rushing to the door and hugged me. We hadn't seen each other since Christmas.

«Hi mom» I smiled. Hiding how nervous I was. Luckily, she never picks up these things. Here's for hoping she doesn't start now.

«Your brother arrived about an hour ago. I still don't understand why you couldn't ride with him. » She held me between her hands. Looking straight in my eyes. I tried to not shift uncomfortable, so I bet my lip.

«I told you I had some schoolwork to do, so I didn't want to keep him waiting. » I lied with the most normal voice I could.

«I don't think he would have mind» Mom said in her sweet oblivious voice. Didn't notice anything wrong on my face. Thankfully.

«I was fine taking the bus. Really mom» I assured her. Hoping she would let this go.

«Okey then» I could see she didn't get it. It wasn't surprising considering it wasn't true. «Everyone is already here. Jack isn't though. He is way on business. » Mom explained as we walked to the living room.

«There's my Josefine! » Grandpa bursted out in excitement when he saw me. My grandparents were sitting in the two chairs, and I walked over to hug them.

«Hi grandpa and grandma. Happy birthday! » I said cheerful. It was after all what we were gathered to celebrate. The drama would have to wait.

«Thank you, Sweetie, » Grandma smiled. I then walked over and hugged dad, who was sitting in one of the couches. I sat down next to him.

«Hi Jen» My smile tensed up as my eyes for a split second landed on Matt.

«Hi Jo», Jen was sitting on the other couch across from us. So was Matt. He could barely look at me. I shot another quick look at Matt, and he quickly avoided my eyes. Jen scanned me and Matt. It couldn't be hard to see that there was something between us. At least not for her. She knows our dynamics the best. Usually, Matt and I are best friends, and Jen is the odd duck. I had considered faking sickness to avoid coming home but had concluded that I couldn't do that to my grandparents. I wanted to celebrate them.

«Is something wrong? » She looked at Matt

«No, not at all. Why? » Matt said in his most innocent voice. He was much better at hiding things than me.

«You two seem weird. Jo? » Jen looked over at me. Clearly not convinced by Matt.

«Nothing I am aware of» I looked down. Lying was something I hated. I wasn't very good at it either, but I really didn't want to ruin the celebration of grandma and grandpa.

«Then why couldn't you ride with Matt? » Jen asked confused. And a bit suspicious.

«Well, I didn't want to keep him waiting. I had to do something before I left» I shifted in my seat. It didn't feel right to tell her and the rest of the family what was going on. I had never been the one to cause drama in this family and I didn't want to start now. But it didn't seem right to lie either.