30 Day Angst Challenge

Twelve: Unrequited Love

Have you ever been in a position where you're in love with a man you know you can't have? Joe Gomez. Him and I went to the same school, he was a couple years older though, and I always had an eye on him. My older brother, Toby, was a friend of his, so we sometimes spoke – the occasional 'hi' in the hallway, and he let me eat lunch with him once after I'd had a fallout with a friend and was crying, eating alone. He'd given me his brownie bar to cheer me up, which had made me blush profusely.

I told him how I felt one night when my brother was in the loo, and Joe had told me he had a girlfriend. How had I not known that? I was left feeling utterly embarrassed, apologising repeatedly, but being the gentleman he is, Joe reassured me that everything was okay. My feelings for him never changed...somehow, they got stronger. Even though I knew he was in a long term relationship.

We didn't see each other for a while, and then last week an invitation to his wedding came through the door. Toby and I were both invited. The pang in my chest wasn't going to stop me from going, and here I was, all dressed up in a pale pink figure hugging dress that fell midway down my thighs, hair curled with the side bits pulled back and a light touch of makeup.

"Ready to go?" Toby asked me.

"Yeah." I replied, grabbing my bag and heading for the door.

Toby drove us to the wedding. Joe was waiting at the front when we arrived. There were several rows of men sat waiting for the ceremony to begin, who I assumed were Joe's Liverpool teammates.

"Mate." Toby smiled, approaching Joe.

"Toby, (Y/N)." Joe smiled, giving us both hugs. Joe is such a good hugger – he always has been.

"You look amazing." I said, not even thinking about it.

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself." Joe teased.

I blushed; why do I always have to blush?

"How long til Tara gets here?" Toby asked.

"About ten minutes." Joe answered nervously. He rubbed his hands together, presumably to try to rid them of sweat.

"Well we'd better take a seat then." Toby said.

"You guys should go sit with the Liverpool boys, there are two spare seats next to Trent." Joe said.

"No way, really? I get to sit with Trent!" Toby cried. I had no idea who he was talking about.

"Careful mate, it sounds like you like him more than me." Joe teased.

"Sorry, who are you even talking about?" I asked.

"The guy with the fro." Joe answered.

I soon noticed who he was talking about as I scanned the crowd, ignoring Toby's comment stating that he couldn't believe I didn't know who Trent was. Trent was dressed in a smart black suit with a red tie and was deep in conversation with the man next to him, who I knew was Jordan Henderson as I'd met him once very briefly.

Toby and I headed towards the seats, and I quietly sat down. Jordan gave Toby and I quick nod, which caught Trent's attention as he turned to give both of us a small smile. I heard Jordan quietly explain to Trent that myself and Toby were childhood friends of Joe's.

Soon enough, the ceremony began. Tara looked so beautiful – she was so lucky to have Joe. The ceremony was very romantic – you could tell Tara and Joe were completely smitten with each other, and as much as I hated to admit it they were such a great couple. Even if I was totally envious of Tara.

As Tara and Joe said 'I do', I was suddenly overcome with emotion, realising that this was it now – Joe and I would never be together. In the bottom of my heart, I'd known that for a long time now, but I'd always said that I'd hold out belief until they got married. And here they were.