laughter echoed off the walls as i sat quietly on the edge of the bed in my cousin angela's room. she and a few of my other cousins were conversing, along with some friends she had invited over. apparently, according to her, she had many more friends than the ones that were currently here, which made me feel a bit pathetic compared to her. i was hardly speaking, laughing along when someone said something funny, but mostly just keeping to myself and wanting desperately to go home.
i was in new york, visiting the family that lived up here. usually, i loved hanging out with my cousins because we'd always had an amazing time together, but i wasn't particularly fond of angela. she was rude, the type of person who really only cared to talk about herself, and seemed to have a mocking tone to her voice whenever she spoke.
right now, she was telling everyone about the huge birthday party she was having in a few months, and all of the extraordinary plans and decorations she would include. her friends listened in awe, but i mostly tried blocking her out. it was almost as if she knew i wasn't paying complete attention to her, because she stared right at me and called my name in that aggravating voice. i looked up at her reluctantly, letting her continue.
"you'll be coming to my party, won't you?" she asked, although i was pretty sure she already knew the answer to that. even though i didn't enjoy being in her company, she was still family, so i would be attending.
"yeah, i am," i replied simply, hoping the conversation would end here. i doubted she asked because she wanted me specifically to be there, but because she just wanted as many people as possible to come so she could brag about it later.
"you can bring a plus one, you know," she told me, a wicked smile on her face that hinted she wasn't being genuine. "oh, well i guess it doesn't matter. you still don't have a boyfriend."
immediately, anger flared in my bones, and my face contorted into a shocked expression. i couldn't believe she brought that up. she had always teased me for having never dated anyone, and she loved to talk about the many boys that she'd gone on dates with herself, always in order to make me feel less than her. and she was doing it again, except this time in front of all her friends so they could giggle about it together.
"that's so not cool," one of my other cousins, victoria, remarked. she was the sweetest, and she was also angela's sister, so she had to deal with her way more often than i did. she was the older sibling, and had no problem calling out angela when she said something out of line. she always stood up for me.
"what? it's just the truth. she's never had a boyfriend before, so i doubt she has one now. do you?" she asked, turning her attention back to me. she was so sure that i'd say no. the anger building up took over, and i wanted nothing more than to wipe that condescending smile off of her face.
"i do, actually," i stated sassily, hoping nobody could catch my lie. something like surprise flashed across her features, but she quickly hid it.
"oh, really? what's his name?" she asked, and everyone looked at me.
i had to think of a name, and i had to do it fast. i thought of my only guy friend, one she had met a few times before, and decided that he would have to do. "tyler," i replied nonchalantly, acting as if i wasn't potentially dragging my good friend into a situation he hadn't asked to be a part of. again, she appeared to be bewildered by my answer.
"your friend tyler? the one who's in the band?" she questioned.
"yup," i said triumphantly. she had gone to one of his shows with me before, and had seen him whenever she visited us in ohio. she knew he was pretty famous, and i had always suspected she was a bit jealous that he was my friend, and not hers.
