Painful Reminders

Chapter One: Surprise!

"Happy birthday Mya!" I fell back a step in surprise, blinking at the sudden bright light in the tiny two-bedroom apartment I shared with Becca. She launched herself at me, causing me to stumble backward even more with an awkward laugh as I returned her embrace, my gaze wandering the room. She'd invited at least twenty people to what, knowing her, was an impromptu surprise party. "How's it feel to be of a legal drinking age finally?"

"About the same as it felt not to be," I laughed, letting her go and adjusting the strap of my bag. "I'm going to go set my stuff down. Be right back." I stepped away, through the crowd, and she didn't stop me. A few people offered up their own best wishes as I went by and I mumbled my thanks until I reached the sanctity of my room and shut the door, allowing myself the pleasure of quiet solitude for a few minutes before I knew I'd have to go back out.

She meant well, I reminded myself with a sigh. Becca was a social butterfly, and she always tried her best to draw me into her circle. Most of the people tonight were people from college or from our waitressing job near campus. She'd have invited mainly people we both knew to make it easier for me.

Moving to set my bag on my desk, I flipped on my light and looked wistfully towards the window. As the music began pumping through the door, I told myself she wouldn't even notice. The door reopened and Becca slipped into the room, ending any further thoughts of escape.

"Were you surprised?"

I smiled at her brushing my hair back behind my ear. "If I wasn't, I wouldn't be here."

She pouted, widening her big brown eyes at me and leaning back against the door. "Mya, you just turned twenty-one, you graduate in less than a month, and you've been working so hard; let's have some fun tonight, okay?"

"Okay," I agreed. "Just let me change."

Becca clapped her hands, nodding her head excitedly. "Dress cute! Maybe You'll meet a cute guy."

I changed into a pair of jeans and a halter top, checking my hair quickly in the mirror before stepping back out into the fray. Becca was laughing and dancing, completely at ease in the center of it all. Taking another assessing look around, there were only about four faces I didn't recognize. That wasn't so bad.

"Hey Mya, I heard you were graduating at the end of this month; a whole year early."

I turned to find Marcus, an education major, much like Becca, smiling at me. "Yeah, I've been cramming in some summer classes every year to be able to pull it off. Assuming I pass these last few classes, it'll all pay off. How are you feeling about finals?"

He laughed, taking a swig of his beer. "I'm student teaching next semester if everything goes my way. Finals shouldn't be too bad for me. I've been doing well so far."

"That's really great! Becca loved her student teaching experience. Did she tell you about the love letter one of her students gave her on her last day?"

As I'd expected, that elicited a surprised laugh and an emphatic no. Beyond that, it didn't take much encouragement to send him off to Becca for a full story. I made my progress slowly toward the kitchen to grab a beer, stopping constantly to be pulled into one conversation after another. It wasn't as though I couldn't have conversations...I just didn't want to have them.

"You sure seem to be popular."

I looked to my left to find a blonde man smiling charmingly at me. One of the four, it would seem. Looking around the room, I offered a small laugh and shook my head. "These are all Becca's friends."

He smiled, his green eyes alight with humor. "She's very...personable. I'm Zeke, by the way," he stuck his hand out for me to shake. "Happy birthday. Sorry to crash your party. Becca mentioned it today but didn't say it was a birthday, or I would've at least brought a gift."