Are We Just Friends? / / Matty Healy / /

// TWO //

The rest of the week passed without word from Matty or George, not that I was waiting around to hear from them. For all I knew, Matty had thrown out the paper with my number on it, or maybe he even used it to roll a joint.

Currently I was sitting on my bed in my dorm room as I played a solitaire game on my computer while my roommate, Katie, looked through her closet.

"So I ran into Aaron today," Katie said. My heart sped up for a moment but I tried to appear nonchalant.

"And?" I questioned. I had only seen him around campus once since everything happened but I had managed to avoid talking to him or running into him at parties.

"I still don't understand why you guys broke up! He's such an amazing guy and you two were perfect together," she said.

"No, he's an asshole," I said avoiding her question about why we broke up.

"No he's not! He was always so sweet. And it was obvious how much he adored you," she gushed. "Oh my god, don't tell me he cheated on you!"

If only she knew what he was really like—how demanding and possessive he had been throughout the relationship. But all of that happened behind closed doors, so no one else had a clue what was going on.

"No, he didn't cheat on me. Can we just drop it?" I snapped.

"Sheesh, fine," she said holding her hands up in surrender. "But he was asking about you."

"What? What did he say?" I asked, lifting my head up quickly. She giggled probably thinking I was eager to know for a different reason.

"Oh just asking how you are and stuff. He told me to tell you that he misses you and that you should pick up your phone when he calls."

I looked back down trying to blink away the tears that were threatening to fall. I could really go for a drink or two right now, but I knew Katie would question it if I started drinking at 3pm.

"So, uh, what's this party you were telling me about earlier? I really hope it's not a frat party," I asked trying to change the subject. Earlier Katie had begged me to go to a party with her and the rest of our friends, and I reluctantly agreed since I hadn't been out with them in a while.

"Nah, it's just a house party. I have a mutual friend with one of the guys that live there and he said that he'd be able to get all of us in. You're still going to come, right?"

I nodded my head in response before going back to my solitaire game.

All too soon, it was time to start getting ready for the party. I had convinced Katie to invite the rest of our friends to our room early so that we could get ready and pregame. Really it was just an excuse for me to start drinking.

Our other friend Alyssa was the first person to show up, and she and Katie were arguing over which dresses they should wear.

"You guys shouldn't wear any of those," I finally said to stop the bickering.

"Why? You think one of my other dresses would look better?" Katie asked and got up to rummage through her closet again.

"No, don't wear dresses. You'll look like you're a freshman who's trying too hard. I personally just like to wear jeans and a crop top," I told them, trying to spare my friends (and myself) the embarrassment of looking like we were trying too hard. I looked down and admired my outfit—black high-waisted jeans and a light-blue knit sleeveless crop top.

"Since when did you become an expert on parties?" Alyssa laughed. I saw Katie give Alyssa a look like she was telling her to shut up. I know that Katie has taken notice of how frequently I party, and I wouldn't be surprised if she talked about it with our friends behind my back. I just rolled my eyes and continued putting on make-up, pretending that I couldn't see their little exchange.