Worse Than The Rest

Chapter Seven

I showered quickly and picked out a smart casual shirt and some black jeans. I brushed my hair, suddenly aware that I needed a hair cut. My fringe was growing out so that it covered more of my eyes than it should have, and the layers were slightly less obvious than they had been when I'd got it cut a few weeks previously. I huffed at it in annoyance, before I decided to blow dry it.

After I had finished that, I checked my phone to see if Mikey had replied. He had.

Mikey: I'm ready... I hope you have a good reason for this. x

I smiled. His words were made to sound like he didn't care, but I knew Mikey well enough to know that he would be at least a little bit excited, even if he was still annoyed with me. His text had come through twenty minutes ago, so I texted him back straight away.

Me: I'll be twenty minutes. See you soon babe xx

Mikey loved stupid nicknames. Personally, I hated them. I thought they were cringy and pointless; Mikey knew this, but he also believed that if I used them it was like another way of saying that I loved him. It wasn't, but why spoil his fun? If he wanted to believe that little things like that meant  that I loved him, then why not? He'd only be setting himself up for a harsher heartbreak; and really, did I even need to care about that?

I walked back into the living room to tell Imogen that I was leaving the house.

"Immy, I'm going now," I said, "I'll be back around ten-ish. Call if you need me, okay? You did good today." Imogen nodded and smiled at me.

"Have fun on your over rated date." She laughed.

"Oh piss off!" I feigned offence, "I'd like to see you put up with all the crap he does." Imogen shook her head.

"I'd rather not." She laughed, "Now leave me alone, I'm watching Love Island." I rolled my eyes at my best friend before I walked out of the front door holding the roses. The drive to Mikey's house took fifteen minutes. I had only been inside it once while his parents weren't there. We watched some crappy TV show that I couldn't be bothered to pay attention to.

The house looked big at the front, there was a wide pavement driveway that lead up to the front door and four large windows that were completely symmetrical- you could see straight through the bottom two when it was properly light outside. The house had six bedrooms in total, the kitchen had a black marble breakfast bar complete with matching black stools. The 'TV Room' was a medium sized room with expensive sofas and warm lighting, the TV itself was sixty inches and mounted on the cream-coloured wall above an artificial fireplace. Needless to say, Mikey's house was huge and the type that you'd see featured in a Luxury Home Design magazine. He didn't like to brag about it unless he was prompted to- which was why it was advised against for anyone to ask Mikey why his house was so big when he only lived with three other people; once you asked, Mikey would not shut up about it.

I had never met Mikey's parents, either- and I did not intend to. Everything gets serious and formal when you meet parents. It's like a solid agreement to aim for a long term relationship... something I was most definitely not up for. I was only with Mikey because it was something to do for a while, he kept my mind occupied. And if nothing else, he was a brick wall between Andy and I.

Occasionally I forgot how much of an asshole I was, compared to how I used to be. I was soft and trusting, the same way that Mikey was. I had light in my eyes and I believed in happy endings and true love. I saw all the good in people, even if they mostly weren't a good person. I wanted the world to be a better place and I thought that I could make it so. My favourite colour was pastel blue and I liked long walks at two in the morning and driving at night to watch streetlights go by. I thought that rainy days in November were for talking about Christmas plans under a duvet and listening to soft music or simply the sound of the rain. I thought that there was no such thing as loving someone too much in a world where loving was just so rare.