What If?

Chapter Two

Hey, Girlie," I say as Eva stumbles through the front door, I was going to change clothes after work when the door opened.

"Hey." She moans, rubbing her eyes, worsening the makeup smudged across her face.

"Where were you last night?"

"Out." She says, moving her tousled hot pink hair out of her face. She's covered in glitter, her shirt is inside out, and her breath reeks of alcohol, though she's only nineteen. 

"Out, where?"

"Brooklyn, leave me alone. Who do you think you are, the police?" She says and trips her way back to her room.

She's been rebelling a lot more recently and whenever I mention it, she snaps at me and accuses me of being jealous of her rich friends and hot guys, though I could care less about them.

I go ahead to my room and put on dark wash skinny jeans, a white lace shirt over my black halter bralette, and some black sandals. I wear a variation of this same outfit almost every day.

My phone dings, alerting me that I have a text message from my friend, Caitlyn.

"Hi, Brooklyn. Perhaps you and Eva would like to join Thea and I for dinner tonight?"

Thea is Caitlyn's sister, and before we graduated last year, the four of us were a close-knit group, always doing everything together, but Eva met some new people, and she's been staying out all night, going to clubs, and has been extremely rude to me, and her parents.

"I'll ask Eva, but I'd love too!" I reply, Eva most likely won't want to go, she doesn't enjoy being around us anymore, she says we're no fun just because we prefer obeying the laws and not flirting with every guy we come into contact with.

I walk to her bedroom and can hear her laughing through the door. Once it stops, I knock, and though muffled, I hear her talk into her phone.

"Hang on just a sec," She whispers and jerks open her door. "What do you want, Brooklyn?" She says, exasperated.

"Caitlyn wants to know if you want to go out to dinner with her, Thea, and me?"

"No chance, I have a date tonight."

"With who?"

"Ben," She says as if I should somehow know of this guy Ben who she's never mentioned before.

"Who's Ben?"

"Stop interrogating me, I met him last night at the club. We're going out for dinner tonight."

"At a club?"

"Yes, don't look so shocked, just because you can't have fun and want to be a lonely spinster for the rest of your life, doesn't mean everyone else feels the same way," She says and slams the door.

I don't know what to think of who she's become, it's like she wants me to know what she's doing so she can show off, but when I ask her anything about it, she accuses me of intruding or invading her personal space and judging her.

"So... Eva has a date tonight and won't be able to make it." I text to Caitlyn.

"A date??? Oh my lord, with who?"

"Some guy she met at a club."

"A club? Wow, well we can have loads of fun without her. I'll see you soon."

She says she'll pick me up at 7:30 and we'll discuss plans in depth then. We haven't seen each other in quite awhile, with her and Thea getting ready to go to college. She's going to NYU to study child and adolescent mental health, and Thea is moving to California to attend California College of The Arts and major in film.

I'm definitely going to miss them a lot, though Caitlyn isn't moving that far away, I fear we're going in different directions, and have different end games with what we want to do. I know that I should be happy for them for following their dreams, but what if they find new friends and get tired of me? I'm boring like Eva says, and I could completely understand if they wouldn't want to be around me anymore, be with people who have the same goals instead. 

I need to snap out of it, quit being negative, my thoughts are cut short when Caitlyn knocks on the door and I realize that I've been standing in front of Eva's door this whole time.

"Hey lady," Caitlyn says when I open the door.

"Hi," I say and let her in. She's wearing floral pants, a black button up top that contrasts with her champagne blonde hair, black heels, and three gold rings on each hand. She's honestly more similar to a walking ball of confidence than a person, so sure of herself and everything she does. 

"Earth to Brooklyn," She says and waves her hand in front of my face.

"Sorry, I must have spaced out for a little bit," I say, and we erupt in giggles. Hers, genuine, mine, half-hearted, nevertheless it awoke the dragon so to speak.

Eva emerges from her bedroom, half her hair up in a messy bun, the other half styled in beachy waves. Her eyebrows are furrowed, one completely filled in, the other one outlined, clearly we interrupted her since she has a brow pencil in hand (the one not shaped like a fist).

"What are you two doing?" She asks.

"Sorry, we were just about to leave," I say.

"Hi, Eva," Caitlyn says.

"Oh, hey Caitlyn," She rolls her eyes "Are you guys almost done? Ben will be here in half an hour."

"Yeah, we're leaving," I tell her and grab my black crossbody bag.

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow."