romeo + juliet ↠ l.h

20

"Where were you yesterday? I almost died in Chem without you!" Alice exclaimed as I stepped out of my car. It was 7:54, and I was not having it today.

I woke up pissed. Then my mom pissed me off. Then I got pulled over on the way to school (cried my way out of it, of course). This whole day was not for me.

"I had a headache." I said as I walked through the school parking lot with Alice by my side. She cocked an eyebrow, as if to say 'I know you're lying'. I had come to school sick many times. I didn't like to miss. What can I say? I take my grades seriously.

"Did I tell you about my trip with Mateo?"

I was such a bad friend. I had forgot to even ask how going with Mateo to Texas was. Had I even asked her about her relationship? I was too invested in my own life.

Wow, I'm terrible. I really owed her an apology.

"How was it?" I enthusiastically asked. I needed her to know that I care about what she's saying, since I hadn't been acting like it the past two weeks.

She starts telling me about his grandparents, about their dog, and about the flight there. I'm listening attentively, I swear, until something catches my eye.

I look ahead of me, and my heart stops. It shouldn't have. I shouldn't care. I don't know why I physically felt sick, but I did.

Josslyn had her hand on Luke's chest, was giggling, and standing way too close to him.

The worst part?

He was laughing with her. He looked happy, like he genuinely wanted her to be touching him. He looked so cool as he leaned back against his Lexus. A pretty girl held her hand against his chest and batted her eyes at him. And he looked like he enjoyed it.

"Emma? I asked you if you've been to San Antonio." Alice snapped me out of the jealous haze I had fallen into.

"Yeah, sorry, I mean no. No, I've never been there." I stuttered. Alice began talking about how Mateo kissed her on the boardwalk at sunset, and my thoughts returned to Luke and Josslyn.

I was so stupid. Of course I'm not the only girl. Of course he's letting her flirt with him. She was his homecoming date, and technically, she had him first.  I couldn't compete. We had never said what we were, or if we would see other people.

Luke's a boy. Of course there's gonna be other girls. I didn't even want to know what his snapchat best friends list looked like.

Alice wrapped up her story as we opened the front doors to the school. I turned around one last time, just one time, to see him. To see him let another girl touch him.

As I looked, the sadness apparent in my eyes, he looked up as well. Her hand was now on his arm, and his smile had long since faded. He looked at me with worry and shook his head. That's it. Just a simple shake of his head.

I turned around and walked into the building. I had seen enough to know I wasn't special. I thought I was, but I wasn't.

I wasn't the only one, and I sure as hell knew how he felt now.
•
After a long day of avoiding Luke at school, Alice and Morgan came back to my house to work on homework. We hadn't all three hung out in awhile. It was sad how invested I got in my own life and completely forgot about the people who care about me more than anyone. Hell, I hadn't even hung out with Michael in weeks.

"What did you get for this one?" Alice asked Morgan, who had newly pierced her septum. We all three sprawled across my bedroom floor. Morgan was persistently hitting her juul, an addiction she had newly acquired.