The One He Never Claimed

It's hot today.

He said he was on his way, that was three hours ago.

He doesn't live that far but even if he did, couldn't he just text to say he's running late? Or that something came up and he can't make it anymore. Anything would've been better than silence.

It takes me a while but I finally decide not to wait anymore and then get ready to meet the girls like I'd originally planned, before he made me cancel. There's a party tonight that I honestly would've much rather missed. But now that he stood me up, I don't want to spend the rest of my evening overthinking about it. That's certainly happened before.

I know he's not going to be happy but I'm also not happy that once again, he failed to show up for me.

I shuffle through my closet for a short tight dress that's also not too revealing but I end up settling for a pair of high-waisted bum shorts with a tight blacktop.

I fix my bra so my cleavage is not showing too much and I throw on a pair of black Yeezy's to complete my simple look.

He doesn't like it when I stand out because he hates it when other guys look at me as he's not able to do anything about it. This is of course because of the fear of exposing our relationship. So I always make it a point to dress down as much as possible so I don't have to suffer through his complaints that I was 'practically naked'. That's probably his favorite sentence to use on me.

I text Liz to tell her I'm ready and I know she's going to be in my driveway in no time so I make my way downstairs to wait for her to come to pick me up. Dad's working late tonight so I don't have to worry about curfew.

This is another reason why today would've been perfect for him to come, we would've had the house all to ourselves without dad's constant distractions. Dad is his biggest fan so whenever he's around he constantly disturbs our bonding time with football questions. I know Ezra doesn't mind, but I do.

I'm now too in a good mood to be stressed about this so I decide to just let it linger in the back of my mind, I'll have a long talk with him tomorrow.

Soon I hear a car hoot and I waste no time getting out of the house, Lizzy hates waiting. We embrace each other in a hug and I compliment her on her outfit. She looks incredible, as always.

We're soon on our way to pick up Emily and Ashley then head to our destination for the night where we'll be meeting the rest of the girls.

Loud music, sweaty bodies, and red cups are three of the most noticeable features as we drive past the main house of the house party venue looking for parking. It's so incredibly full that there are cars parked in the middle of the road, that's hardly a surprise. I look at Liz with an 'I told you so' face but she just shrugs it away.

One would be crazy to drive to one of Bruno Steiner's parties and expect to find parking. I told Liz we should Uber there but my dear friend is beyond stubborn. What makes me even madder is that this is not the first time this has happened. I know she prefers the comfort of her own car but that's not always ideal. Evidently.

We end up parking about two miles away from the party and walk all the way there, to our utter dismay. I feel thankful I didn't wear heels but I can't say the same for my dear friend Liz. It serves her well though.

It takes us a while but we get there eventually . And then,

"Yo Liz, what's up girl?"

"Hey, Lizzy."

"Liz Liz!!"

Did I mention my friend is very popular?

She gets on my nerves a lot of the time but she's a genuine soul that everyone can't help but gravitate towards, myself included. She's incredible to be around and I still can't believe that she's my best friend.

She smiles, waves and hugs a few people as we get closer to the mini-mansion that's overfilled with drunk teenagers.

The first thing we do when we get inside is seek alcohol, after the long walk we had, we need it.

Bruno Steiner always has a designated counter full of alcohol and we find it just as we walk through the door. We're happy when we finally reunite with the rest of the girls once we've gotten our drinks.

Liz has a lot of female friends that I guess are my friends too by default. I'm not very close with them but we do have occasional chitchats whenever I see them at parties. Which happens to be all the time because parties are a given when you're friends with Liz. She hardly gives you a choice.

"We need shots!!" I hear the girl shout from a distance. She was going around greeting and hugging people as I stayed behind with some of the other girls. Someone seemed to have heard her because in no time, a tray is brought to us with shot glasses and a bottle of Jagermeister.

Everyone takes a glass after they've been filled with the alcohol content and we raise them as one of the girls makes a toast,

"To the greatest, most bomb friends in the universe and to an even greater summer,"

We all make random loud noises in celebration. Varsity has been tough and we're all excited to finally just let go and have fun. I know I'm certainly happy that the school term is over, it's been a crazy one for me in more ways than one.

A bunch of people join us in taking shots and we're soon dancing to the rhythm of the loud music as we continue drinking and conversing incoherently.

Liz ignores all the guys who try to hit on her and I laugh at that. They stand no chance. When she's with her friends, it's like no one else exists. She shuts out the world and only allows in the people that matter to her.

Like the infamous Bruno Steiner that we're all here for tonight. The boy makes his way to us to say hello and showers us with compliments, as we hug him.

Bruno Steiner is one of the most popular guys, not just in varsity but... everywhere. That should explain the number of people who made it to his party tonight. If Bruno knows you by name then you are a somebody. I'm clearly not a somebody and that's why he doesn't know my name. He's never even addressed me individually. He just knows me as the girl who's friends with Liz and the other girls. Honestly, I'm ok with that, I prefer to not be known.

Did I also mention that he happens to be best friends with the man who brings me sleepless nights? Well, he is. They've known each other since they were kids and they've pretty much been inseparable since. He, just like everyone else doesn't know about my relationship with Ezra. I used to be ok with that but I'm not sure if I still am.

Speaking of people who are in trouble, I hear a bunch of people yell out his name before I see him approaching us, and by us, I mean Bruno who's still chatting with some of the girls.

Our eyes meet for a split second before he diverts his to Bruno. I feel my heart break a little at that.

I know it's so people don't suspect anything but it still hurts. He whispers something to the boy and they soon disappear into the crowd.

"Gosh Ezra is so hot," I hear one of the girls say and I nod my head in agreement.

He's also very much mine.

I want more than anything to scream it so the world knows, but I know I can't do that. He'd probably deny it and never speak to me again. So I instead decide to text him,

'Looking good' with a bunch of wink face emojis. And he replies saying,

'You too my love'

I can't stop the smile that spreads across my face. I can already feel my heart forgiving him for standing me up tonight. I can never stay mad at him anyway.

"What are you smiling about?" Emily's question catches me off guard but I recover quickly and then tell her I just saw a funny meme. She doesn't seem to believe me but doesn't press on it and I appreciate that.

I hate that I've become such a pro at lying but that just comes with dating the MVP of the most popular football club in the country right now. Lying means I don't have to go through questions like,

'How do you feel about girls constantly throwing themselves at him?'

To answer this question that I've never been asked, I don't feel great. It sucks and I hate it, but I also know I'm the only girl who occupies his mind and his heart.

I'm the one he calls before he goes to sleep and texts when he wakes up.

I'm the one he loves. I guess that makes it suck a little less.

Yes, people think he's single and always ready to mingle but that is all just for his image.

Midnight approaches sooner than we'd been expecting and we're forced to request Uber to go home because none of us are in the right state to drive. Another reason why we should've Uber'd to the party in the first place but I'm too drunk to scold Liz about that.

It takes me a while but I'm soon back at home in the comfort of my bed. I see him calling just as I tuck myself in. Right on time.

"Hey you," I say sweetly to him but,

"You didn't tell me you were going out tonight!" His voice is accusatory and... angry.

I sigh to calm myself down before saying, "I didn't think I was either but you failed to show up. Again," I try hard not to sound irritated.

"You could've still told me you were going out." He says to me in a duh tone and I resist the urge to hang up on him. I instead say,

"I'm sorry babe. I'll say something next time."

I'm tired and if I scold him too then this is going to happen for the whole night and well - I'm in no mood to argue. But clearly he is because,

"There better not be a next time," he says before hanging up the phone.

I love you too.

I'm too tired and annoyed to call him back and find out what his problem is so I instead just text him,

'Goodnight. Luv you always' before I drift off into a nice and long slumber.