TEDDY BEAR ⎯ rucas

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❝ I have gotten pretty good at pretending to be someone I'm not ❞

— OLIVER QUEEN

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Amanda and Jack Friar always knew how to throw a party and entertain guests. The food they put out was no less than five star restaurant quality and it made me reminiscent of the times I would stay over for dinner because Lucas and I were working on an assignment or we had lost track of time just being together. More commonly, it was the latter.

"So Riley tell me, how has your new job been treating you?" Mr. Friar, Jack, asked. I didn't enjoy attention being placed on me, not because I was shy or didn't enjoy speaking my mind, but because I was always afraid of my mother's reaction whenever words came out of my mouth. Every time I'm in a room with her and I speak, I subtly steal glances in her direction to make sure nothing I'm saying is angering her or causing disapproval.

"You know, I'm working in the profession I majored in and that's all I could ever ask for right?" Out of the corner of my eye, I could see my mother's face and it didn't look disapproving but she didn't seem satisfied either.

"As long as you're happy dear." Mr. Friar shot me a warm, genuine smile that almost sent me into a pool of tears. It wasn't a look my mother gave me often ⎯ or ever really ⎯ and to have someone genuinely ask about what I'm doing and if I'm happy or not, was so foreign and comforting at the same time.

I nodded and smiled back, even though I wasn't happy. And to be honest, I couldn't really think of a time I felt true happiness. My job was me trying to help other people find the happiness they deserved and were searching for, and along the way, I think whatever small amount of happiness that was inside of me just slowly chipped away.

My focus shifted back to the chicken and mashed potatoes on my plate, as I tried to feign any kind of interest or appetite in the food.

"Oh my goodness I completely forgot, Faith honey, you must show me the ring!" At the sound of the word "ring", my head popped up as I was trying to put together the very obvious puzzle pieces.

The blonde girl — whom I still really hated even though I'd known her for a whole thirty minutes or so and only really talked with her for about two of those minutes — smiled and brought her left hand up to Amanda. There was a beautiful, sparkling diamond on her fourth finger, the lighting in the room only emphasizing the size of the jewel.

"That is such a beautiful ring dear! Is it a promise ring?" My mother asked. Of all the conversations, she had to butt herself into this particular one and she had to say what she did no less.

But of course Faith, being the holy saint she was, didn't break her brilliant smile and shook her head softly.

"No it's an engagement ring. Lucas proposed last night and we'd called Amanda and Jack to tell them the good news but decided that we would wait until tonight to show the ring and formally announce our engagement and wedding date." None of the words I was hearing processed correctly into my brain. I tuned out everything Faith had said after I heard "Lucas proposed". It was idiotic of me to feel hurt and betrayed at the announcement. Lucas was not mine and he hadn't been for a long time. We were over and when he moved to Australia, he was as free as could be. And what man wouldn't have proposed to a girl like Faith? Even her name was holy.

"I am so happy for you two! So what date have you picked out?"

"December eighth. So only a few months from now! The minute I met Lucas in the bookstore that day I knew I wanted to marry him and here we are, a couple years later, and my dream is coming true." I wasn't sure which parts of Faith's sentence hurt most — when she said the date they had picked was the same day as my birthday or the fact that her dream was coming true.