Awkward situations were never your forte. Not that anyone enjoyed them; it’s just that you rarely encountered them. This one was completely unavoidable. You figured you could go upstairs and hide, but that would only make you seem rude. Seeing your brother for the first time in over a year wasn’t really what was making this dinner awkward. He was smart enough to not bring up any of your problems, though it was safe to assume that Demi had told him not to say anything. You probably would’ve preferred for him to bring up your issues over what was happening right now.
When your brother made a comment to you about how attractive Demi was, you laughed uncomfortable and brushed it off thinking he would just keep it to himself. You were so wrong. Now that he was openly flirting with her, you wanted to scream and make him stop. The only thing keeping you from acting out on your thoughts was that Demi didn’t seem as uncomfortable as you. In fact, she was starting to reciprocate the flirtatious behavior.
The jokes he was telling weren’t even funny, yet Demi kept over exaggerating her laugh for each one. They seemed to have completely forgotten that you were even at the table with them, so you started to reconsider leaving and going to bed. The more they flirted the less awkward the situation became, and you started to feel hurt. You hated how insecure you had become. You had no claim over Demi; she was allowed to do whatever she wanted. It was your fault for thinking you had something special with her.
She laughed extra loud at a rather lame joke, and that’s when you shoved your chair back and left without excusing yourself. You stopped to put your plate in the sink, or maybe it was to see if either of them would get up and make sure you were okay. They didn’t, which completely voided Demi’s promise to not take her eyes off you.
When you got upstairs, you curled up in your bed and easily made yourself comfortable. Even though you had closed the door, their voices were still audible. The anxiety brought on by your sudden insecurity was too much to be able to sleep. Why was Demi flirting with your brother? Was it because she finally realized that you weren’t good enough for her? He could give her everything you couldn’t. You didn’t blame her for wanting to be with someone that wasn’t as messed up as you were.
You listened to them continue to talk for what seemed like hours before it got quiet. The front door opened and closed, so your brother must’ve left without wanting to say good-bye. He almost certainly thought you were sleeping, and it’s not like you weren’t going to see him again. You realized that Demi was probably on her way up, but talking to her wasn’t at the top of your list of priorities.
You got out of bed and grabbed your pjs while walking to the door. When you opened it you almost jumped back, startled to see Demi right there. “Can I talk to you?” she asked. Ignoring her, you shoved right by and into the hallway. “I’m going to take a shower. I was sure that you would go home with Matt. If you want, I can give you his address.” She followed you to the bathroom, stopping by the doorway. “Why would you say that?” she asked, puzzled as to what you meant. “You tell me, you were the one that was flirting with him” you said before slamming the door in her face.
She was waiting for you when you finished, but you blocked out her questions about why you thought she had been flirting with your brother. Tired of being ignored, she put her hands on your shoulders and spun you around to face her. She couldn’t force you to make eye contact, so you kept your eyes on the ground.
“What’s going on? Are you mad at me?” she questioned, not taking her hands off of your shoulders. You couldn’t come up with a way to tell her the truth without showing your insecurities, and lying wouldn’t be a good idea. “You were flirting with Matt” you mumbled, heat rising to your cheeks. She didn’t respond right away, trying to think of an excuse for her actions. She finally thought of one and tilted your chin up with her hand. “I think I was just trying to distract him from talking about the things that you wouldn’t want to talk about. I didn’t realize that it would hurt you. I would never pick him over you, I wouldn’t pick anyone over you.” It was hard for you to believe her, so she set about proving herself.
