Happily Ever After...maybe

Once upon a time. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to go? Girl meets boy, girl falls for boy, boy falls for girl, and they live happily ever after. Not in my world. In my world it’s more like girl falls for boy, boy pretends to fall for girl, boy says he loves girl then leaves the next day on a flight to Jamaica with his family. Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that “happily ever after” doesn’t exist, I’m just saying it doesn’t exist in real life. I mean c’mon let’s look at the divorce rates here people 1 in 4? Who needs those odds. Not me.

“Okay ma cherie you need to snap out of this funk you’re in. It’s messing up my groove.” Chloe was bouncing around on my bed with her obnoxiously chipper attitude. “Like seriously, so what if Chase left you to go to some hippie country with his family, it’s not like you were gonna marry the guy and live happily ever after right?”

See what I mean? Everyone is referring to this mysterious “happily ever after” as if it was something attainable and real. “No Chloe of course I didn’t mean to actually marry him but it would be nice ONE of my boyfriends would stick around for more than the allotted 3-month time period.” My cynical attitude was getting the best of me and I knew it but somehow I couldn’t help feeling like the world was out to get me.

Still bouncing around on my bed Chloe was talking to me about some movie she wanted to see but I continued to tune her out as I thought about Chase. He was the epitome of good-looking, the soul of sweetness and I would never had dreamed that he could break my heart so fully. I thought back to the day when he said he loved me, the day before he left me. We had been on the swinging porch out back of my house and the sun threw pink and orange rays across the horizon. The perfect setting right? I had thought so at the time. I had never been so happy in all my life when he had turned to me and said those fateful words “Dani, I know you’re probably going to hit me for saying this because you always hit me, but I love you. I have loved you since I first met you and you make me happier than I have ever been. Sure you’re stubborn, slightly violent and very cynical but you make me feel alive and I love your for that.” I had sat speechless staring at him like he was a zombie. He had to shake me slightly to get me to say something. “Thank you.” He stared at me incredulously and asked “That’s all you have to say? I tell you I love you and you say thanks?” He turned away angry and I had hurried to console him. “I’m sorry! I…I’m just shocked. I love you too Chase I love you so much. I was so worried you didn’t feel the same way that’s why I didn’t say anything! You are the person I want to spend the rest of my life with. I’m sure of it.” He turned back to face me and grabbed my hands in his whispering “I want to spend the rest of my life with you too. You are my everything.”

And the next day he was gone. It was as if he had never been here at all. Like he had never said he loved me. How are you supposed to guard your heart against something that seems so good?

“Oh my god. You totally didn’t hear a word I just said did you? Ok look if you are not out of this room in ten seconds I am no longer your official best friend. Seriously you’re like some deranged crack addict right now. He is NOT coming back and no amount of moping around will make him come back. So I am taking you out to the bar and we are going to drink our faces off, ok?”

“You know Chloe I’d really rather just stay home.” My cynical nature was certainly taking a toll on me and I needed more time to get over the fact that he was gone.

“Ten…nine…eight…do you hear me? I’m counting and once I reach one your gonna be out this door. Bet on it.”

“No really, let’s just stay home I don’t want to go out and deal with drunken man-whores.”

“Seven…six…five.” She was throwing slutty clothes at me in an effort to entice me.

“I’m not going Chloe.” I was determined.

“Four…three…two,” She was giving me the death look. “Seriously I will never speak to again if you make me say one.”

“Ugh ok fine, fine!” I got up and grabbed the clothes heading for the bathroom.

“Yes yes yes! I’m so awesome, I’m awesome.” She was dancing behind me with a triumphant look on her face.

“By the way I hate you.” I said to her with all the acid I could muster.

Closing the door behind me I could hear her yell “You looove me and you’re going to thank me later!” I shook my head at my best friend’s attempt to get me to have fun. It was going to be a bad night I could tell. I didn’t want to bring Chloe down so I resolved to try to have as much as I could in a dirty bar crammed with sex-driven men and women.