A Girl's Guide to Being Jilted | ✓

07 | In Which She Agrees Adulting is Hard

“I really can’t. Mostly because the last time I saw her we were stupid teenagers. Now we’re adults with responsibilities and everyone expects us to act maturely and all that jazz.”

“I know right. No one ever said adulting would be so hard. Sometimes I don’t blame my mom for taking the childish route. It’s so much easier.”

“Your mom isn’t childish. She’s one of the wisest women I’ve ever met.”

I looked at him like he just told me he was secretly a mermaid.

“Do I have another mother that I don’t know about?”

He was about to respond when Pete spoke up.

“Not that I haven’t enjoyed having you kids over but I think you should better be heading out, the rain’s stopped.”

It was then that I noticed that everywhere was a bit brighter.

“Wow! How long have we been here?” I asked.

Matty brought his phone out. “Apparently a good two hours,” he returned his phone and shot me a look. “So, we on for tonight?”

“Of course. I’ll be there.”

“Do you need a ride there? I could always stop by your house and pick you up. If that’s even where you’re staying.”

I followed his lead and stood up. “Of course that’s where I’m staying. I’m too broke right now to pass up free room and board.”

We left Pete thumping through a magazine.

I didn’t even know why he was still there. There were no customers, no employees and most importantly no smell of fresh baking pizza.

Outside, the sun had come out and the only sign there had been a pounding rain hours before were the small puddles of water on the floor.

The sun was warm on my head and neck and I was grateful for the warmth. It was a welcome relief from the cold.

Matty came to stand beside me, his tall imposing frame belied by the gentleness of his blue-green eyes.

He didn’t say anything, just stood drinking in the rays of the sun.

“You don’t have to drive me home you know,” I told him.

“Of course I do. You don’t have your car and I would feel horrible if I left you here.”

We fell into silence, neither of us making a move toward the car.

“Why are you doing this? I mean, the last time you saw me I was just shy of my nineteenth birthday still with pigtails, a somewhat unhealthy obsession with 5 Seconds of Summer and a dream of someday coding the one program that would solve the world’s digital problems that is coming along slower than I would like. But I left. For eight years. I’m not that girl anymore, for all you know I could be a serial killer who’s come back to avoid the police.”

“That’s great. Not the serial killer part though,” he added quickly. “I'm glad you're not the same person you used to be. Change was inevitable for the both of us, I'm just glad you found your way back home.”

I blinked and then Matty was right in front of me with his hands in his pockets, dishing one of his inspiring smiles. His sweater was still spotted with dark circles of water but his curls were now dry and back in their original positions. Unlike mine which I was sure was now a frizzy mess around my shoulders.

“Why are you being so nice to me?” I whispered, my voice was on the verge of breaking.

“Because that’s who I am. Because I honestly don’t care how long it’s been or if you’ve changed or grown up. You’ll always be my best friend.”