Gemma Sullivan smiled as she put the last touches of makeup on her face.
Gemma had been dating Mat Barzal for almost two years now, and she couldn't be happier. They were each other's best friend, and they supported each other in everything they did. She lifted him up when he had a bad game or when the Isles were losing, and he had been her biggest cheerleader through college and supported her career aspirations. Gemma was going to graduate from college in three months, and then apply to master's programs to earn an MA in history. Before she could even apply, though, she had to finish her senior thesis. She just took a major step forward this morning when she handed in her full draft for her advisor to edit. Today was also her 22nd birthday, so Mat was going to take her out to a fancy restaurant to celebrate.
Honestly, Gemma was happy that the draft was done because this past month, she had been writing so much that she'd barely been able to spend quality time with Mat. She couldn't wait to get back a semblance of normalcy, and tonight would be the beginning of that.
Gemma walked out of the bathroom and into hers and Mat's bedroom, where her red dress was on a hanger. Red was Mat's favorite color on her, and she bought the dress for that reason. She wanted to surprise him. Gemma slipped it on and zipped it; thank God the zipper was on the side and not the back. She looked at the clock on the night table, and it read, to her surprise, 8:30PM. Their reservations were at 8:45, and Mat was supposed to be home at 8, so she didn't bother setting an alarm to make sure she stayed on schedule. Was it possible that he forgot? Gemma immediately shut down that thought. There was no way he forgot; he was probably just running late from hanging out with Tito. She grabbed her heels and sat on the bed, putting each shoe on. As soon as she was done, she heard the front door open.
"Gemma?" Mat called, but his voice wasn't clear like it normally was.
"Where are you?" he called again, and when Gemma heard his staggered footsteps coming towards the bedroom, her heart dropped.
"Hey, babe, there you are!" Mat wasn't just drunk: he was absolutely hammered. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes were glazed over. He approached the bed and gave Gemma a sloppy kiss on the top of her head, and she smelled his breath, which reeked of vodka. This kind of behavior was completely out of character for him, and she could barely believe her eyes (or her nose).
"Babe, what happened? We have dinner reservations in 15 minutes," Gemma said, concerned.
"I was out with Tito and some of the boys," Mat replied, "and it was totally epic!" He dissolved into a fit of hysterical laughter and stumbled into Gemma's lap. Not wanting to smell of alcohol, she shoved him off and onto the bed next to her.
"You look so sexy. Is this all for me?" Mat asked.
"We're supposed to go out to dinner in 15 minutes," she repeated.
"Why?"
Gemma's heart sunk even further.
"It's my birthday, Mat," she said.
"Oh yeah, I forgot." He looked at her, expecting an answer, but she was silent, trying to keep herself from crying. Presumably to fill the silence, Mat said, "Whoops, my bad," and started laughing again.
His laugh set Gemma off.
"You forgot? You fucking FORGOT?" she exploded. "I'm generally easygoing, but today of all days? Really?"
"Jesus, Gem, relax. We celebrated it on another day last year, so we can do it again this year."
"Are you saying that you're bailing on dinner tonight?" she asked.
"I'm not bailing, I'm rescheduling. It's no big deal."
"No big deal?" she yelled, "No big deal? Are you kidding me right now? It's not just my birthday; I handed in my thesis draft today. But you probably forgot about that too," she added bitterly.
"That goddamn thesis is the reason I haven't seen you for weeks on end!" Mat yelled back. "You're always busy writing, or reading, or whatever you're doing. Sometimes I wish you weren't going for your master's."
Gemma's mouth dropped open. She couldn't believe he just said that.
"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
His eyes widened. He must know he crossed the line, but that didn't stop him from opening his mouth again. "I don't know, you just work so hard, and you don't have to worry about money because I'll take care of you."
If Gemma wasn't seeing red before, she was now.
"This is not just about money, Mathew. Yes, I want to be able to make some of my own money, but if I wanted to be rich, I would've gone into computer science or finance. I'm really passionate about history, and I need to be fulfilled intellectually. You said you understood that when we first met; you even said that you love how driven I am!"
"I do, but..."
"But what? There are no but's. You either support my career or you don't, and you clearly don't, so we're done!"
Gemma took her heels off and threw them on the floor before retrieving her backpack, overnight bag, and a pair of sneakers from the closet. She shoved the sneakers on her feet and started ransacking the drawers. As she took out essential clothing and stuffed it in her bag, Mat just sat there on the bed.
She started to zip up the bag when Mat said, "Where are you going?"
"Where am I going?" she parroted back, incredulous. "Oh, so now you care. How generous of you," her voice dripped with sarcasm.
"This is our home," he replied.
"No, it's yourhome now," she said with a calm and even tone that surprised her. "You promised that you would support me and my career no matter what, but you clearly didn't mean it. Don't bother trying to call or text because I don't want to see you."
And with that, she picked up her two bags, walked out of the bedroom, picked up her car keys on the table in the foyer, and opened the door, slamming it as she exited.
Gemma ran down the stairs as fast as she could. As soon as she stepped outside, she was greeted with pouring rain.
"Oh, this is just perfect!" she muttered to herself. She forgot her umbrella in the apartment, and there was no way she was going back there, so she raced to her car, hopped into the driver's seat, and slammed the door. She threw her bags on the back seat before turning on the ignition and pulling out of the driveway.
She drove down the road to the next intersection, and after turning right, she pulled over. As soon as Gemma stopped the car, the floodgates opened. Her life was in tatters. The man who she thought would always be there for her stabbed her in the back. She felt so alone, and when she remembered that she was homeless now, she cried even harder. Where was she going to sleep tonight?
She restarted the car and began driving to the Eberle residence.
When Gemma first started dating Mat, she didn't expect to get a best friend out of it, but that is exactly what Lauren Eberle became. Right from the start, she and Lauren hit it off due to their mutual low tolerance for bullshit, and an epic friendship was born. She had been her rock through everything, and Gemma knew that she could ask her for advice on anything, no matter how uncomfortable the subject. Lauren's husband, Jordan, was Mat's closest friend on the team besides Tito, and Gemma was fond of him as well. He taught her how to play the guitar.
She could only hope that now that she broke up with Mat, they would still be there for her.
Gemma came to a stop in front of Lauren and Jordan's house less than five minutes later. It was still raining heavily outside, so she grabbed her bags and walked to the house. She already looked like a drenched rat, so why bother running?
She reached the door and rang the doorbell. When the door opened, it was, to her intense surprise, Jordan standing at the threshold. She assumed that he was with Mat and Tito when they went out.
"Gemma? Happy birthday! What are you doing here?" Jordan said.
"Thanks. I'm sorry to bother you, but is Lauren home?"
"Yeah, she's inside. Come on in." He held the door open wide, and she entered the house.
"Lauren, Gemma is here!" Jordan shouted, and then said to Gemma, "You're soaking wet! You should take off your shoes and socks, they'll make you feel even colder than you already are."
"You're right, thanks, Jordan," she said, holding her tears back with great difficulty.
"No problem," he replied, and he left as Lauren entered the foyer.
"Gemma, happy birth..." Lauren stopped talking as soon as she saw the dripping girl. "What happened?"
"Mat and I, we...we got into a fight," Gemma started sobbing uncontrollably.
"Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry! Let's get you some dry clothes and we can talk about it, yeah?" Lauren said.
"I brought clothes with me," Gemma managed to choke out and gesture to her bags in between sobs.
"Let's go get you dry." Lauren put her arm around Gemma and led her through the house to hers and Jordan's bedroom. Gemma opened her soaked bag and pulled out a pair of sweatpants, an old Trinity College Dublin t-shirt from her semester abroad, and a thick pair of socks. Lauren sat on the bed patiently as she went into the bathroom to change. She emerged, and the two of them walked back to the living room and settled into the couch. Gemma could see Jordan in the kitchen due to the open layout, and he was rustling through the cabinet where they kept their glasses and cups.
"What happened?" Lauren asked. "I thought you two were going to dinner to celebrate your birthday and thesis draft."
"We were supposed to, but Mat showed up 15 minutes before our reservation completely drunk. He said he went out with Tito and some of the boys."
"That's odd. Jordan has been home all evening, and he generally goes with them when they go out."
"Well, they went out without him, and Mat forgot my birthday. He said we could go out another day, and when I protested, he went on a rant about how he hasn't seen me in weeks due to my thesis and...and..." Gemma started crying again.
Lauren put her arms around her, and Gemma sobbed into her shoulder.
"What did he say?" Lauren asked when Gemma pulled away, a hint of nervousness in her voice.
"He said that he wishes I wasn't going for my master's degree, and that I don't need to have a career because he can 'take care of me,'" she formed air quotes with her hands for emphasis.
"What the fuck?" Lauren said.
"I'm going to kick his ass when I see him tomorrow," Jordan chimed in, walking into the living room with two mugs. He handed one to Lauren and one to Gemma, and she saw that he made tea.
"I figured you were going to be talking for a while, and you were so wet when you got here, Gem, that hot tea seemed to be in order." Jordan said, sitting in the armchair perpendicular to the couch, giving her and Lauren a little space.
For the first time since her fight with Mat, Gemma's heart felt warm and fuzzy.
"Thank you, Jordan. Seriously, what would I do without you? Either of you," she said, turning to Lauren. "I'm not going to lie, I thought after I told you we broke up, you might not want me here."
"You're my best friend, Gem," Lauren said, "You are always, always welcome here, and it doesn't matter who you're dating."
"I second that," Jordan interjected, "you're like a little sister to me."
"Guys, you're going to make me cry again," Gemma said, putting down her tea on the coffee table before hugging Lauren.
"We're always going to be there for you, Gemma. You can stay in the guest room as long as you need." Lauren said.
"I already put your bags in there," Jordan added.
"Thank you, both of you. God, I sound like a broken record," she laughed, and they laughed with her.
"So what happened after he said that?" Lauren asked.
"I broke up with him, took as much as I could carry, and left," Gemma replied, and she picked up her mug and took a sip of the tea.
"I just can't believe it. He always talks about how proud he is of you, that you're going somewhere in life, and that he loves how passionate you are," Jordan said. "But if he's so threatened by you, you did the right thing breaking up with him."
"You think he's threatened by me?" Gemma asked.
"I don't know what exactly his problem is, but that's the closest thing to what you described," he answered. "I know you've been busy this month, but every relationship gets tested that way. You deserve to know what real support looks like and someone who isn't going to get scared when the going gets tough. You are the smartest person I've ever met, and you truly are going places, Gemma Sullivan."
"Aw, Jordan," she said before she stood up, walked over to the armchair, and hugged him tight.
"Thank you, for everything," she said into his shoulder.
"No thanks needed, it's the truth." Jordan replied, pulling away and hitting her arm playfully.
"He's right, Gemma," Lauren said. "Everyone admires how passionate and determined you are, not to mention your brains. Someone is going to treat you like the queen you are, even if it isn't Mat. Speaking of him," Lauren continued, "What did he do when you were packing to leave?"
"He just sat there on the bed, but when I was about to leave, it seemed to hit him that I was leaving. He tried to say it was our home."
Lauren and Jordan listened intently, thinking she had more to say, but she didn't.
"That's an odd thing to say after one hurts their girlfriend's feelings so badly," Lauren said.
"Yeah. I guess he was too plastered," she muttered, and then she yawned.
"You look exhausted," Lauren commented.
"It just hit me all of a sudden," Gemma said, looking at her watch, which read 10:01, "I guess you really can cry yourself out."
"Why don't you go to sleep?" Jordan suggested. "You'll feel a lot better in the morning. Well, physically, at least."
"It's 10 o'clock, I don't go to bed this early."
"Maybe you shouldn't fight it. Your body needs to recover from today," Lauren advised.
"You're right," Gemma said, "Good night. I can't thank you enough for letting me stay."
"It's our pleasure," Jordan replied.
Gemma turned away and walked down the hall towards the spare bedroom, but she stopped and turned back around, only to watch the couple in the living room. Jordan was now on the couch with his arm around Lauren, and he kissed the top of her head. Gemma smiled; she really didn't want to ruin the moment, but she had to address one more thing.
"Hey guys?" Gemma said, and they looked up at her.
"Yeah?" Lauren said, furrowing her brow.
"I don't expect Mat to get his shit together tonight, but if he comes here or calls to ask where I am, could you please tell him that I'm not taking him back and will pick up the rest of my stuff when I figure out a new living arrangement?"
"Of course, Gem! We won't let him get anywhere near you, I promise," Lauren says.
"Thanks." She smiled at them and walked into the spare bedroom.
After she got into bed and pulled the sheets up to her chin, Gemma realized that today wasn't completely horrible. Lauren and Jordan had shown her what real support looks like—putting a roof over her head when she showed up on their doorstep and giving her great advice. Sure, she suffered a nasty breakup, but in the process, she realized just how amazing her friends were, and she couldn't be more grateful to have them. She knew the days, weeks, and months ahead were going to be really difficult, but she was ready to face every challenge that came her way.