Fake Girlfriend

“Hey, Cole?” I asked on the drive to Delilah’s house the next day.

“Hm?”

“How come you know this secret about my best friend?” My brows furrowed.

“John told me.”

I frowned. “And Lex?”

“John told him, too.”

I looked out the window, glaring at nothing in particular. I was trying not to be mad at Cole, or Lex, or John, because perhaps Cole was right in saying that I should hear it from Delilah. I was just mad that it felt like I was the last one to know. “Funny how he told both of you and he’s only known you for like a month,” I murmured.

Cole sighed. “It’s not like I asked to be told, Thisbe.”

“I know,” I huffed.

The rest of the ride was pretty much silent. The radio was on, so I just hummed the lyrics to the songs that played, and tried to tell myself that I wasn’t mad. I wasn’t supposed to be mad. I watched the scenery pass by, and my mind wandered onto what this secret could possibly be about. What could be so important that Cole insisted I hear it from Delilah herself? And what could be so bad that Delilah hadn’t already told me?

We pulled up Delilah’s driveway up to her familiar house. We didn’t ring the doorbell—not that I ever did. This was my second home, even if John hadn’t said to invite ourselves in, I probably wouldn't have. I knew where the spare key was, and I knew the code to open the garage door. And I also know which window on the first floor was Delilah’s room. The two of us had snuck out of it one time sophomore year to go to a dance with some upperclassmen friends. It was a bad decision, but nonetheless, it was fun. I smiled at the memory. Delilah and I might as well have been sisters.

“John? Delilah?” Cole called as we walked inside.

“We’re in the kitchen!” John called back.

Being here as often as I had, I knew exactly where the kitchen was. I was just in there last weekend eating ice cream with Delilah over some matter that was bothering her—probably the same matter that was about to be revealed to me now. Cole followed behind me, with an expressionless face, which I had learned meant there was a lot on his mind. I was a little too anxious to find out this secret to ask what was wrong—even though it was probably the secret I was about to hear that was bothering him. I peeked into the kitchen. John was sitting on the island’s counter in the center of the kitchen, and Delilah was leaning up against the fridge wearing an Arlington High School sweatshirt a few sizes too big and eating some sort of burrito.

She smiled, a little too happy for someone who had been avoiding me for a week. “Hey Bebe!” she said, bubbly, her mouth full with whatever was in the burrito. Cheese?

I couldn’t help but snicker. “De, what are you eating?”

She laughed. “Cheese burrito.”

I frowned. “That entire thing is filled with cheese?” I asked.

She nodded.

John chuckled sheepishly, scratching his head.

Suddenly, Delilah glared at him. “It’s not funny. Cheese is good.”

John’s smile vanished instantly, holding his hands. “You’re right. Not funny,” he said.

I cocked my eyebrow. That was a complete 180 in her emotions. What the--?

“De… are you okay?” I asked, warily. “You’ve been avoiding me, after all.”

“Hm?” She stared at me blankly for a second. “I’m fine.”

“Delilah…” Cole mumbled.

She looked at him, and then it seemed to have dawned on her. “Oh right.” She suddenly looked a bit guilty. “That.”

I frowned. “What?”

She gave me that same look she did in the first grade when she broke my favorite bracelet. The look she gave me in fifth grade when she kissed the guy I like. The look she gave me in the tenth grade when she “borrowed” my favorite boots to wear on her first date with John and got them dirty. Whatever was about to come out of her mouth, it wouldn’t be good news, but as usual, I’d forgive her. Best friends were like that.

“Uh…” she shifted uneasily. “So… I just found out recently something… a little bad.”

“Well, what is it?” I asked.

“Erm, Bebe,” she said, with that look, “what would you do if I said I found out I was pregnant?”

I stared at her. The words didn’t quite seep in. When they finally did, I’m not going to lie, I was more angry than anything else. “What?!” I said. She flinched, and she opened her mouth to say something. I interrupted her. “And you tell everyone but me? You’re best friend?! Wow, that’s just great, De.”

“Thisbe…” Delilah said, her voice small and sad.

“Excuse me,” I said, turning around and pushing passed Cole, still behind me. He tried to grab my arm but I shook it off and stormed right outside.

“I’ll handle her,” I heard Cole say before slamming the back door behind me. Don’t count on it, I said in my head.

As promised, I heard the door open and close a few seconds later. I didn’t bother looking back at him. I dug a little hole in the grass with the toe of my shoe. The thought of my best friend being pregnant bothered me. The fact that it took the convincing of Cole and her boyfriend to tell me that she was pregnant bothered me even more. There were never any secrets between De and me… Well, besides the one I was keeping about Cole and my fake relationship, but that hardly was the same… right?

I kicked a rock against the backyard’s fence in frustration.

“Thisbe, what are you doing?” Cole asked, sounding a bit pissed. Funny. Why should he be pissed?

I didn’t answer him.

“Thisbe,” he insisted. He was right behind me now. I still didn’t look at him.

I glared at the floor. I could see his feet. “Try stepping in my shoes for a moment, Cole,” I said. “It’s been…what? At least a week since she’s known? Don’t you think that’s something you tell your best friend? As soon as it happens? Without having someone convince you to do so?”

“Oh, just suck it up,” Cole said harshly.

I spun around to face him with a piercing glare. “Excuse me?”

He matched that glare. “I said ‘suck it up’,” he repeated, venomously. My glare weakened a bit. Why was he suddenly angry? “How about you try stepping in her shoes for a moment, Thisbe,” he said. “She was scared. She still is. She’s afraid about her future. About this sudden issue. And now she’s afraid she’s going to lose her best friend.”

“She should have told me! She—“

“She needs you, Thisbe!” he shouted. I immediately shut up. “Whether she told you she was pregnant right away or not, she needs you. She can’t go to John with everything. So who’s she going to rely on then, Thisbe?”

“I—“

He still interrupted me. “While you’re worrying about your petty issue about her not telling you right away, she’s got bigger issues. You’re being selfish, Thisbe!”

I did feel guilty now. But the way Cole was talking to me, and how he wouldn’t let me speak… it was creating a hollow feeling inside the pit of my stomach. I barely realized there were tears in my eyes until they spilled over. “Alright, alright. I get it,” I said, trying not to let the sob come into my voice. I, again, pushed passed him. “You… didn’t need to yell at me.”

I walked back into the house, this time slamming the door on Cole. I wiped the tears away with my sleeve before reentering the kitchen.