You're My Perfect Lie

Matt’s POV

I open the door to a smiling Sophia, standing next to a blonde girl. “Hey, I didn’t think you would make it” I say, opening wide the door for her to step in.

“Sorry for being late. We kinda got lost” She says blushing & smiling. I see her cheeks tint with blush since her hair is pulled back with a headband. “Uh… Matt, this is my cousin Lauren. Lauren, this is Matt” She says, introducing me to the blonde petite girl.

“It’s nice to meet you” I say, shaking her small hand.

“The same. It’s nice to meet the guy that kept my cousin company when I ditched her” She says in a very soft voice. I let out a laugh & Sophia just smacks her arm.

“It’s not funny” She says in a stern voice, making Lauren & I laugh louder. “You guys suck” She says, stomping her feet & crossing her arms over her chest, a small pout on her perfect red tinted lips.

“Oh, come on, Phi-Phi. I said I was sorry” Lauren says, hugging her taller cousin & tiptoeing to kiss her cheek.

“Get off me, freak” Sophia says, with a huge smile, playfully shoving her cousin.

“You guys are crazy. Come on in. Everyone’s in the backyard” I say, motioning for them to follow me. We walk through the kitchen & through the huge glass doors, to step into the backyard where everyone is gathered around the pool & lounge chairs.

“SOPHIA” My wife screams, coming to greet us, pulling the brunette standing next to me in a huge hug. “I’m so glad you came” She says, letting go of her. “& who is this?” She asks, looking at Lauren with a friendly smile.

“This is Lauren, Sophia’s cousin” I say. “Lauren, this is Valary… my wife” I say.

“Well, everyone related to Sophia is practically family too” Val says, enveloping the petite girl in a hug too. Sophia goes around, greeting everyone & introducing herself to the persons she haven’t met. I didn’t even noticed the smile placed in my face as I see her lean body strut from place to place, before sitting down next to Zacky & Val, a red cup in hand. I turn & walk to the grill, where Brian is.

“Didn’t know Sophia would come” He says, signaling the brunette with his beer.

“Yeah, she’s visiting her cousin for the weekend” I say, grabbing a beer from the cooler. “I ran into her yesterday & thought it would be great for her to come over” I say, not really putting much thought into my words.

“The girls seem excited to have her here” He says, motioning for where all the girls are all over her. “It’s like fresh meat to them” He says, making us laugh.

“Yeah. I think they’ve been waiting too long to just add one more girl to their pack” I say, sipping from my beer, while pinching a steak.

“Well, she seems to fit just perfectly” He says & I nod. “Tal is one lucky motherfucker. If I wasn’t married to Chelle, I would be all over her by now” He says & somehow, his words make something inside me spark… something people call jealousy. But why would I be jealous? Maybe it’s not jealous. Maybe it’s that I find it kinda offensive for him to be referring to one of our best friend’s girlfriend like that. I mean… friends don’t hit on their girls. It’s boy’s code. I discretely turn my gaze to where she is, seeing her laugh at something Michelle said. She must’ve felt my stare on her, cuz she turns to look at me, giving me a small smile, raising her cup, almost like she’s toasting with me. I raise my beer bottle too before taking a sip, watching her do the same. She smiles at me again & turns her attention to the hoard of girls around her. & I feel almost bubbly inside. I immediately smack myself mentally. I sound like a chick.

*~*~*

By 12 AM, everyone is either drunk, or passed out. My wife retrieved for the night, barely being able to stand. Jimmy & Leana where playing some kind of stupid game with Lauren, laughing every 2 seconds. Lacey & Johnny where cuddled up next to Brian & Michelle, talking about God know what. Immediately I start searching for the girl that’s been in mind for more than a couple of times. I see her sitting by the pool, her shoes resting next to her & her jeans rolled up, her feet inside the warm water, talking on the phone. By the way she’s giggling & playing with her hair, I know that she’s talking to Tal. She bites her lower lip, making me stare intently. Her lips are back to her natural color, her lipstick faded a long time ago. She hangs up & places her phone by her side, leaning back on her hands & staring into the sky, almost like counting the stars. Before I know it, I’m kicking off my shoes, dipping my feet on the water too, sitting next to her… way too close to her.

“Hey” She smiles, noticing me. It seems my closeness doesn’t bother her & I’m glad for that. I can feel her warm temperature oozing from her body. Her eyes are bit glazed over, letting me know that she had a few drinks, but not enough to make her drunk or tipsy.

“Hey. What are you doing?” I ask, looking towards the beach, that’s conveniently placed in front of us.

“Just chilling. Waiting for Lauren to finish whatever game she’s been playing for the past hour with them” She says motioning with her head. We turn to look at the laughing trio, making us laugh too. “They’re so plastered. Guess I’ll be driving tonight” She says, moving her feet under the water.

“She’s very feisty for her height” I say, sending Sophia into a fit of laughter, the beautiful sound invading my ears.

“Yeah… she takes it from her dad” She says, turning to smile at me. I’ve noticed she smile a lot, which is good, cuz she has the most amazing smile I’ve ever seen. I will never get tired of her smile. I could stare at her smiling face forever.

“Did you have fun?” I ask her, trying to stop my train of thoughts, knowing very well that I shouldn’t be thinking that kind of stuff. She nods.

“I had a fantastic time. You really know how to throw a barbeque. & I didn’t know you were such a great cook” She says, nudging me.

“I have a lot of hidden talents” I say, smirking at her, knowing my dimples are at full display.

“Oh, I’m sure of it” She says & we fall into a very comfortable silence. “Tal says hi, by the way” She says & I feel a tug at my heart with the mention of Tal’s name. But it’s not jealousy… it must’ve been something I ate. I’m sure of it.

“Good” Was the only response I could come up with. “When are you leaving?” I ask her, trying to distract her from the new topic.

“Early tomorrow. Don’t want to catch traffic & I want to be able to rest” She says, nodding her head.

“Are you gonna be able to wake up?” I ask her, sipping from my beer.

“I have this marvelous thing called an alarm that I’m sure would be able to wake me up. Besides, when Lauren drinks a lot, somehow she doesn’t sleep a lot. So probably, she will be up before me” She says, letting out a small laugh. “I’m a heavy sleeper. & the only way I can wake up is through the alarm clock on my phone” She says, stifling a yawn. I was about to say something when Lauren stumbles towards us, hugging Sophia from behind, pushing her forward. Sophia quickly grabs my thigh, my immediate reaction was grab her hand, steadying her.

“Have I told you that I love you a lot, Phi-Phi? Because I do. You’re the best cousin. No… you’re like my sister, since my dad loves you like a daughter” Lauren slurs, making Sophia laugh. It’s then that I realize that my hand was still clutching hers, while it was still placed on my thigh.

“Ok” She says through her laugh. “I think it’s time for us to leave” She says, slightly pushing Lauren back, before pulling her hand back, much to my regret. I stand & grab Lauren.

“I’m gonna walk her to the car. Just grab her stuff” I say & she nods, pulling her feet from the water. “Come on, girl” I say, helping her through the house.

“You know, Matt… you have the cutest eyes I have ever seen” She says, hiccupping.

“Thanks” I say, smiling.

“& your dimples are cute too. You’re way too cute for a man” She says making me laugh. “& I don’t mean that like an offense” She says. Drunk people say the most random things. “I’m sure if Phi-Phi wouldn’t be dating Tal, she would be dating you. You are so her type” She says & I smirk.

“Really?” I ask, opening the back door & placing her in the seat.

“Yup” She says, falling back to the seat. I close the door, her words ringing in my mind. She would date me? I’m her type? Somehow that makes me happy. To know that at some point… I’m not alone in feeling these things I do.

“Thanks” I turn to see Sophia walk out with her shoes in one hand & Lauren’s bag on the other, her own hanging from her shoulder.

“No problem. She’s a friendly drunk” I say, turning to see a pass out Lauren on the back of car.

“Yeah” She says, stifling a smile. “Well, thank for everything. I had a wonderful time” She says, opening the passenger seat, placing all the stuff there. I hold the door open. Maybe she wasn’t expecting for me to standing there, but she turned a bit harsher than I expected, & stumble with me, sending us both to the floor, her on top of me.

“I’m so sorry” She says, before we burst out laughing. We laugh for a couple of minutes, her on top of me & me just holding her hips.

“What are you guys doing?” We hear Lauren say, popping her head through the window.

“We fell” I say, helping Sophia on her feet. Lauren just nods, before passing out again.

“Guess I better go. Thanks again for everything. & sorry about the fall” She says, hugging me, not before me noticing her blushing again.

“No problem. Just stop by every time you’re in town” I say, hugging her back. She nods, smiles & gets in the car, driving off. I let out a big sigh. Why do I feel this girl is gonna be the death of me?