Right Here Waiting

Eliza sat at the bar of her favorite restaurant in Boston.

She’d left David an hour before. He’d asked her to marry him, and she didn’t have the heart to tell him no. She told him she needed to think about it, and left. Immediately, she walked to the bar and ordered the strongest drink she could think of.

It had been four months since she’d left Huntington Beach, and if she thought September would be different from any of the other months, she was wrong. She had barely had contact with any of the guys since April. They called her all the time, but she mostly didn’t answer the calls. She spoke with Matt and Valary, though, and had even sent Matt a birthday gift in July. She’d spent the entire day on July 7th drinking alone, leaving her phone at home to be sure she wouldn’t try to contact Brian.

As she thought his name, she took another sip of her drink and winced as it went down. She didn’t drink much anymore. When she came back to Boston, she picked up her relationship with David, determined not to feel sad or alone. They’d gotten more and more serious, and as they did, Eliza decided to change for him. She quit smoking, she rarely drank unless they were at a function, and her hair returned to her normal auburn color. The piercings in her lip and cheek were taken out, and she was sure they were probably healed up.

David had gotten into a prestigious law firm on the outskirts of the city and she had taken a job as a secretary in the building. In mid-July, she’d moved out of the house she had with Katie and into David’s. She wore skirts, button-up shirts, and her hair was always neat. Sure, she still hung out with Katie, but it wasn’t as often anymore.

She hated it. She hated the fakeness she felt every time she looked in the mirror. She hated that she’d changed for someone, and she hated that she wasn’t in Huntington anymore. She knew the band was getting ready to release their new album in October, and honestly, she was dreading the day. Their tour started in November, and she was glad to see that they weren’t coming to Boston.

Her phone rang, shattering her thoughts, and she glanced at the caller I.D. seeing Johnny’s name flash on the screen. Sighing, she pressed the green button.

“Hello?”

“Holy shit, you actually answered.”

“Hey, Christ. What’s going on?”

“Nothing really, just wanting to make sure you’re still alive. We haven’t heard from you in a while.”

“I talked to Val last week to make sure Matt got his present.”

“Yeah, I know, but that doesn’t count. When are you coming back out west?”

Eliza hesitated. “I don’t think that I am, Johnny.”

“That sucks. I miss my date.”

“I miss you too, Christ. How’s the album coming?”

“It’s going great. We were supposed to release it early October, but it looks like it’s going to be right around your birthday. We’re recording some extra stuff for it, and with Brian’s wedding and all, we’ve had to really—”

“Wait, what?” Eliza asked, almost choking on her drink.

“Recording the extra stuff?”

“No, Christ. Did you say ‘Brian’s wedding’?”

“Well, yeah. I thought you knew.”

“Obviously I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, Brian and Amber are getting married on Halloween.”

Halloween. Two days after her birthday. She inhaled deeply. “Well, give them my congratulations.”

“Oh, sure… I guess I can do that.”

“I’ve got to go, Johnny.”

“Alright. Well, we miss you, Eliza.”

“Miss you more.”

Eliza hung up the phone, took the straw out of her drink, and downed the rest of it. Slapping a twenty on the bar, she got up and walked out. She quickly strode to the building she and David worked at. Not bothering to knock, she opened the door to his office.

“Eliza honey, what’s wrong?”

“I’ve made up my mind.”



Brian walked downstairs into the kitchen. Val was sitting at the island, eating cereal. She ignored him as he entered, as she’d been doing for the past four months. She barely spoke to him unless absolutely necessary, she didn’t include him in her plans, and she had ripped his wedding invitation up in front of his face.

He leaned against the counter as he ate his own bowl of cereal. He looked at Val who was intently reading her cereal box.

“Really, Val? You’re still not talking to me?”

She didn’t speak.

“Is this because I’m marrying Amber? Look, I know you don’t like her and all, but it would mean a lot if you were there.” He’d refrained from saying he loved her because he knew he didn’t. He didn’t have the balls to break off the engagement.

Still, she said nothing. She finished her bowl of cereal and not making eye contact, set the bowl in the sink and was leaving the kitchen.

“I miss you, Val.”

She stopped and turned around. “Tell me something, Brian. How did you spend your fifty bucks?”

Confused, Brian was about to ask her what she meant, but she was already gone.