Counting Down The Days To Go

“Beep! Beep!”

I heard honking from what I presumed was Amanda’s car. She was here to pick me up for Peter’s party. I quickly dabbed on some lip gloss and gave a quick, final glance to my full length mirror. I was wearing some tight skinny jeans, shimmery silver flats and a tank top. This was what I usually wore to parties, something not too revealing but something that I’d be able to party in at the same time.

I grabbed my black clutch which contained my essentials which was my cell phone ( I’m like always with it), mini lip gloss and eyeliner and some money. Oh, and I think I’ve got a spare comb somewhere inside that clutch.

“ Crystal! Hurry up!” I heard Amanda shriek from outside. I quickly waltzed out of the door and into the passenger seat of Amanda’s hot pink car.

“ Took you long enough girl! What were you doing inside there? You know what, I don’t want to know. So, where does the hottie live?” Amanda asked.

“ If by hottie you mean Mike, then he lives at Mountbatten Lane. No.10.” I mumbled. Damn, Amanda sounds like she had set her ever roaming pair of eyes on Mike’s sexy ass. And I know that if Mike had to choose between Amanda and me, the cute petite one with the whole lot of energy or the tall, gangly extra, he would choose option A in a heartbeat. I’m like nothing compared to her. God, now I sound like someone with no self-confidence whatsoever, but I’ve know Amanda for 13 years. So imagine spending more than a decade with a girl who always gets the guys while you are the one who is treated as if you’re invincible, that’d definitely take a toll on anyone’s self-confidence.

“ Hey, Crystal. I’ve got something to ask you,” Amanda said in her normal voice. No, not the shrieking voice or the high-pitched i’m-so-cute voice. This was the voice that she used mostly when we were alone or she had something important to say.

“ Oooh. You’re using that voice. It can’t be anything good. But shoot anyways. I’m all ears.”

“ Um, how do you feel about Mike?”

I nearly choked on my own saliva. Was my feelings for him so obvious that even Amanda, the self-obsessed girl, could see through?

“ Uh. He’s a cool guy you know. Really sweet and stuff.” I said. That was the truth, not the whole truth, but the truth. I don’t know why, but whenever I seem to have a crush on a guy, which wasn’t very often, Chanel would be the one I turn to for advice. Amanda was my best friend in the sense that we would go shopping together and talk about superficial stuff like hair and make-up. Amanda, obviously, doesn’t know the true definition of love so I’d never bothered telling her about my crushes. I tried to tell her once, way back in middle school but she laughed it off and continued talking about the color of her nails. Yeah, way to go my dear best friend.

Thinking about it now, I suppose we were bounded into being “ best friends” by the time and trust that comes along with a 13-year-old relationship. We’ve known each other since we were 4. But of course I don’t have the heart to tell her straight to her face that I don’t really consider her a true friend, it would break her poor little heart. Our current relationship was fine with me.

“ Well, I think I’ve got a crush on him. And I was wondering, since the two of you seems so close and all, could you like help me get together with him?” Amanda’s voice soon pulled my wandering mind back to the present.

What?! Oh no. No no no no. Did I hear Amanda right? Did she just say “ I’ve got a crush on him” and this him is referring to the one and only Mike Bergen? The Mike Bergen? The new guy whom I think I like? Oh man. Just when I thought Mike was a cool guy and that we’d be something more than friends, Amanda just had to drop this bomb on me. From the years I’ve spent with Amanda, I know that what Amanda wants, Amanda gets. So far, no guy has ever turned down her advances. She was the one doing the dumping most of the time too.

“ Anyways, you don’t like him or anything right? So it’s okay if I make a move? I was thinking that maybe tonight, at the party, I’d just confess my feelings to him and see how it goes.” Amanda droned on.

I could only nod weakly and looking out of the car window, I realized that we were outside Mike’s house already. Just at that moment, he sauntered out of the house. He was wearing yet another pair of skinny jeans, a t-shirt with some cartoon on it and a hoodie. Why did he have to be so gorgeous? If he was just some normal guy, I mean, we wouldn’t have this stupid problem at all. So now Amanda is going to confess her feelings and Mike would be seduced by Amanda’s beauty and they would get into a boy-girl relationship. And they would live happily ever after…. For two weeks at the most of course or until Amanda spots a new target, whichever comes first. Then they would go on with their lives and I would, again, be the best friend of the hot girl, stuck in the shadows of her friend.

“ So Mike. Are you excited about the party?” Amanda asked him, in an attempt to make some conversation I suppose.

“ Yup.”

“ Did you used to go to a lot of parties in California? Was it fun?”

“ Yeah. And yeah, sometimes.”

“ Oh. Do you think I should throw a party on my birthday? It’s like coming up soon and I’m like turning 18 already so I like told my parents that I want a new car. But they were totally like no. And I was like super pissed at them. But….” And Amanda droned on, as usual.

I rested my head on the car window and kept my eye on the road. There was no point in listening to the conversation. I was just feeling low I suppose. Amanda and I had different tastes, even in boys. So we never had the problem of liking the same guy at the same time. She preferred jocks and those loud, attention-seeking guys whereas I prefer the more sentimental and quiet yet understanding type. I remember Amanda had once told me that she thought guys who wear skinny jeans were “like totally gay” (that’s her words, not mine). But Mike has been getting a lot of attention lately, being the new kid and all, so I suppose Amanda wanted to bask in some of the attention too. I just hope Mike knows what Amanda is up to. But with him being new around here, I doubt he knows about Amanda’s routine with boys.

Let's just hope Mike looks for something way deeper than looks and superficial crap.like Amanda.