The Party

Scott asked if I could post the story I wrote on here. I haven't reread it in years, so it's still a little rough.
Thanks, Mr.Mirabella for encouraging me even years after I was out of your class.
Anyway, here it is, "The Party."


They sat on the couch uncomfortably while the party carried on around them. Cake was being cut, presents unwrapped, but the two just sat, removed from the whole ordeal. She sat on his left, nervously stroking his arm, looking into his wandering eyes for some semblance of emotion. All she found was him looking at other girls who walked by. She was mad but didn’t know why—they weren’t even dating. He caught her staring and kissed her lightly, letting out a little sigh of obligation. He didn’t even close his eyes. She knew it was a half-hearted attempt to please her, but she accepted it like usual—at least he noticed.

A few minutes passed and the enormous silence between them grew despite the loud, raging party. He stood up and she followed him closely, eager to satisfy in her subservient way. He pushed open the door, letting the cold rush in the cheerful house as he possessively wrapped his arm around her, letting his nails dig into her skin slightly. As he unlocked the car door she shivered, but she wasn’t cold. He opened the door for her and it was almost chivalrous—except for the way that he pushed her in.

The leather was cold, the windows were foggy and the air was silent. He knew that she didn’t want this, but she knew that he did. So she appeased him in a last-ditch effort to salvage what she thought was a relationship.

A few minutes later he pushed open the door and told her to go back inside. He said he’d come in after he had smoked a cigarette. Her weak smile showed him that she believed what he said, but as she disappeared, her face fell.

Thirty minutes passed with no sign of him. She looked outside and saw that his car was gone. Suddenly she understood and felt utterly alone, despite the number of party guests with her.