Seven Years, and I Was Always the Third Wheel

Out shopping,my boyfriend bought two cups of milk tea,the way he always did.

One jasmine milk tea,half sugar,light ice.

Then he got to me and grabbed a four-dollar iced lemon tea without thinking.

It was pushing a hundred degrees out,and yet the tea in my hand was still hot.

"Mer,why aren't you drinking?"

My best friend seemed to remember something all at once,and she punched my boyfriend in the arm.

"Come on,Mer's allergic to lemon!How could you forget that?"

The two of them dissolved into teasing and shoving,completely overlooking me standing right there.

Ever since we started dating,this kind of thing had happened more times than I could count.

Disney tickets,Valentine Delgado always saved one for Ellie Barnes.

Making a wish at a chapel,he never forgot to get her a lucky red string.

And every time,he'd grin and joke.

"Sorry,Mer,forgot to grab yours this time.Next time for sure,I promise."

I'd heard that line so many times my ears had nearly grown calluses.

In a friendship of three,somehow I was the one who felt like the extra.

This time,I didn't want to keep trailing along behind them.

……

That cup of lemon tea went into the trash without a single sip.

A month ago,Valentine had promised that on my birthday he'd take me out for the big shared dinner I loved most.

The place was popular;you had to book online well ahead of time.

I'd made the reservation a week early,looking forward to today,to finally trying it together with the two of them on my birthday.

But Ellie complained.

"Who eats hot food in weather like this?I'm dying."

And Valentine wasn't happy either.

"All that broth and grease,and Ellie doesn't even like heavy food.Why don't we go somewhere else?"

I said,"If you two don't want it,I'll just eat by myself."

Seeing that I was upset,Ellie gave in with a put-upon little sigh."Fine,fine.For your birthday's sake,I'll just have to suck it up."

When it came time to order,the whole table was filled with Ellie's favorites.

Even the broth was extra spicy.

But my stomach had been bad since I was a kid;I couldn't handle a single bite of spice.

Looking at the loaded table,I lost my appetite completely.

The two of them were still bickering beside me,without the slightest notice that anything was wrong with me.

Ellie thumped Valentine in the stomach with her fist.

He pretended to dodge,then caught both her wrists easily.

"Okay,okay,stop being mad."

"Everything we ordered is your favorite!"

Ellie shook my arm,her face all wounded pout."Mer,look at him,your boyfriend's picking on me and you won't even step in!"

Through the steam rising off the pot,I watched the two of them carry on together.

I pressed my lips together and said nothing.

Ellie and Valentine and I had known each other for years.

We'd been together since the same high school,then got into the same college.

The three of us were always inseparable,the"iron triangle"everyone thought was so close.

But somewhere along the way,that closeness had turned into something else.

By the time the meal was over,a light rain had started outside.

Valentine opened the front passenger door and said,on reflex,

"Mer,Ellie gets carsick easily.Let her sit up front and you take the back,okay?It's all the same anyway."

But he'd forgotten.I got carsick too.

I opened my mouth,the complaint stuck on the edge of my lips,and in the end I said nothing.

The AC in the car was turned way down,and the cold air made Ellie sneeze.

The next second,Valentine pulled off his jacket and draped it over her shoulders.

The gesture came so smoothly,like he'd done it countless times before.

Ellie wrapped the jacket tight around herself and smiled as she praised him."Didn't think you had it in you to be this thoughtful."

"Mer,this boyfriend of yours,I trained him up nicely for you,didn't I?"

I dragged up a self-mocking smile.

The cold wind chilled my fingertips little by little,and my heart went cold along with them.

Somewhere along the way,all that care that used to be mine had gone to my best friend instead.