Ghost Stories:

I was on the beach with Juana and our parents, and I got really, really hot in my shirt, but I didn't wanna take it off because I feel like my belly is still flabby from last year, and kind of fuzzy. And when I felt my chin, I realized I still had some hair there – and it was even worse on my upper lip. I swear, this stuff grows back faster than I can rip it out! So I went to go cool down, and then had my mom bring me her tweezers so I could manage the forest of fur I had going on in there. There was enough hair between my eyebrows to kindle a small fire. It was embarrassing as hell. When I came out, she was on her phone again. I hate to say this about her, but when she's on her phone, she's in another world. She doesn't say anything to anyone. It's like, when we were texting to plan this whole trip, she would go silent for long periods of time, apologize, and then do it again. Then she'd go days without saying anything and not offer any reason why. Why apologize over an hour-long gap and not over a three-day one? I don't wanna sound paranoid, but it felt like she wasn't emotionally invested anymore. Like she was talking to someone else for a while. So I backed off, and then she'd text me again out of the blue. I'm surprised she even let me go on this trip with her, it just seems like she has better friends to hang out with. And I can't say anything interesting enough to keep her focus, so I don't know why I even bother. I feel like a total nothing of a person, sometimes. That, and these two rando guys were on the beach, looking hot and muscular, and she was chatting it up with them when I got back. They were practically lurching over to hide their you-know-whats, and looked like they were sweating from more than just the sun. It was gross. They must have been in their twenties, that's why her dad wished them a 'good day, sirs' like, three minutes into the conversation. But she seemed more interested in them than in hanging out with me. I don't know. Maybe I should be encouraging her, just not with guys like that. If I'm only here as a friend (which is what her mom's icy gaze keeps telling me), then it's none of my business who she likes. That, and I just feel ugly right now. Maybe I'll try again tomorrow.