Pretense

We live in a world of pretense today. People who have true intentions toward you are so less, yet they pretend they are okay with you. They make you believe you got them. An example of a pretense is when you pretend to be friends with someone you don’t like. An example of a pretense is when you date someone you don’t like, but want them around for your selfish reasons.

My first day at college happens to be the best day of my life. I didn’t resume at the stated date of resumption. I resumed late. People already picked each other as friends, I felt so lonely and I didn’t fit into any group of friends. I have always been a loner, so it wasn’t really a big deal, but it was in this new environment. I wanted to belong. Everyone goes to class with a friend, have lunch with a friend, play with a friend, sit with a friend. It felt like I was the only one without a friend in the whole school.
After few days, no one walked up to me to be friends with me. I started feeling unusual. I started seeing myself as “Ugly”. I called my mom on a late afternoon, to inform her that I haven’t been getting along with anyone. I remember asking her if I was beautiful, she laughed, and made me realize I wasn’t only beautiful but I’ve got a good heart too. She told me, sooner or later they will want to be friends with me. I believed my mom, because it been the two of us all my life.

On a Tuesday morning, this group of girls walked up to me. They called themselves DOPE BABES. The one who did the talking happens to be the leader of the group. She got good humor, and before I could say yes to their friendship I’ve been dragged to a car. Where are we going was all I could utter. We got to a beautiful restaurant in town. Precious, the one with the good sense of humor said I would love their food. She said it unlike the one we eat in school. It felt good to sneak out of my comfort zone with these beautiful girls...I got back to my room and crashed off.
The following morning, I went to class so early. I felt strange going to school alone. A part of me wanted to be with those girls. They were my friends, and we are supposed to walk together. I put a call through and Precious said she wasn’t coming. I wanted to go back, but I remembered my studies have always been my major priority.
After the class, I got a text from Debby, one of the DOPE BABES. She said there was a party and she said I have to be there. I hate being told what to do! I don’t follow rules, but then I broke my rules. I went to meet them at a boutique, they were getting clothes for the party. I was thinking about the life these girls live, when I suddenly heard my name. I looked front and saw Precious throwing a dress at me. We left after the shopping.
I was cool with these girls, things were quite okay, until one fateful day. Precious and the other girls started drifting away from me. I didn’t know what I did, I just know they stopped talking to me. I was already into these girls. I literally thought I couldn’t do without them, because I was already living another lifestyle outside the one I brought to the school. Things were not right anymore. Anytime I want to have a conversation with any of them, they snub me and left. I stopped trying to talk to them, instead I went back to my lonely lifestyle.

Guilt caught up with Debby, I guess, because she sent me a text requesting i meet with her. At first, I didn’t want to, I felt how could they stop talking to me for no genuine reason. I didn’t bother searching for answers why I was dumped by the girls. I decided to meet Debby at the restaurant they took me the first day we met. She got there before me, I went over to sit with her. She cleared her throat, and said she’s here on her own, and she made me promise her I wouldn’t tell the girls she met with me, to which I promised. She said Precious and the rest thought I was so full of myself and decided to play a game on me. I asked again, “A game?” She said Yes. Precious said she was going to make me her friend for 3 months and if she succeeded, the girls would buy her 3 dresses. I was shocked, these girls ruined my life. My grades reduced drastically because I was with this group of girls, only for my life to be traded with 3 dresses. I asked her why she decided to tell me, she said she felt bad about it. These girls were friends with me because they felt I was proud for not mingling with the other girls, whereas I was scared because I felt nobody wanted to be friends with me. These girls were friends with me for 3 months just for one of them to get 3 dresses. They never liked me, they didn’t cherish the moments spent, the deceived me for their selfish reasons. All the love shown towards me were fake. It was a pretense of friendship.