They Laughed Until I Left

The call had barely ended when an announcement came over the airport PA. All flights had been canceled because of the typhoon.

Dwayne Brewer, Whitney Adams, and Mom and Dad walked out of the VIP area. Their flight to the island had been canceled too.

Whitney spotted the wedding dress in my arms and doubled over laughing. "You seriously chased us all the way to the airport with your wedding dress? Erin, how do you still fall for this stuff?"

Mom and Dad laughed along with her, as if dragging me out of bed at 4:00 am and making me race from the hotel to the airport with my wedding dress was just harmless fun.

Then Whitney ran a hand over her lower belly and leaned closer, like she was about to let me in on a secret.

"Actually, there's another reason we had to postpone the wedding for a week. I'm pregnant with Dwayne's baby."

All the color drained from my face. For a moment, all I could hear was a roar in my head.

Whitney was still smiling. "I'm almost three months along."

I looked straight at Dwayne.

He didn't deny it. He just stood there, completely calm.

Mom even sighed. "What's done is done. Don't blame Whitney. The baby hasn't done anything wrong."

The ringing in my ears wouldn't stop.

I curled my hands into fists, but my fingers were still trembling. "So that's why you called off the wedding? So Dwayne could marry Whitney instead?"

No one said a word.

Then Whitney burst out laughing. Dwayne smiled helplessly, and Mom and Dad doubled over laughing.

Whitney patted my shoulder, laughing so hard she was almost crying. "You fell for it again? I don't even have a boyfriend. How could I be pregnant? Erin, you look like you're about to pass out. This is hilarious."

Dwayne lightly tapped Whitney on the forehead. "Don't joke with her about things like that."

For a second, I almost thought he was defending me.

Then he turned to me with a frown. "And you. You know Whitney's always messing with you. Why do you fall for it every single time?"

Mom waved me off, already irritated. "Oh, don't make that face. You've never been able to take a joke. Everyone was having fun, and now you're acting like we're all picking on you."

That was when I finally understood.

They knew these jokes hurt me. That was why they always waited to tell me the truth. They wanted to watch me panic.

And they'd been doing it for ten years.

The year I took my college entrance exam, Whitney told me my exam had been moved to the other side of town at the last minute.

I fought my way through the pouring rain, only to arrive and find out she'd lied. My exam was still being held at my original school.

A traffic cop ended up rushing me back with his siren on, and I made it into the exam room with barely a minute to spare.

After the exam, everyone crowded around me, laughing.

Mom even told me, "Whitney's just trying to get you to loosen up. Don't ruin everyone else's fun."

Dwayne played along with Whitney too. Once, they took a photo from an angle that made it look like they were kissing. I rushed over in tears, only to find a phone already set up to record my reaction.

Every time, I was the one who had to wipe my tears, force a smile, and pretend I wasn't upset.

Little by little, Whitney became the fun one, while I became the uptight one who couldn't take a joke and always ruined the mood.

I used to think that if I could just learn to laugh along with them, maybe I'd still belong.

But today, I finally understood. Every joke they'd ever laughed at had been at my expense.

I looked down and pressed a hand to my chest. For once, it didn't hurt.

Maybe after being disappointed enough times, you eventually ran out of tears. And after that, you stopped hoping for anything at all.