April 28, 2025
by Lily J. Thomas
I don’t know what it is about finding out that I wasn’t invited to my close friend’s birthday party, but it hit me harder than I expected. I thought I had finally gotten past that feeling of being left out, of being the one girl who never seemed to make the cut for these things. But now, here I am, feeling exactly the way I used to when I was younger—the girl who never got invited to anything.
It’s not like I expected to be the center of attention or anything, but I thought, after all this time, that I’d at least be considered. I thought we were close enough that I’d be part of it. But when I found out that everyone else was going and I wasn’t invited, it stung.
I tried to brush it off at first, telling myself it wasn’t that big of a deal. Maybe it was a small party, maybe they just wanted it to be intimate—any excuse I could think of. But the more I thought about it, the more I couldn’t shake the feeling of being excluded, like I was suddenly that forgotten girl again.
And of course, everyone else is telling me not to make a big deal out of it. “It’s just a party, don’t overthink it,” they say. But how am I supposed to not overthink it when it’s one of those things that just hits you where it hurts the most?
I know I’m being dramatic, but it’s hard to just turn off that feeling of being left behind, especially when you thought you were past it. I’m not even mad at my friend—just really hurt, and that’s the hardest part to admit. I wish I could get over it, but for now, I guess I’ll just have to sit with the feeling and hope it fades.
