Context: I was having really severe mood swings today, and as a result, I spent the afternoon in my dorm room, crying my eyes out because I felt like no one cared about me. I wrote this to channel some of my negative feelings somewhere other than feeling sorry for myself. I realize now that yes, I am loved and that people care. It just gets hard sometimes because I'm very sensitive and take things way too personally...and when my hormones are out of control.

Dedicated to all of my friends and followers who have ever felt like this or feel like this right now. Please remember that someone loves you and someone needs you, even if you don't think so.

Unlovable

"I have decided to become a shut-in for the rest of my life. Good thing I've stocked up on biscuits."

Jamie shook his head, staring at his phone. He usually checked Facebook on his breaks, but never paid much attention to anything anyone said. Unless, of course, it was something like this.

What was most troubling was that his wife's name headed the page. He hadn't heard from her all day, and she hadn't answered the text he'd sent a few minutes ago.

He dialed her number right before his break ended. It went straight to voicemail.

"Cathy, it's me. I'm a bit worried. Please call me?"

…

He didn't hear from her the rest of the day. He was about ready to phone his mother or Stuart or Emma and ask if they knew what was wrong. If she wasn't at home, he'd really start to worry. Only then.

He opened the front door to their flat, hearing nothing. "Cathy?"

No answer.

"Cathy?" He hung his bag and coat on the hook next to the door.

He was again greeted by silence.

Shaking his head, Jamie headed upstairs to the nursery. Maybe she'd gone out and taken Matthew with? But her shoes were by the front door, so…

Matthew was sleeping soundly in his crib, his little nose twitching every now and then. Jamie smiled, softly running a finger over the baby's cheek.

"You know where Mummy is?" he whispered. "Did she have a bad day?"

He could have slapped himself for being such an idiot. He pulled Matthew's blanket to his chin and took off down the hallway. Sure enough, the bedroom door was closed. He twisted the knob and went in.

Cathy was sitting in bed, her oversized sweatshirt practically swallowing her small form. Her eyes were glued to the TV, watching some loud trash he'd never even seen before. She breathed him, sniffling; he hadn't even noticed that her eyes were red-rimmed and her cheeks were slightly flushed.

He wordlessly took the remote from the bedside table and turned the TV off. She didn't even flinch when he stood over her.

"Sweetheart…?"

It was as if he hadn't even spoken. She continued to stare at the wall, eyes glazed.

"Is there a reason you're home early today? I tried texting you and calling, but you didn't answer."

She shrugged, still saying nothing.

"I was getting worried, you know."

"Were you?" Her voice was flat, thick from crying.

"Yes…" He frowned. "Of course I was."

Cathy glanced at him for a second before pulling the hood of her sweatshirt over her head, covering her eyes. She hugged her knees, burying her face in her arms.

"Cathy…" He sat down beside her. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head, saying nothing.

"Cathy, can you please…"

"No," she said, her voice muffled by her arms. "You don't care. No one cares!"

"Why wouldn't I care?" He blinked, confused. "You're not making any sense."

"No one ever cares, Jamie." She set her chin on her knees. "I've decided to stay in the house from now on."

"And why are you going to do that?"

"No one ever likes my statuses on Facebook, and -"

"Wait." He held up a hand. "This is all because of Facebook?"

Cathy bit her lip. "No…"

"You're upset because people don't like what you say on Facebook."

She turned away. "So?"

He snickered. "Cathy, that's…that's not something to get your knickers in a twist over."

She slapped his arm. "It's not funny, Jamie! Do you know how lonely I feel sometimes?"

"Because no one likes your stuff on Facebook?" he asked, trying to stifle his laughter.

"It's not just that. My co-workers, for the most part, don't talk to me. They're all older than me. I've only got one friend I can talk to."

"So? That's one person, isn't it? And what about Leanne and Denise?"

"I hardly get to see them, or Stuart, or anyone else because we're always so busy." She shook her head. "And when I try to say something interesting, no one even bothers to listen to me."

"Cathy, that's not even true -"

"Yes it is! Look at my Facebook wall right now."

Jamie sighed, humoring her by taking his phone out. "Fine. But I don't see how this is going to prove a point."

"Just look. How many likes does my last status have?"

"Um…none."

"There you go."

"Well, now you have one, see?" He pressed the screen.

"That doesn't count," she said, smiling a bit.

"Maybe no one's seen it yet."

"Or maybe they just don't think I'm interesting. My cousin Valerie always gets likes on whatever she says. I'm lucky if one person likes what I have to say."

Jamie rolled his eyes. "Cathy, who cares? It's a stupid website. Honestly, who gives a fuck if someone ate a doughnut this morning?"

"But that means she's popular, Jamie. She has more people who like what she says. No one ever cares about me or what I think." She sniffed, a few tears falling from her eyes. "I'm unlovable."

Jamie fell silent for a moment. They sat side-by-side, neither of them moving. He finally shifted, sitting in front of her. He tilted her chin upward so that she was looking right at him.

"Catherine Lorina Bradley, you are one of the most lovable people I've ever met. You don't have to worry about Facebook or how many friends you have to know that. You just need to remember that you have parents and a sister who love you, and you have close friends who will always care about what you have to say.

"And you seem to have forgotten you're married to a strikingly handsome gentleman who will never stop loving you, and that you have a son who can't be more than fifty feet away from you because he'll miss you too much if he is. You need to stop being so hard on yourself and remember that you are perfect just the way you are."

She was crying now; he could tell, even if her eyes were hidden by the rim of her hood. He pushed it off of her head, her hair sticking out at odd angles. He smoothed it down before brushing away her tears with his thumbs.

"You feeling better, love?"

She nodded. "A bit, yeah." She took a shuddering breath. "It's just…hard sometimes."

"I know it is." He pulled her to his chest, kissing her forehead. "I feel that way myself sometimes. But I count my blessings every time, as cheesy as that sounds."

"I…I think that's a good idea." She lifted her head, smiling.

He returned her smile, kissing her. "You and Matt are always at the top."

"Of course we are." She smirked, mimicking his voice. "We're fantastic."

Jamie couldn't help the laughter that escaped him, and he tackled his wife, tickling her. After a few minutes, it quickly turned into a heated kissing session, but Cathy broke away to retrieve Matthew from his crib before Jamie was able to remove her sweatshirt.

"I was all prepared to cheer you up," he said, pouting slightly as she sat back down.

"Well, you can cheer me up by just laying with me and Matt. Shouldn't be too hard, I hope."

He sighed dramatically. "If that's what you really want."

"It is."

He was about to protest when Matthew started to giggle, grabbing at the front of Cathy's sweatshirt. Jamie watched as she smiled down at their son, allowing him to play with her finger.

"He's saying he loves you," Jamie said, moving closer.

"I love you, too, Matt." Cathy softly tapped Matthew's nose, causing him to laugh. She looked over her shoulder at Jamie. "And I love you, as well, Mr. Strikingly Handsome Gentleman I'm married to."

Jamie drew them to his side, kissing Cathy full on the lips. "And I love you. See what I mean? You, my darling, are most definitely lovable."