He knows how to keep things simple.
I never learned how.
I told myself I didn't have to decide tonight.
I was wrong. I can't risk losing a friendship over something that was never meant to last.
It should be simple.
Because I was never the easy choice.
Tears spill over, and I swipe them away angrily, feeling stupid for letting myself get so invested.
I told myself it didn't mean anything, that it couldn't.
But it did.
Now, I'm paying the price for letting myself believe it could be something real.
I stare at the wall, the laughter and voices from downstairs a distant echo, a reminder of everything I can't have. Asher's words replay in my head, over and over, like a cruel reminder that I was never going to be enough for him. Not when he had someone like Harlow.
And me? I'm just the girl who made things messy. The girl he had to hide.
I lie back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling, feeling like the world has shifted underneath me, leaving me lost and unsure of where to go next.
He doesn't even know I heard.
And tomorrow, he'll look at me like nothing's changed.
Maybe it's better that way.
The last thing I want is for him to know how much it hurts.
The worst part? I can't even talk to my best friend about it.
Because the second I do, I lose her too.
If I haven't already.
Chapter 27
Tip twenty-seven; Initiate sex, but don't push for it. Don't just expect your partner to always initiate it. Don't use sex as a bargaining tool for malicious reasons. (Unless you have that type of relationship with your partner.)
Ivy
Tuesday rolls around, and I wake up already anxious.
There's a heavy weight in my chest, like my body knows today isn't going to go smoothly, even though I've been telling myself for days now that I'll figure it all out. I'd planned to meet Asher for our study session, but the idea of seeing him, talking to him.
It makes my stomach churn.
I try to focus on the day ahead, shoving down everything else, but it's useless. By mid-morning, I can't shake the restless energy, and the thought of being around Asher feels suffocating. I grab my phone, my fingers hesitating for just a second before I type out the message.
I can't make it today. Sorry.
I send it before I can overthink and immediately throw my phone onto the bed, turning away from it like it's going to explode. I know Asher's going to ask why. I know he'll push for answers.
I don't have an explanation that doesn't sound pathetic.
