❝she was their autumn moon, brilliant and beautiful, guiding their way though the dark...❞
❝... and they were all of the stars in her night sky - glowing constellations,
forming a map that lead her
...
❝HOME IS PEOPLE WHO MAKE YOU FEEL WORTHY OF THE LOVE THEY GIVE FREELY.❞
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three years earlier
ELI SAT WATCHING THE SUNSET FROM HER FRONT PORCH, EYES RIMMED WITH RED AND CONFUSION ECHOING IN HER RIBCAGE.
She felt her heart ache with regret and wished she'd never said anything. Maybe I am selfish, she thought, tears blurring her vision once more and spilling down her cheeks. She thought she'd done the right thing, so why did it feel so bad?
The secret crush she'd harbored for Shelby Brown had simmered for years now. Shelby was pretty and smart and popular, moving through life with an ease that Eli subconsciously tried to mimic in her own life - that confidence, that poise. Unfortunately, Eli wasn't even a blip on Shelby's radar until Luke came into the picture - Luke, Eli's tall, handsome and decidedly male best friend.
One of her mom's friends, after a bit too much wine, had once lamented to Eli and Bella that falling for straight girls was a one-way ticket to a life of disappointment. They'd both laughed uncomfortably at the time - Bella because she wouldn't ever have to worry about being in that situation, and Eli because it hit a little too close to home.
She should have listened.
Being the supportive and loving best friend she was, Eli gracefully gave her blessing for Luke to take Shelby out for milkshakes one day after football practice. They made a perfect pair, the two of them - him, the star of the football team, and she, the ever-smiling cheerleader. Eli hated how easy they made it seem, but tried to smother the kernel of resentment that the sight the two of them invoked.
She really did try to be happy for them, and for months she played the role of the supportive best friend, pretending not to notice the way Shelby's eyes would flash whenever Luke mentioned her name and Luke's obliviousness when she always inevitably became the third wheel.
