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20.2. The Transformation, Part 2

[Avni: So it turns out the only reason my dad was home so early last night was to drop off dinner for me- he just went right back to work. Which made me feel really terrible obviously, because that's his way of showing he feels bad. I think. Also Ricky broke his wrist with thirteen days left to opening night, so- yeah.]

School that day was pretty uneventful. They were getting closer to finals, so teachers were mostly revising and going through some last-minute stuff.

She was at home later studying for said finals when her phone pinged.

"Can I come over?" It was Hrithik.

"Sure."

♡♡♡♡♡

"I need to talk to you," he said. He seemed shifty.

"Okay?"

"I don't think this is- working out," he said.

Avni frowned, "What?"

"We tried, didn't we? We tried to make it work. But I don't think I would want it to go further." Is he breaking up with me or quitting a job?

"Why not?"

"Look, you're great-"

"For fucks sake, Hrithik, for once in your life, say what you mean."

"I think you're a terrible person and a worse influence. And I don't want to hang out anymore."

"Oh, wow," she blinked. "Do you have a justification for that?"

"It's this! Everything! I just said you were terrible and you don't care. At all. Do you not have feelings?"

"Oh, I care. Trust me. You're breaking up with me right now. You don't think I care?"

"It doesn't show."

Avni considered it. "Okay so maybe you have a point. I do keep my feelings hidden. Why does that make me a terrible person?"

"Because you expect everyone else to be the same."

"No, I don't. You can do whatever you want."

He sighed, "You expect everyone to be as unaffected as you are by stuff. Manipulation, deceit, lying- these are not things I'm desensitised to."

"What are saying right now?"

"You never had the Broadway plans, did you?"

Oh.

"I never said I did. You said that you had the Broadway plans."

"You tricked me into telling you what they were!"

"And you have to admit- it was really smart."

He shook his head, "It was deceitful."

"You're blowing this way out of proportion."

"I'm really not. We agreed not to talk about the Menkies. You broke that rule too."

"So did you."

"Only because you made me! Look I don't do these kinds of things. I don't like them being done to me either."

"'These kinds of things'?" Avni asked, making air quotes. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Cheating!"

"Are you calling me a cheat? Because I bent the rules a little? And what are you- St. Moral Police?"

"Well, I would never do what you did! I'm a nice person-"

"A nice person would never say that! Your niceness is a front. Nice people accept others for who they are- not call them terrible cheats."

"This whole relationship has been a front! I don't know who you're trying to fool, but it's not fooling me!"

"What are you talking about?"

"EJ!"

Avni's face fell.

"Don't bring him into this."

"He's always been a part of this. I get that you guys have history-"

"There's no history-"

"I saw you guys hugging for like ten minutes at Thanksgiving. And he hates me for no reason. And you never actually called me after you guys were writing that song- we barely talked for the whole week."

Avni didn't know what to say.

She'd been comparing Hrithik with EJ from day one, even when she didn't want to. She'd allegedly taken that week to move on from EJ, but she had no idea if it had actually worked. She just knew that if it were EJ saying this to her, she would've been- she was doing it again! Comparing them! And she had used Hrithik to get over EJ. And get the Broadway plans.

"I'm sorry," she said.

He nodded. "Bye, Avni."

♡♡♡♡♡

"Is it okay if I say I agree with him?" Gina asked as they walked into the North High auditorium twelve days after the break-up. "Definitely not all of it, just some tiny parts."

"Yeah. I do too. I fucked up. I was being toxic, and he called me out. Still hurt, though."

She nodded, "So, what now?"

"What do you mean?"

"It's been a while. Are you gonna apologise and-"

"No, I don't think it would help. I haven't fixed any of the stuff he talked about. I need to figure out what I want."

"How's that working out?" Ricky popped in.

"Dude!"

"You need to stop listening in on our conversations."

"What? I wanna be involved. We've already lost Big Red to Ashlyn," he said bitterly.

"Woah where did that come from?" Avni asked.

"What's the last time you talked to him?"

"Yesterday? At rehearsals."

"Yeah but that wasn't about the deep stuff."

Avni rolled her eyes, "Just because you're single doesn't mean everyone's suddenly going to start spending extra time with you."

He huffed in annoyance.

"Okay, back to you and Hrithik," Gina said. "What are you going to do?"

"Right now? I'm just going to watch the play. I'll figure it out."

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A/n

So- Avni and Hrithik are done.

If you're following the general pattern of this story, you should know what the next chapter's gonna be ;)

Gina is such a real one I swear- their friendship is just goals.

Please comment and vote- we're so close to the end!