The Coming Out

Riley and Ivan

It seemed as if Ivan had been looking better after his break up, 1 week into school went by fast, with assignments and annoying ass teachers, it was too much for Ivan to keep up with. He seemed fine but in reality, Ivan had been feeling down ever since his girlfriend Riley broke up with him two weeks ago. He tried to put on a brave face and act like he was okay, but deep down, he was hurting.

After his hang out with Carson to the arcade, Ivan decided he needed to be a man for once and reach out to Riley and try to get her back. He sent her a text message on snapchat since Riley blocked his number, asking if they could talk. Riley agreed to meet up with him at a nearby coffee shop. It seemed like everything was going great. 

As soon as Ivan saw her, his heart skipped a beat. He knew he still loved her, and he wanted to do whatever it took to win her back.

"Hey," he said, trying to sound casual.

"Hey," Riley replied, taking a seat across from him.

"I know we've been broken up for a little while now, but I can't stop thinking about you. I miss you so much," Ivan said, his voice cracking a little.

Riley looked at him, her expression softening. "I miss you too, Ivan, but we broke up for a reason."

"I know, but I'm willing to work on things. We can make it work, I promise," Ivan pleaded.

Riley sighed. "I just don't know, Ivan. It's not that simple."

"I'll do anything, Riley. I'll change whatever I need to. Just give me a chance," Ivan said, desperation creeping into his voice.

Riley looked at him, her eyes sad. "I'm sorry, Ivan. I just can't."

Ivan felt his heart sink. "Please, Riley, don't do this. I need you in my life." 

"I'm sorry," Riley said again, standing up to leave. "I have to go."

Ivan watched her go, feeling more alone than ever. He didn't know how to move on from this. All he knew was that he didn't want to give up on Riley. 

----

( The day of the breakup, Rileys POV)

Ivan had just finished a baseball game and was feeling pretty good about himself. He had hit a home run and his team had won. As he was laying in bed after his game at night and was about to facetime his friend Carson, he checked his phone and saw a text from Riley, his girlfriend.

"Ivan, we need to talk," the text read.

Ivan's heart sank. He knew that when someone says "We need to talk," it's never a good sign.

"What's going on, Riley?" he typed back.

"We can't be together anymore," came the response.

"What? Why? What did I do?" Ivan frantically typed back.

"I just feel like you're hiding something from me, Ivan. And I can't be with someone who doesn't love me for who I am," Riley replied.

"But I do love you, Riley. I swear it. What can I do to prove it to you?" Ivan pleaded.

"It's not just that, Ivan. I think you're in love with someone else. I don't know who, but I just have this feeling. And I can't compete with that," Riley wrote.

Ivan's heart stopped. He knew exactly who Riley was talking about. Carson, his best friend. He had never told anyone, not even Riley, about his feelings for Carson. But somehow, Riley had figured it out.

"I'm not in love with anyone else, Riley. I swear it," Ivan lied. He couldn't bear the thought of losing Riley and revealing his true feelings for Carson at the same time.

"I'm sorry, Ivan. I just can't do this anymore. Goodbye," Riley texted, and with that, she was gone.

Ivan felt like his world had crumbled beneath him. He had lost his girlfriend and now he had to face the fact that he was in love with his best friend. But he couldn't tell anyone. He couldn't risk losing Carson's friendship. So he kept it all inside, and the pain only grew. He cried, he was confused, did he love Carson or Riley? He loved Riley for sure, But for Carson, its not like he loved him, he liked the idea of him, he just didn't know if it was love.