Maybe This Time

03

It's my first day at college in Haywood. Even though I'll only be here for a few months before I go to University, my parents decided to move us back to town a few months before the end of the educational year. I was alright with it, though.

Me and my friends all went to the same secondary and I'm lucky that they all go to the same college, as well. Everett and Malcolm are on the field, kicking a football back and forth between each other. Everett wore shorts and long socks that reached to just below his knees, and Malcolm wore cargo pants with a hoodie. They'd both changed a lot since I've last seen them. They look a lot more muscular now, and a lot taller.

"Oi, lads!" I get their attention, and their head snaps towards me. Malcolm grins and Everett's mouth falls open in shock. Then, we're doing our special handshake and they both hug me, picking me up. I laugh, fixing my glasses as they place me back on the ground.

"I've missed you, man." Everett grins, the football they were using is now under his armpit as he holds it against him. "Wanna play a bit of football?" He asked, and I shrugged my shoulders.

"Yeah, sure." I say, then the ball is on the floor and we're kicking it to each other and Everett skips his way past both me and Malcolm, shooting the ball into the back of the net.

"Hey, man, have you caught up with Willow yet?" Everett asked, looking off into the distance. I shrug my shoulders.

"Kinda? I don't really know how to explain it." I tell him, and he squints his eyes.

"Well, she's over there." Everett says, nodding his head in a direction behind us. "She's with her friends." He says, and my head snaps to her direction. She's in the middle of her friend group, laughing loudly. I can't see her clearly because of how far I am, but she looks incredibly happy. Her friends are surrounding her and there's a little jump to her step and it's nice to see her so happy and having fun, but it's also bittersweet.

Even a few days ago, when I went to see Willow at her home, I could sense the difference in her. Obviously, I didn't expect Willow to be the exact same person she was two years ago, but I didn't expect her to be so... distant. Me and Willow relied on each other a lot when we were younger. Now, she's independent and she doesn't need me anymore. The thought of that makes my heart sink. I may still need her, but if she doesn't see me as her best friend anymore, I can only step away and give her the space she probably wants.

Sighing, I shake my head as Everett kicks the ball to my feet. I look down at it. Huffing, I kick the ball back and stuff my hands into the pockets of my jeans. The striped, button-down shirt I wore did nothing to stop the wind from attacking me and I wrapped my arms around my body to contain the little warmth I have.

"I need to get to further maths." I sigh, glancing at my timetable on my phone. "It's my first subject of the day." I told both Everett and Malcolm, but Malcolm was too busy scrolling through his phone. There's a wide grin on his face and I tilt my head in confusion.

"Ignore him." Everett says, rolling his eyes. "He's always like this. Ever since he's been introduced to the world of women and their anatomy, he hasn't concentrated on anything else. Especially now that girls can see how attractive he really is." Everett explains, and I nod my head.

"Is there anything different with you?" I asked him, and he smirks, doing kick ups with the football.

"I signed up for a new team- Haywood Football Club.." He grins, wiggling his eyebrows, and I can't help but feel incredibly happy for him. This has been Everett's dream for so long, and to see it finally come true is something that makes my heart swell in joy for him.

"Really?" I gasped. "Mate, I'm so happy for you." I grin, giving him a quick hug. Malcolm finally looks up, shoving his phone back into his pocket.

"Guess who's got a date for tonight." Malcolm smirks, and both of our eyes fall on him. Everett raises his eyebrow, and furrows in confusion. "It's me." He shrugs his shoulders, and Everett rolls his eyes, a chuckle leaving his throat. "Come on, guys, aren't you happy for me?"

"You'll probably only see her once in your whole life." Everett tells him, and Malcolm punches him in the stomach. Everett groans, keeling over in pain and Malcolm bursts out into laughter. His arm goes around my shoulders as we walk away from the field.

We go our separate ways and I'm on my way to my first lesson of the day when my shoulder clashes into someone else's. "Shit- I'm sorry." I look up to Obi's scowling face glaring down at me. I gulp. He's a lot taller than me and a lot muscular. Even though I go to the gym regularly, Obi could easily hurt me with a flick of his finger. He looks like a bodybuilder.

"Watch where you're going." He grumbles, and my heart beat increases with nervousness. If I was in his position and the girl I was having sex with tells me to leave so that she could speak to another man, I'd be pretty upset, too.

"Sorry, man." I mumble, trying to walk past him. Obi grumbles something as he walks away, but I don't hear it clearly enough to understand. I fix my glasses before walking over to the further maths class, which, by the looks of it, is a pretty full class. I think I might have a hard time trying to find a seat, but I'll manage.

The smile on my face instantly drops when I notice the class is completely full, except for one chair. And the person sitting next to that chair, scrolling through her phone, is Willow.

Oh, shit.