The Love Hypothesis

Chapter One

(I have chosen the creative writing option for the project. However, I would like to share some backstory on the book, so that you may clearly understand the alternate ending of this novel. The Love Hypothesis is a romance novel written by Ali Hazelwood. It starts with the fake dating trope, but they soon gain feelings for each other. However, it manages to differ from other cliché romance novels. It revolves around the character Olive Smith, who is a very smart, but awkward Ph.D. candidate, and Adam Carlson, a charming but equally nerdy professor. Set in the world of Grad school, they overcome the many challenges of friendship and love. The original ending featured a wholesome, satisfying ending, conveying a message that love triumphs over all challenges. However, with this creative writing project, I wanted to convey a message that sometimes love does in fact, not win. So, I made this sad, heartbreaking ending to really contrast the original. I had a lot of fun writing it, so I hope you'll have fun reading it.)

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Olive was torn. She knew her feelings for Adam had grown strong, but this was one of the hardest decisions she ever had to make. She had two choices. Option A was to tell Adam that his best friend, Tom, was a horrible person who had used her for her looks and had threatened to steal her research if she ever told anyone, but he was the only one that would let her in to her dream college, Harvard. She had a recording of their conversation, but she knew that it would break Adam's heart to tell him that the person who he was friends with for almost a decade, was a liar and a manipulator that had used him, too. Option b was to go about her daily life, delete the recording and go to her dream college. But at the cost of losing Adam and having to date Tom. She could use her research to help fix the problem of finding pancreatic cancer too late, and it would help the world immensely. Option b was the best choice. Definitely. Her brain yapped at her, trying to convince her. But her heart, was saying something completely different. Who cares if Tom had said that Adam wouldn't believe her over him, He had to. Right? A faint thought murmured. I love him. But if loving him means that I get to see him happy, then that is what I'll do. She was having a mental crisis while in bed, with the faint sound of her Rom-com movies playing in the background. Stuffing a piece of popcorn in her mouth, she sighed and picked her choice. Option b.

Three days later, she booked an uber to take her to his home. But she wasn't prepared for how nervous she would be when the car stopped, arriving at its destination. A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. "Uh, hello? We're here." Said the driver. Oh. Yeah. "Sarah Helen, right? Well, it said that on your Bio, so I kind of assumed...." She said, her voice getting tinier as she finished the sentence. "Yeah. Hey, are you okay?" said Sarah Helen, confused, seeing her passenger visibly sweating. "Yeah, I just- I'm making a big decision, and I don't know if it's the right one. She said, mentally cursing herself for venting to an uber driver who probably didn't care. But to her surprise, Sarah Helen responded. "Is it a work thing, or a love thing?" Olive frowned. "Both." She could see the driver's eyes soften, as she sympathized with olive. "Well," The driver paused. "When it comes to love, the really is no "right" decision. There's a rational one, and an impulsive one. Its not my job to tell you what decision to pick, but if I had to, I'd make one suggestion. Try flipping a coin." She smiled. "Flip a coin?" Olive asked, genuinely confused by what the driver was suggesting. "Yeah. If you don't know what to pick. See, by the time you flip a coin, as it's falling in your hand, you'll find that there's a choice you'll secretly hope for, subconsciously. Like, for example, you don't know what to get for dinner. So, you think, either Chinese or Indian. So, you flip a coin. When it's falling, you'll secretly think, "please be Chinese." Or something. You know?" Sarah Helen winked. Olive thought about it, and in that split second, she knew. It had to be option A. "Yeah." Olive said, feeling a bit better. She didn't pay for therapy or advice, so she made a mental note to really tip her driver later. "Thank you. Again. I think I'll take my leave now." Olive said, smiling warmly. "Happy to help." Said Sarah Helen, driving off after olive had stepped out. However, the nerves came back. Still, she took a breath, and continued onward. Reaching to his door, about to knock, she stopped herself. No, a thought said. And her determination to tell him fizzled out. She had to take personal feelings out of this. She'd rather sacrifice her love and happiness for him, so that she could see him happy, and so that his dreams could come true. After all, his projects weren't entirely done, were they? A tear slipped down her face, but she didn't let that stop her. Wiping it away, she knocked on his door, determined to talk to him. Once and for all.

"Olive." Adam said, looking at her with a closed-eyed smile. "I haven't seen you in a while. Did you come to schedule another coffee date?" He joked. She didn't laugh. "No. I mean um- sorry. I have to talk to you about something important." She said, not daring to look at him. Because she knew if she did, she would never be able to leave. A concerned expression glazed his features. "Oh? Well why don't we talk inside, then?" Olive looked over his shoulder, and realized it probably wasn't the best idea. "I think I'd much rather it be out here. She spoke. "I-I'm not going to Harvard. My professor emailed other big names who saw me talk about my research at the show, and they offered me positions." His face lit up. "Olive. That's great! When are you going?" His smile faltered when he heard her sniffle and tears glistened her face. "Hey, I- is that not a good thing?" Olive wiped her face and stood straight. "No, it's um- great. But I think we should end this. There's no use being together anymore, my friends with her boyfriend, she's happy, and we've been "dating" long enough, that's all." She said, starting to walk away. He grabbed her wrist, turning her around to look at him. And she did, realizing he had a few tears dropping down his face as well. "Olive. Don't tell me you don't feel anything. I know you do. You have to." He said, breath quivering. It took all her willpower not to jump in his arms, asking for forgiveness, and to reassure him, and to tell him she's loved him from the moment they met in that hallway. "I don't." She said, voice wavering as she snatched her hand away from his hold and walked away, suddenly feeling cold in his hand's absence. "Olive. Olive!" He said, hoping that she would turn around and say that this was just a joke, and that she cared for him and felt the same way. "Olive. I don't just like you,I love you. Do you remember that man you talked to in the bathroom, when you put in your expired contacts and were crying because of the pain but also because you didn't know if applying to this school was the right decision? That was me. I loved you back then too." He said, sniffling. He continued. "Do you remember asking me, if you were good enough to apply? You gave me a reason, but I told you to give me a real one and not one you found in an interview prep book?" He laughed lightly, reminiscing that moment. "And you told me, that you had a question. A specific research question, something you wanna find out. Something you're afraid no one else will discover if you don't. Well, I have a question too." That sentence made her freeze in her tracks. Please don't say it, please, she thought. "Do you love me too?" Adam said, barely above a whisper, but loud enough for her to hear. She knew it would crush his soul, but she would sacrifice her life, if it meant he was happy. "No, I don't. Take care of yourself, Adam." She said finally, and forced herself to walk forward, not even stopping to look at him one last time. With that, she was forced to move on with her life, her job, and hopefully even Adam. But in the end, she knew she would never get over him. He was her first and only love.

The end.