My Boy

Chapter 10: The Unraveling

The morning after the carnival, Jamie woke up in a cold sweat, his mind racing. He grabbed his phone, scrolling through missed calls and messages from Trevor, each one sending a jolt of pain through his chest. He threw the phone across the room, watching it bounce off the wall.

Jamie paced his room, muttering to himself, replaying every moment with Trevor in his head. He pulled at his hair, laughed bitterly, then punched his pillow in frustration. The emotional whiplash was driving him to the brink.

At school, the tension was palpable. Jamie avoided eye contact with Trevor, ducking into classrooms early and leaving as soon as the bell rang. He sat alone at lunch, ignoring the concerned glances from his friends.

Trevor tried to approach him several times, but Jamie always managed to slip away. It wasn't until after their shared History class that Trevor finally cornered him.

"Jay, please. We need to talk," Trevor said, his voice pleading.

Jamie stared at him, his face a mask of indifference. "What's there to talk about?"

Trevor took a deep breath. "I'm back with Riley. Officially. But Jay, you're my best friend. I don't want to lose that. I know things are weird right now, but can't we try to work it out?"

Jamie felt something inside him shatter, but he kept his voice steady. "Sure, Trev. Whatever you want. We're cool."

Trevor looked relieved, clearly not seeing the storm raging behind Jamie's eyes. "Thanks, Jay. This means a lot to me."

As soon as Trevor walked away, Jamie bolted for the nearest bathroom. He locked himself in a stall, sliding down to the floor as silent sobs wracked his body. The pain was overwhelming, threatening to consume him entirely.

Later that week, Jamie found himself confiding in Tristan. They were working on a project together, and Tristan's gentle probing finally broke through Jamie's defenses.

"It's Trevor," Jamie said, his voice barely above a whisper. "We... we were together. Really together. And now he's back with Riley, and I'm just supposed to be okay with it."

Tristan listened without judgment as Jamie poured out the whole story - the night they spent together, the blissful days that followed, and the gradual unraveling of everything.

When Jamie finished, Tristan pulled him into a hug. "I'm so sorry, Jamie. That's... that's a lot to deal with."

Jamie appreciated Tristan's comfort, even if he couldn't offer any solutions.

As the days passed, Trevor and Riley's relationship became increasingly public. They held hands in the hallways, shared kisses by the lockers, and sat cuddled together at lunch. Each display was like a knife twisting in Jamie's gut.

He watched from afar, feeling like a ghost in his own life. The friend group tried to include him, but he couldn't bear to be around Trevor and Riley's happiness.

During a particularly mundane English class, Ethan stood up with an announcement. "Attention, friends! It's time for my annual end-of-year party at Trevor's cabin. Two weeks from now, be there or be square!"

The class erupted in excited chatter, but Jamie felt only dread. The thought of being trapped at the cabin, watching Trevor and Riley together, was unbearable.

In the days that followed, Jamie's mental state deteriorated rapidly. He started missing school, ignoring concerned texts from his friends. He spent hours in bed, staring at the ceiling, replaying every moment with Trevor in his mind.

When he did attend school, he was a shell of his former self. Dark circles under his eyes, clothes rumpled, barely participating in class. His friends exchanged worried glances, but Jamie rebuffed any attempts to help.

One particularly bad day, Jamie overheard Riley talking to Sophie about her plans with Trevor for the cabin party. Something in Jamie snapped. He walked out of school in the middle of the day, ignoring calls from teachers and friends alike.

He ended up at the park where he and Trevor used to play as kids. Sitting on the swings, Jamie felt the full weight of his loss crash over him. The boy he loved, the future he'd imagined, the friendship he'd cherished - all of it was slipping away, and he was powerless to stop it.

As the sun set, casting long shadows across the empty playground, Jamie made a decision. He couldn't go on like this. Something had to change.

With shaking hands, he pulled out his phone and typed out a message to the friend group chat:

"Not feeling well. Won't be at school for a while. Don't worry about me."

He hit send, then turned off his phone. As darkness fell, Jamie sat alone on the swing, gently rocking back and forth, wondering how he'd ever find his way back from this abyss of heartbreak and loss.