CHAPTER 14 : THE TEST

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With the new year approaching, life felt surprisingly calm. Mia and I had found a steady rhythm in our friendship, and the cracks that once seemed so deep were slowly filling with something stronger than before. I was beginning to believe we might have actually made it through the worst. But life has a way of testing you when you least expect it. It started when Kate invited me to her New Year's Eve party. She mentioned that she'd be inviting a lot of people from school, including some faces I hadn't seen in a while. That included Jess. I didn't think much of it at first. Jess and I hadn't spoken since everything went down, and I had assumed Mia had kept her distance from her, just as she'd told me. But when Mia texted me the night before the party, telling me she'd be there too, something inside me shifted. I just wanted you to know I'm going with Jess, she wrote. I didn't want to hide it. I stared at the message, my stomach sinking. It was a small thing, just an update, but it felt like a warning, like a test. After all the progress we'd made, after everything we had talked about, why was she going back to Jess? The person who had been at the center of all our problems? Okay, I typed back, unsure of what else to say. It wasn't exactly the response I wanted to give, but I couldn't tell her who to be friends with. That wasn't what this new version of our friendship was about. She had to make her own decisions, and I had to trust her. But trust, I was learning, was fragile. The night of the party, Kate's house was packed. Music thumped through the walls, and the energy in the room was electric. I spent most of the evening catching up with friends, laughing, and pretending I wasn't keeping an eye out for Mia and Jess. When they finally walked through the door, I felt the familiar knot form in my stomach. Mia waved at me, and I waved back, trying to act casual. Jess, standing beside her, glanced in my direction but didn't acknowledge me. It was as if I didn't exist. Mia made her way over to me after a few minutes, a nervous smile on her face. "Hey," she said, pulling me into a quick hug. "How's it going?" "Good," I said, trying to keep my voice light. "How about you?" "Not bad. It's a fun party," she replied, glancing over her shoulder at Jess, who was already chatting with a group of people near the drinks table. An awkward silence settled between us. This was the first time since everything happened that we were around Jess together, and it felt... strange. Like we were back in the middle of the mess, even though we'd spent months climbing out of it. "Are you... okay with this?" Mia asked, her voice hesitant. "With me being here with her?" I looked at her, trying to read her expression. I knew she was asking if I trusted her, if I believed she could navigate this without falling back into old patterns. But trust wasn't just about words; it was about actions. And this—her being here with Jess—was the first real test of whether I could truly move forward. "I don't love it," I admitted, my voice steady. "But I'm not going to tell you who to hang out with. I just hope you remember everything we talked about." Mia's face softened with relief. "I do. And I promise, this is different. Jess and I aren't as close as we were. I just didn't want to come alone, and she asked. But I'm here with you, too." I nodded, not entirely convinced but willing to give her the benefit of the doubt—for now. As the night went on, I found myself drifting between conversations, trying not to focus too much on Mia and Jess. Every time I saw them together, though, it was like a little sting—a reminder of everything that had gone wrong before. I knew it wasn't fair to keep holding onto the past, but it was hard not to when it was staring me in the face. Eventually, I found myself outside, standing on the back patio, trying to clear my head. The cold air was refreshing, a welcome break from the heat and noise inside. I was lost in my thoughts when the door slid open, and Mia stepped out. "Hey," she said, wrapping her arms around herself against the chill. "I thought you might be out here." I nodded but didn't say anything. She took a step closer. "I know this is weird for you. And I get it—it's weird for me too. But I just wanted to make sure you're okay." "I'm fine," I said quickly, a little too quickly. Mia raised an eyebrow, not buying it. "Are you sure? Because it doesn't feel like you're fine." I sighed, leaning against the railing. "It's just... hard, Mia. Seeing you with her again. After everything that happened. I'm trying to trust you, but it feels like I'm back where we started." Mia looked down, guilt flashing across her face. "I get that. And I don't want to make you feel like that again. I'm not going to let her come between us. I'm here because I care about you, not her. I thought you understood that." "I do," I said, though part of me wasn't sure if that was true. "It's just hard to shake off everything. It's not about Jess—it's about what happened because of her." Mia stepped closer, her voice quiet but firm. "I'm not going to make that mistake again. I don't expect you to trust me blindly, but I need you to trust that I've learned from it. I'm here with you, not her." For a long moment, we stood there in silence. The party noise muffled behind the glass door, the cold air biting at our skin. I wanted to believe her. I wanted to believe that this time, things would be different. "Okay," I finally said. "I'll try." Mia smiled, a genuine, relieved smile. "That's all I'm asking for." The rest of the night passed without any major incidents. I saw Mia and Jess talk a few times, but Mia kept her word—she spent most of the evening with me and our other friends, making it clear where her priorities were. It wasn't perfect, and the trust still wasn't fully there, but for the first time, I felt like maybe, just maybe, we could really move forward.eplyForwardAdd reaction

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