Juliana Woodland and Nate Jacobs have been best friends for as long as they can remember.
They are now in their junior year at East Highland High School and things are starting to get complicated.
*Had this story up on my old account and it got dele...
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When Nate was well enough to walk completely on his own and do daily tasks without any assistance, Juliana spent her first night at her own house since New Year's Eve.
Her mom was full of questions about how Nate was and if they figured out things between them, but she didn't have the energy to explain everything to her. She was exhausted, physically and mentally, and she didn't have an answer for her mother, anyways.
The following day, late in the afternoon, there was a knock at Juliana's front door. She answered it to see Nate standing there, looking handsome in a dark cable knit sweater and jeans, holding a huge bouquet of her favourite flowers.
Her face changed to a guarded expression, one that told him everything was still not good between them. Yes, she had taken care of him and made sure he got better, because she loved him and wanted to know he would be okay, but that didn't mean that the past was forgotten.
His cuts and bruises were very faint and barely noticeable now, and he wasn't limping at all. She couldn't help but smile seeing him almost entirely back to normal, despite the ambiguity of their relationship.
"These are for you," he finally spoke, holding the flowers out to her. "Let me put them in water for you, and then we can go?"
She nodded and stepped aside for him to come in. She followed him down the hallway and to the kitchen, watching him as he found a vase in the cupboard and filled it from the tap in the sink.
"Thank you, they're beautiful." She took them from him and laid them in the middle of the kitchen table.
"Of course. Are you ready to go?"
"I'm ready if you are."
The drive was filled with the hum of the engine and low music coming from the speakers. When they arrived at their destination, the sun was starting to set, casting a slight hue over the sand and painting the sky with a canvas of pinks and oranges.
He took her hand to help her out of the truck, and they continued holding hands as they walked through the parking lot to the beach.
They made their way to the water and sat side by side on the shoreline. They slipped off their shoes and let the waves lap at their feet. It was like they were both afraid to speak; afraid to say the wrong thing, afraid of what the other was thinking and feeling.
Nate finally took a deep breath before breaking the silence. "I know you've heard this before, so many times- too many times. But I am truly so fucking sorry for everything, Angel. I never meant to hurt you the way I did."
Juliana's eyes searched his, looking for sincerity amidst the pain. "You're right, I have heard it too many times. You say you're sorry, but then you just keep doing the same things over and over again. I can't keep going through this cycle with you. It's killing me, and I know it's killing you too."
