Showered by the Stars

21. It's frustratingly unfair

“I’m sorry—“

I became confused the instant Ava said those words. What does she mean by that? Why is she apologizing? For what?

“What? Why are you saying sorry?” I asked.

“It’s because I thoughtlessly got in between you and Masato.” She said.

“Huh? What was that?” What the heck does that have to do with her coming home wet?

“I—I like Alexis.” Ah—I guess I was right.

“Uh-huh.”

“And I confessed to him once but I got rejected. I thought of forgetting about it when summer started. I didn’t know that Masato liked you. I just—I just thought that if it’s Masato then maybe I can start something. Maybe halfway through I also thought that even though he likes you, I can still change his feelings since he hasn’t told you yet.” She said.

I sighed. “um—just to make things clear, he already confessed to me.”

“Ah—if that’s so then I guess it’s even better since you don’t look like you care about it.” My heart constricted for a second. I guess I’m partly at fault here. It’s not that I’m dense; I just refused to acknowledge what’s already there.

 “Hmm—so why where you soaking wet when you came home?” I asked.

“It’s—I went to talk to Al about everything that has happened. I also told him that I like Masato now.” She looked at me. “Then the girls who were always around him came and called me. They made it seem like I’m also their friend. In the end, they pushed me down the fountain. They said that it’s my punishment for hanging around Al.” she said and breathed heavily.

“Do you still like Alex?” I asked, looking into her eyes.

She gasped. “Y-yes. I still love him. It’s really hard to forget a person you’ve loved for almost three years. I love him so much even though I knew that I have no chance of being loved by him.” She said, crying.

“Did he say that he won’t be able to love you?”

“When I confessed to him, he said that he still hasn’t forgotten his ex. The one who became a fan of Luke.”

“So, if that’s what he said then it’s pretty reasonable for me. I think he doesn’t want to hurt anyone. If he accepted your feelings and start dating you while his mind and heart still belong to his ex, then you’re the only one who’s going to get hurt.”

“I understand that but—“

“No. I don’t think you understood. If you really love him then his reason won’t stop you from getting close to him and knowing him better. Who knows? Maybe he’ll finally forget his ex and look your way.”

“But—I don’t think that’s his reason—He asked you out.”

“Yet you were with Takeshima. Maybe he thought you both were already going out. And then you told him that you like Takeshima now. That’s like saying you don’t want to have anything to do anymore and that you easily changed your mind.” I said. Maybe it’s just a speculation but I think I’m saying it right.

If I were Alexis that time, I would have gotten us the chance to talk again. Maybe he really has moved on.

“But it’s too late now—“she said.

“Tell me. Do you like Masato?” I asked.

“I—I think he’d make a good boyfriend.” She said.