Broken Promises, Shattered Heart |✓

E I G H T

C H A P T E R  E I G H T

Gabrielle Thomas was the new bane in Olivia's existence.

Harry would always spend time with her, hovering around and taking such care of her. Olivia hated that. She was teeming with jealousy. She always wondered why she wasn't enough. Was she too ugly for Harry? Was she grossly disfigured?

Gabrielle was the apple of his eye and the centre of his attention. They had met in the beach during the summer when Olivia was out of town. She had just moved here and did not know how to surf. Harry offered to teach her and soon, their camaraderie blossomed into romance.

Gabrielle, or Elle as everyone called her, was irresistible. With long, endless legs, a perfect figure with luscious brown almost black hair, and a smile that drove boys crazy, there was no way that Harry would not have fallen for her.

It would have been easy to hate her if she was not so sweet. As soon as she met Olivia, she engulfed her in a massive hug saying how wonderful it was to finally meet her. Apparently, Harry had told her about their friendship and childhood. Elle had no problem with her tagging along because she was too kind. All of Olivia's friends also accepted Elle with open arms. It was too hard not to like her, although she tried hard.

She and Harry barely had time to hang out anymore. And whenever they did, all he could talk about was Gabrielle. One day, when she could finally snag Harry all to herself, she took him to their tree.

As they sat dangling their feet and staring at the beauty of the view, she said,

"Harry, I miss you."

He seemed surprised. "But I'm right here."

She sighed. "I know that, but we rarely get to spend time with each other anymore. Just us, the way it used to be."

"That's because I have Gabrielle now. Why, do you not like her?"

"I like her. She's an amazing person. But I feel that we are drifting apart after she entered our lives. It feels like I'm fading away from your mind."

He seemed a little angry. "Olive, I really like her, okay? Why can't you be happy for me at least once? It's always been you and your insecurities. Why won't you let me be with the girl of my dreams in peace? It's none of your business and will never be."

Olivia felt tears sting her eyes. He had never spoken such harsh words to her. She quickly got off the tree and ran home, banging the door of her room shut. She cried for hours, replaying those words in her head. Now it was clear that he never felt anything other than friendship for her. This realisation brought even more sobs.

However, what hurt her most was that he did not even apologize, or try to stop her when she ran away. He did not chase her. Instead, he let her go.

She was so afraid of losing him when he was not even hers in the first place.