the boy on the bridge ✔️

1. bridge boy

Chapter 1 — break-up boy

I'm sorry, Valerie. I can't do this anymore, we're over.

Josh finally hits the send button before he can chicken out again and switches off his phone right after.

He absolutely has no idea what he is doing.

He just broke up with his girlfriend of two years — over a text.

Valerie is more than just a girlfriend to him actually. She is one of his best friends; Josh doesn't have a lot of those, to be frank, and he's sure he has only made the circle of people close to him smaller by sending off that stupid text.

But it really doesn't matter now, does it?

Josh has sent off the text. And the most important point of all, he is standing at the edge of a bridge contemplating to, well, jump off it.

The least he can do right now is tie the loose strings he is going to leave behind and finally be honest with not only himself but those who knows– no, knew him.

Although Valerie has been Josh's girlfriend for about two years now, Josh has never actually liked him — not in that way at least. He's only ever seen her as a best friend, and nothing more.

To start from the beginning of their relationship, Valerie moved to Willowcreeks a few years back. She was the 'new girl' and in a small place like 'Willowcreeks' where everyone knows everyone, Valerie particularly stood out. She has a twin brother, but he likes to keep to himself most of the times and so that left Valerie alone by herself.

Josh has never been keen on talking to new people really, but since he is the golden boy and both of them are of the same age, it fell upon his shoulders to introduce Valerie to their little town and all their customs.

Josh, of course, wasn't too eager of the prospect, but it wasn't long before he took a liking to the new girl. Valerie has a very demanding personality, and although Josh usually don't care for bossy people, he was pleasantly surprised when he found out just how much he started caring for the girl.

Valerie is not too bad on the eyes either. Light brown skin that shows off her Indian heritage, velvety brown eyes, full nose and lips, curvy body (she tends to think she is fat, which is not the case at all). She is pretty, really, but still Josh can never look at her as more than a friend.

The only reason he even made that unnecessary leap of changing their relationship from friends to something more is because of all the building stress and pressure around him.

Those two are just made for each other.

Oh, look at how perfect they are.

They are meant to be together.

It came to a point where Josh couldn't ignore what was said anymore, and it developed into something impossible when he realized that Valerie might have started to like him more as well. She never explicitly said anything but Josh could see the change in her actions and behaviour.

Holding his hands whenever possible, lingering kisses on his cheek, blushing at statements that never seemed to bother her before.

As if to add fuel the fire, it certainly didn't help when Josh's father, Martin began dropping hints that his son should go out with Valerie; how being in a steady, healthy relationship would showcase him as a 'kind, loving young man'.

Josh felt like he had no choice but to ask Valerie out, although he was very much aware he was not only risking his own happiness but also his friendship with the girl. Somehow, behaving according to all the expectations upon him seemed much more important to him than anything else.