two people who've been together since they were basically four. They were each other's first for everything but when sophomore year came along things weren't going as smooth. They were changing, growing apart but what happened when senior year bring...
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"Love- an intense feeling of deep affection."
As I stepped out of the car, the reality of senior year hit me like a tidal wave. It was supposed to be our year, Dean and mine. We had planned everything—the football games, the prom, the late-night drives, the stupid arguments over what college we'd both end up at. But all of those dreams were shattered the day he let me go.
Dean Spencer, the boy who was once my world, was now just another face in the crowd. Or at least, that's what I told myself. In reality, he was anything but. Everywhere I turned, there was a memory—a laugh, a smile, a moment that we had once shared. And now, those memories were just ghosts, haunting me as I tried to move on.
Kylie and Maria chatted animatedly beside me as we made our way into the school, their voices filling the silence that settled in my mind. They were my rocks, my constants, the friends who had stayed by my side when everything else had fallen apart. I knew they were trying to help me, to keep me distracted, but the truth was, there was no distraction big enough to erase the image of him from my mind.
And as fate would have it, just as I rounded the corner near my locker, there he was—Dean Spencer. His hand was resting on the small of another girl's back, guiding her through the hallway with the same tenderness he used to show me. The sight hit me harder than I could have anticipated, and for a moment, I felt like I couldn't breathe.
The girl was laughing, her hand intertwined with his, as if they had known each other forever. She was beautiful—effortlessly so—and everything about her seemed perfect. And there he was, with that familiar smile, the one that used to be reserved for me. My heart twisted painfully, but I forced myself to keep walking, head held high, pretending like it didn't tear me apart.
Kylie noticed, her face softening as she slipped her arm around me. "Taylor," she whispered gently, "you're stronger than this. You don't need him."
But didn't I? Who decides who we fall in and out of love with? Is it some cruel joke of fate? Because if it is, I wanted to know why it was so unforgiving, why it chose him to be the one who got to move on while I stayed trapped, reliving every precious moment we shared.
The day dragged on, each classroom a reminder of where we used to sit together, every corner a memory waiting to ambush me. But I held myself together, plastering on a brave face, because that's what everyone expected. Everyone except Kylie and Maria, who could see the cracks forming beneath the surface.
When the final bell rang, I found myself back at my locker, shoving my books in without really looking. I felt drained, defeated, like every ounce of strength I had left had been wrung out of me. And just as I was about to close it, I felt someone's presence behind me.
"Hey, Taylor."
I froze. I didn't have to turn around to know who it was. That voice was seared into my soul, and hearing it again was like salt on an open wound.
I turned slowly, my heart pounding in my chest, and there he was—Dean, standing awkwardly, looking at me with that familiar, gentle gaze. The sight of him up close made my breath hitch, and I hated myself for it.
"Hi, Dean," I managed to say, my voice barely more than a whisper.
There was a pause, an awkward silence that hung between us, heavy and unspoken. He shifted, his hands in his pockets, and for a brief moment, it felt like nothing had changed. But then I saw the girl he'd been with earlier waiting by the door, glancing over at us with an expression I couldn't quite read.
"Taylor, I just wanted to say... I'm sorry. For everything," he murmured, and in his eyes, I could see the traces of guilt, of remorse.
But sorry didn't make the pain go away. Sorry didn't undo the nights I'd cried myself to sleep, wishing he'd come back. Sorry didn't change the fact that he had moved on while I was still stuck, clinging to a love that had long since faded from his heart.
I took a deep breath, gathering the courage I didn't know I had. "It's okay, Dean. Really. I just... I hope you're happy," I whispered, the words cutting deeper than I'd anticipated.
He nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Thanks, Taylor. I hope you are too."
With that, he turned and walked away, leaving me standing there, feeling more alone than ever. And as I watched him disappear down the hallway, I realized that maybe, just maybe, it was time to let him go—to let myself go.
As painful as it was, I knew that love wasn't something I could control, nor was it something I could hold onto when it was already gone. And perhaps fate was giving me a new beginning, a chance to find my own happiness, even if it didn't look like the love I'd once known. Maybe, just maybe, this was my chance to fall in love with myself. And for the first time, that didn't seem so impossible.
