The Art of Letting You Go

secretive

TWO MONTHS LATER

Sara's POV:

Avery and Oliver have grown closer with every given second. I remember the hours Oliver spent talking about how he met Av's mom at some coffee house. I've heard the story about the carnival date several times. Them kissing and cuddling at the lunch table has become my entertainment. Don't even get me started with what happened at the movie theater. 

The two just can't be separated. If you invite Avery out, Oliver will show, vice versa. Don't get me wrong, they're cute. I wish I had what they had, all the memories they shared in just a short amount of time. I want the laughs they have about things no one else gets. I want to have someone look at me the way Av looks at him.

"It's fishy, Madeline." I complain yet again. Since Av and Oliver have become inseparable, something has shifted with Logan and I's relationship. Madeline thinks this is why I have a problem with them.

"As fishy as you dating Logan at all?" She laughs and I giggle, not letting her remark hit home. 

At times I've seen Oliver checking his phone under the table, or even tilting the screen away from Avery as she's invested in a story and he's gripping her thigh. 

"I mean it, Mad. He's kind of secretive now." She sighs, applying another coat of pitch black eyeliner.

"Well, should we do something?"

Avery has become apart of our group. When Oliver and her became official, I knew straight away something wasn't right. I didn't want to see Avery get hurt.

"Yes. We have to." I reply, twisting curls into my hair using my middle finger.

"Okay, call Logan. Tell him we're following Oliver after school tomorrow." She says, cursing under her breath after smudging the wing she had created.

"Take a left," Madeline instructs from the back seat. Avery doesn't know what's happening right now. She had to leave school early, giving Logan the chance to use his car for this investigation. She's probably already home, waiting for a call from Oliver.

"Do you know anyone that lives in this neighborhood?" Logan asks, bringing his hand over the console and onto mine. No one replies. Oliver turns again and pulls onto the curb of a small white house. We wait for five minutes. No one comes up to the car, and he doesn't leave. 

"You guys, this is pointless." Logan complains, resting both his hands on top of the steering wheel.

"You have to admit it's pretty suspicious." Madeline adds, her eyes not leaving Oliver's car for one second.

"We're doing it for Avery." I point out, and Logan's shoulders soften. 

"Who is that?" Logan turns to face me, but becomes distracted by someone jogging towards Oliver's car. Taylor.

"No," Logan says aloud. "No." He repeats. Taylor slows down as she gets to Oliver's passenger door. She pulls the handle open and throws her bag into the back. She climbs in, closes the door, and the blue car takes off. 

"What the hell?" Madeline remarks. I couldn't speak. I know how much Avery dislikes Taylor. We've spent hours on the phone talking about it.

"Yeah, we made out on his couch for like ten minutes." She giggles, telling me she was lucky her parents had gone out. Separately. 

"Good job!" I reply, mocking her. "Is he the jealous type?"

"Kind of, he doesn't like it when waiters smile at me. I think I should be the jealous one, though." She takes in a sharp breath.

"How so?" I say, doodling with a pencil as she speaks on the other side of the phone.

"Taylor. She's always begging him to go to practice."

Practice. Maybe she needed a ride. But why would he pick her up in some random neighborhood three blocks from the school, where her practice should be taking place?

"Where are the cheerleaders practicing today?" I ask, my voice in a hurry. 

"The rec center just outside of town, why?" Madeline asks.

"He's taking her to practice." I say aloud, proud of myself. Logan lets out a sigh of realization as he drives off. 

"So this was pointless, after all?" Logan smiles, mocking my need to know things. I swat at his arm.

"Get a room, or at least wait until I'm out of the car." Mad chuckles.

-

Avery's POV:

It's been two months since Olly and I became official. Since then, I've stopped isolating myself. Time has begun to move faster without me realizing it. I'm opening myself up to stronger friendships. Logan, Olly, Sara, Madeline, and I have become our own "group". Mason has kind of tagged along, too. 

My mom has brought up the divorce to my dad many times, but he refuses to look further into it in order for it to go through. I've started to open up to her, too. I can tell it makes a difference in her life. She seems happier more often, especially since she met Olly at The Split Bean and can put a face to the name.

"Morning mom." I exclaim, shutting the car door behind me.

"Good morning sweetie!" She says and cranks the radio right up. 

By the time I get to school, Sara is already waiting outside for me. Her and Logan seem to be going well, except for the fact that they don't really talk about their relationship anymore.

"Sara!" I say, running up to her and embracing her. Like I said, a lot has changed. "Hey, Av." She says with a mellow tone voice.

"What's up?" I ask as we turn around for first period.

"I have to tell you something." She says, taking in a big gulp of air before continuing. "Yesterday we took Logan's car and followed Oliver after school. Taylor got into his car." My heart drops.

"What?" I barely manage to say one word. I'm surprised Sara heard me. "It's okay, though." She continued. "He just took her to practice." I don't know whether I should be relieved after hearing that sentence or not. I thought he would have blown her off after taking her those few times after the carnival. He told me it had stopped. 

"Avery, I promise you there's nothing to worry about." He said, grabbing both my wrists. I look at the ground, not really wanting to be persuaded by his blue eyes. "Sure." I mutter. He brings my wrists closer and kisses both my palms. The action makes me shudder.

"I believe you." I blurt out, not thinking before I speak. "But I don't like it." 

"Then it'll stop." He says, releasing my wrists and kissing my forehead. We had become more attached to each other. He called me every day just to say goodnight. We walked to classes together, laughing about everything because life was just so perfect. I was filling notebook after notebook with descriptions of him. 

Sara and I stand in silence. The bell rings, but I couldn't care less about class right now. I had to leave.

"Av, where are you going?" Sara grabs my arm. Why is everyone grabbing me? "To find him." I say, letting her hold on to me as I march to his first period class.

Me: Come outside.

Olly: Ok?

Rage was rushing through me faster than any common sense could. I should be in class, not caring about my boyfriend giving someone a ride. However, something about the smug look on Taylor's face (even if it was in my imagination) pushed me to be edge.

Sara steps back as Olly enters the hallway with a bathroom pass. He makes eye contact with me and then glances at Sara, who's texting someone instead of stopping me from ripping Olly's head off.

I have never been this angry before, and I don't know what I'm capable of doing.