[✓] 𝐎𝐍𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐖𝐍 𝐀𝐖𝐀𝐘, 𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚛𝚘𝚗

forty-one ☆ i love you, chloe

jack's pov:

everyone began to leave the restaurant, but i had to tell chloe one last thing.

"chloe, can i talk to you?" i asked.

"sure, jack, what's up?" she replied.

"alright, so before zach moved, he told me he wanted me to give you this," i declared, passing her an envelope.

-

dear chloe,

happy seventeenth birthday! i know i'm probably the last person you want to hear from, but i hope you had the best birthday ever! i'm not sure if i've apologized by the time you read this letter, but i'm so sorry that i didn't tell you i moved. i just didn't have the courage to let you know.

thank you for being my best friend. i love the way you smile, the sound of your laugh, the way your eyelashes flutter, the way your mouth curves when you smile, how you scrunch up your eyebrows when you pretend to be mad at me, the way your hair bounces, and so much more.

i've been meaning to tell you this for a while.

chloe, i love you. and not in that friendship way. i love you more than that. more than friends. i'm in love with you.

i tried to tell you at the science fair, but i chickened out. if you don't feel the same way, i completely understand. i just don't want anything to come between us.

i love you, chloe, and happy birthday :)

-zach <3

-

as chloe read the note, i noticed her smile continued to fade and fade. then, the tears began to stream down her face. she took a deep breath, but still had the courage to speak.

"he was probably joking, there's no way he can love me like that," chloe scoffed, "and even if he did, he's over me. he's with kay."

i shook my head, "chloe, you've never been more wrong in your entire life. that guy is so in love with you, he's just ignoring how he feels because he doesn't want to be reminded of how much he misses you. if he texts you, he'll miss you. if he calls you, he'll miss you more. that's why he kept his distance from you. he wanted to forget you because he's so in love with you. that guy loves you too much."

chloe thought about what i said for a second, "come on, jack, you know you're not making any sense."

"no, i know i'm making sense. and i'm telling you right here, right now, that zachary dean herron is in love with you," i declared, "do you love him?"

"jack, of course i love him. i love him so much. that's why it hurt when he didn't contact me, or even tell me that he was moving," chloe sighed, "we pretty much hate each other now. i just wish i had one last chance to talk to him."

wait, maybe there's a way.

...