love happy • chris evans (bwwm)

• twenty six •

"I forgot to congratulate you on your engagement!"

Chris looked over at his friend and ex, Jenny Slate, who he had been sitting at a bar with for the last 45 minutes before taking another swig of his beer.

There was something about being around Jenny that brought him an indescribable feeling and he was ecstatic that she would be staying in Boston for the next four months to shoot a project. He was glad that in spite of their multiple breakups, they were able to continue their friendship; and although it took a while to get there, they were slowly entering the place where they could hangout and have a wonderful time without thinking about what occurred between them in the past. Chris was happy to have his hilarious, beautiful, and wonderfully kind friend back.

"I'm not engaged anymore." He revealed. "My girlfriend isn't into the whole marriage thing so we're trying a different route..."

Jenny placed a hand on his forearm which bought him instant comfort. "God, I'm so sorry Chris! I remember how important getting married has always been to you."

"I don't think getting married would've been a good idea for us at this time anyways." He shrugged after placing his hand on top of Jenny's. He didn't realize how much he'd missed female contact until their hands touched and in that moment, he wanted to touch a lot more which made him feel ridiculously guilty.

"I'm sorry!" She apologized again. "Did Tom at least get rid of his little crush on her?"

"Nope." Chris responded, popping the 'p.'

"That is very unfortunate."

"It's not like I can tell him to go away. They were friends long before she gave me the time of day... I just wish I would've taken the time to become friends with her before I constantly hit on her..." Chris scolded himself. "That's what Tom did and he's always in the green with her."

"It's not fair to compare your relationship with your GIRLFRIEND of two years to Tom's relationship with his FRIEND, who he just so happens to love. You can't expect her not to compare you and Tom if you yourself are making the comparisons." She began. "Of course he's always in the green with her. They're not in a relationship! He and Phoenix get to do all the fun stuff together without having to worry about practical life. He spends a minuscule amount of time with her compared to you."

"They spend a lot of time together."

"You live with her and he lives somewhere in tea town. His time compared to yours is basically nothing." Jenny reminded. "Let's say hypothetically that Tom and Phoenix got together. You think they wouldn't have any problems? For starters, they live in different countries... that means different cultures and different time zones. And god forbid they ever got to the point where they'd want to move in together. Would either one of them be willing to leave their home country?"

"Tom would." Chris muttered. "When I first met him, he was apartment shopping in L.A. and only moved back home because his mom found him an apartment not too far away."

"THE POINT, Christopher, is that every couple has problems. No relationship is perfect and Tom and Phoenix wouldn't be immune to that. You're doing a lot of damage to your relationship by comparing your connection with theirs."

"You're right." He sighed. "I guess it's just the fact that it feels like we're growing apart yet what they have is still as strong as ever... I don't understand."

"She probably doesn't understand either." Jenny assumed. "I know you're seeking straight answers but a person that's confused can't give you answers they don't have. You ever think about taking an actual break from the relationship?"

"Phoenix is someone I've loved and shared my life with for over two years." Chris brought up. "I can't just let her go."

"You also can't spend your entire life fighting for a relationship that isn't meant to be." Jenny sighed. "Is Phoenix your soulmate? I can't answer that. But YOU can't answer that either unless you let her go and I mean really let her go."