Chapter Fifteen

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Warnings: The tiniest sprinkle of angst

Word Count: 2117

Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)

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You watched the droplets of rain fall from the edge of the porch roof and onto the stones below. The patter of the rain was calming and, despite the summer storm that had rolled in, the air was warm. Marenna sat next to you, slowly sipping on a glass of iced tea. The ice clinked quietly against the edge of her glass.

"What's on your mind, Y/N?"

You sighed and rested your chin in your hand. The two of you had initially decided to have a girls night since your parents were out of town and Carter was working late, but you had a gut feeling that you would inevitably end up talking to her about your situation with Josh and Tyler. Not that you minded, Marenna always had good advice when it came to these things.

"A lot of things. I never seem to catch a break." You meant to laugh, but it came out more like a forceful exhale.

"Carter told me a little bit about what's going on with Tyler."

"What did he say?"

"Just that you're conflicted. You like Josh but you don't want to accidentally ruin things with Tyler, since you think there might still be something there."

You nodded slowly. With everything that had happened in the last week, it seemed like a lifetime since you had last seen Carter.

"It's only been more confusing since then."

"Talk to me about it."

"Well, I went on the date with Josh. It was nice, like, really nice. We laughed a lot and he seems like a really sweet guy and he made sure that my first date was really good, but..." You began to chew on your bottom lip. "I haven't told this to anyone, but I couldn't stop thinking about Tyler the entire time. I thought I was getting over him, Ren, I really did. But now? I have no idea what I'm doing."

You brought your hands up over your eyes, trying to hide the tears that were beginning to form. Marenna saw right through this, of course, and gently wrapped an arm around your shoulder, pulling you closer to her. She lightly rubbed her thumb along your shoulder, comforting you.

"Hey, hey, Y/N, it's ok. We're going to figure this out."

"This is so pathetic. I'm freaking out because too many guys are interested in me," you sniffled, earning a laugh from both you and Marenna.

"To be fair, you've been put in a really tough situation. A new guy is clearly showing interest in you, but at the same time, the guy that you've been close to for years is sending you mixed messages. It's ok to be confused and unsure about what to do."

You leaned back slightly so there was more space between you and Marenna. A tear had slipped down your cheek, so you quickly wiped it away with the back of your hand.

"I thought it was going to be so simple. Tyler said he was ok with the date and I thought I was starting to get feelings for Josh, but then I was thinking about him the whole time and Tyler seemed uncomfortable with the date when I talked to him about it but he still won't admit that he has feelings for me so maybe I'm just overthinking all our interactions and ruining this chance with Josh for nothing."

"You know you can put all of this on hold, Y/N. Nobody is saying that you have to make a choice tonight, or tomorrow, or even next week. If those boys really care about you, they'll understand you needing to take time to work this all out. And you know Carter and I are going to be here to help you, right?"

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