ex

ard a voice in my sleep and felt a heavy

eyes to see Linda, my annoying b

for school!" she sang in a high-p

duckling!" I grumbled, sho

eyes narrowing as she spotted

ight, you've overstayed your welcome. I'll be down in ten minutes,

ed. If she had seen the picture, I wouldn't have heard the end of it for at le

as memories flooded back, a mix of joy and pain that threatened to overwhelm me. A tear

h, I tossed the pi

o that" Linda teased as soon as we came out of my house. We were heading towards our

enjoying the fact that I ha

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. You're just lucky I didn't deci

mystery dream lover" she jokingly said, winking a

moved on... i lied through my teeths, "in fact I plan to hook

ous about starting college at Forcados. It wasn't exactly the most prestigious place, but it

classes, others just hanging out by the courtyard, soaking in the sun. I spotted two couples making out casually, and no one was paying them a

cing around. I wasn't sure how I felt about being here yet. Ev

wandering to something, or rather, someone else. It was confusing as to why i would be thinking about him while i just dumped his photo in the bin, ready to mov

place and have boyfriends fantasising about the cool hot guys that have been going a

were talking about," I said, trying to shift the co

ly cute lead singer?"

. "I mean, it's not like we're going on wo

ng, Alex! You're basically going to be

"Yeah, sure

the end of the hallway, and Linda curio

be an understatement to describe them. Something about the way they stood screamed confidence and money, like they owned the place. obviously

I think my neck cracked from the effor

caught my eyes, the tall one in th

en I s

co

His features had sharpened, like puberty had carved him into someone almost unrecognisable. B

wn. Before I knew it, I was running toward him

ged him tightly, feeling like the missing piece

as shoved back hard. Two guys, his friends, I assumed

wrong with you?"

ouraged. "Jacob, it's me! It's Alex. I've been looking

lown?" one of his friends inte

dr

confused. Was thi

expression. The same eyes that used to light up in our camp days now seemed co

s voice flat and uninterested, not e

ke a deer in headlight, trying to process what really happened. Even as Jacob or And

ver he was now, turned his back on me and walked away

of the hallway, my heart in pieces, star

ber me? How could he p

y best friend. My firs

treated me