Page 115 of Always You

I saw it coming from the moment he told me he was going to date her to please the AFA.

She’s gorgeous, successful. A carbon copy of the girls he used to fool around with in high school.

But I’d expected the fucker to tell me.

Instead, I find out through US Today.

I know this last year we didn’t touch base as much as we used to. In fact, lately, we only catch up every month or so, and our conversations are getting shorter and more superficial as the time passes by.

It’s mostly me, I guess? With every fight he wins, his Instagram account grows by thousands within days, and by the time word got out about him and Laurie, he hit one million followers. We are living different lives.

He became a millionaire real quick, living that same lifestyle when he wasn’t in the gym. He posts pictures on yachts, exclusive trips, launch parties, and he’s always with her. His life is filled with glamor and champagne, whereas mine is filled with instant noodles and cheap beer.

I became more hesitant about sharing my simple college life. So, I get it. We’re not as close as we used to be, and both of us are to blame for that. But I still expect him to share the shit that matters? Moving in with the girl you claimed not to be serious with is a big fucking deal in my book.

I breathe loudly, my anger taking over my nausea as I grab my phone from my desk, getting comfortable on the bed, yet feeling like a knife is going through my heart.

“What are you doing?” Julie's eyes flash with panic, widening when she watches how I put the phone to my ear.

“What do you think? Telling him he’s a fucking asshole.”

“Charlie! You can’t do that!” she hisses. “He’s notyourboyfriend.”

“I know, Julie.” I scowl, throwing my pillow at her in frustration. “I’m hisbestfriend, right? As his best friend, I expecthimto tell me he’s moving in with someone. Not some fucking trashy magazine.”

“Technically, I told you.”

“Shut up.” I listen to the dial tone, getting more pissed the longer it takes for him to answer. I’m about two seconds away from throwing my phone across the room, when finally, his voice sounds.

“Hey, Charls.” His oblivious tone only builds the rage inside of me.

“Hey,Hunt.” I glare into the room. “What’s going on?” My voice is ominous, and I know he can hear it when he lets out a deep sigh.

“You found out.”

“It’s kinda hard not to find out when it’s all over the damn internet, Hunter.”

“I’m sorry. I was gonna tell you.”

“When, Hunter? Your last fight was last week. Don’t tell me you weren’t planning on moving in with her then.”

He stays quiet, and I close my eyes, shaking my head in frustration. When I open my eyes, Julie’s sitting in front of me. She’s giving me a sympathetic look, offering me a sweet smile as her chest moves up and down slowly, silently telling me to breathe.

“What do you want me to say, Charls?”

“Well, that’s the thing, Hunt. I wanted you to say anything. Because I thought that’s what friends do. We share the important shit with each other.” And it hits me. This is the end.This is it.That final push that’s been lurking in the shadows. My heart is crumbling inside my chest, making my voice strained and unsteady. “But we haven’t shared shit in the last year.”

“What are you saying?”

I close my eyes once more, feeling them well up while the fatigue in my body takes over. I’m so tired of trying to keep our friendship what it was. But while he’s in California, living the best life I might wish for him, I’m here. Trying to get a degree, staying close to home to make sure I can be home within a fewhours if I need to. He’s exploring the world, fighting. I can’t go any farther than The University of North Carolina, because even that two-hour drive back home seems like forever, in case my mama might need me again.

“I’m saying we should stop pretending. We are not friends. Not anymore.” Tears start to stream down my cheeks, but I know it’s true. We might have been great together, but the distance made us grow apart, and living different lives killed us. We knew it from the moment I landed in LA last summer, but we refused to believe it.

We believed we could make it work. Or at least, I truly did.

But at some point, you have to acknowledge defeat and just accept that you can’t.

“I wish you the best, Hunter. I hope you get the life that you deserve. Because you deserve it all. But we have to let go.”

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