Page 39 of Sunsets & Slow Dances

“I’m Chloe Marsh.”

“Hi, yeah, I know.” I smiled. “Is everything okay in class?”

“Good. It’s good. Ashley says I have an eye for realism, so yeah.”

“That’s great! I’m excited to see your work!” I enthused.

She glanced down at the floor as her weight shifted from one foot to the other. I sensed that she wanted to say more.

“Did you need something?”

After taking a breath, she spurted out, “Were you and my brother together?”

Out of everything I’d expected her to ask, that wasn’t it. “Um, why?”

Chloe pulled out a photo strip from her back pocket. “I found this in the room I’m staying in.”

She handed me the photo strip, and I looked down at it. It was one of the sets we’d taken on the pier in the photo booth the night we met officially. I was twelve; he was thirteen. I hadn’t thought about that night for so long. It was the same night we’d shared our first kiss. A month after that night, to the day, was the night Callum asked me to be his girlfriend.

I felt tears begin to prick my eyes. We’d taken two sets of photos that night, but I’d lost mine years ago. Seeing these brought back so many memories.

“Yeah, we were.”

“How long were you two together?”

“We were off and on from middle school until my senior year of college.”

Her jaw dropped in disbelief. “Why did you guys break up?”

“Um…” I couldn’t tell her the truth, that my mom got sick and I had to stay in town and there was no way that he could stay after finding out that his dad had another family. Especially not after she’d just lost her mom, and she was the other family.

“It just doesn’t work out sometimes.”

“He’s back now. Do you think you two will get back together?”

“He’s engaged.”

Her nose scrunched. “Is he?”

“I think so.”

“Matty said his mom’s been gone for a year.”

“A year?”

She nodded. “I follow her and she was in Italy this summer with Talia and Renee. And then she was in London, Australia, and Scotland with Rumi and Sapphire. And now I think she’s in Bali with Jasmine and Wren.”

It made sense that Chloe followed Felicity on social media. She was that age, and Felicity was a huge beauty influencer.

“I think you guys made a really cute couple.”

“Thanks, but?—”

“I better get back.” Chloe turned and headed back to her class.

When I realized I still had the photo strip in my hand, I called out after her, but the door shut.

I stared down at the photos of Callum and me. One was the two of us making funny faces, one was him kissing my cheek, one was him whispering something in my ear while I was giggling, and yet another showed us kissing.

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