Page 64 of Don't Puck Your Best Friend’s Girl

"I don't know." I drop into the chair across from her, pushing the phone away as if distance might make the problem disappear. "What should I do?"

"Ignore him," she says immediately. "You've moved on. You're with Cade now."

"Secretly," I remind her. "And not like official or anything. We're just like… I don't know… banging our brains out! But what about closure with Byron? I still feel awful about how everything went down."

"You think you should meet up with him to talk? About what? Closure?" Mina raises a skeptical eyebrow. "It sounds like your ex, whomyoubroke up with is fishing for a second chance. What else does he mean bytalk?"

"Maybe," I concede. "But I owe him an apology, don't I? For sleeping with his best friend? I mean he lost me and then Cade. I feel fucking horrible."

Mina sighs, reaching across the table to grab my hand. "Look, you are clearly going to do whatever you want to do… just be careful. I don't know how serious you are about Cade, but you did breakup with Byron, so maybe just leave it as it is. Let me just say this. If Cade wasn't in the picture, I would still tell you not to talk to him, okay? He's your ex."

"I know." I squeeze her hand, grateful for her steady presence. "Okay. I think that's what I needed to hear. Thank you."

But throughout the morning, as I attempt to focus on homework, the text message haunts me. I contemplate it. Byron has ignored me this whole time, so maybe it's my chance to tie up any loose ends. We could get real closure. I could actually apologize, and it would help my moral being. The more I sit on it, the more I think it's what I need.

By late afternoon, acting on impulse more than reason, I text Byron back.

Okay. We can talk.

Almost immediately, three dots appear, indicating Byron is typing. My heart races as I wait for his reply.

Byron's response finally arrives:Tonight? I can order from that Thai place you like. My place, 7?

The suggestion is so familiar, so reminiscent of countless evenings during our relationship, that a wave of nostalgia hits me unexpectedly. Before I can overthink it, I agree.

Which means I need to cancel with Cade. We had loose plans to study together, nothing formal, but the guilt of lying to him sits heavy in my chest. Still, I find myself typing…

Something came up with the girls tonight. Rain check on studying?

His reply is immediate and understanding:No problem. Have fun. Text me later?

The ease with which he accepts my excuse only makes me feel worse. I'm such a fucking liar.

Byron's apartment is exactly as I remember it — dark furniture, gaming setup dominating the living room, minimal decoration save for a few framed photos. What's different is the layer of neglect that seems to have settled over everything — dishes in the sink, clothes draped over furniture, an emptiness that suggests he's been going through the motions rather than truly living here.

Seeing him makes the guilt claw at my chest. I don't know how I will get through this night.

"I ordered already," he says as I settle awkwardly on the familiar couch. "Should be here in five."

"Thanks." I perch on the edge of the cushion, unsure how to occupy this space that was once so comfortable for me.

A heavy silence falls, broken only by the faint sounds of traffic outside. Byron sits beside me, close but not touching, his body angled toward mine in a way that feels both familiar and strange.

"I've missed you," he says suddenly, the words hanging in the air between us.

I did not expect him to be so upfront right away. I thought we would warm up with… I don't fucking know but now I'm panicking. Mina was right. She was so right.

I inhale sharply, but before I can respond, he holds up a hand.

"Let me explain," he says, eyes pleading. "Just hear me out. I've been doing a lot of thinking since we broke up," he says, voice quiet. "About us. About what went wrong."

I shift on the couch, unsure how to respond. "Byron—"

"No, please. Let me get this out." He takes a deep breath. "I was a shitty boyfriend, Saylor."

The bluntness of his statement catches me off guard.

"Remember that night you came over in that red lingerie set?" he continues, and I wince because I just wore that set for Cade last night. "And I didn't even look up from my game?"

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