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The way he shifted ever so close while we watched the movie until he was almost on top of me.

My throat works and works as I try to keep the tears at bay.

“What the hell did you do?” I ask myself as I swipe at my eyes.

What the fuck did I do?

CHAPTER6

WESLEY

He left.

He snuck out like a criminal. I awoke to a cold bed, the scent of Simon lingering in the air of my room.

He ghosted me while I slept, leaving me in a pissy mood that day and the next. I’ve never felt more ridiculous in my entire life.

“You look gloomy,” Ollie says, and I glower at him.

I take in his bright smile and his mussed hair before my eyes drop to his shirt that sports a large yellow smiley face on it. “And you look far too happy.”

He shrugs and grins even bigger. “I’m always happy.”

Sighing, I grab a cereal box and stick my hand in, stuffing some of the sweet cereal into my mouth and chewing. I don’t even taste it. It’s like cardboard in my mouth. Nothing makes sense anymore.

“You wanna talk about it?” Ollie asks.

“Not really.”

“Come on. Talk. I’m a great listener.”

“He snuck out,” I mutter and then glance down at my phone, feeling lame for even texting Simon yesterday morning.

Me:

Where did you go? Out to get me breakfast?

What an idiot I was. He wasn’t coming back. He was gone. My hopes and dreams of kissing him awake dissipated just like him.

“Ah, that sucks man. Want to go get donuts?”

I don’t know why he thinks that will make me feel better, but I end up going with him anyway, putting down two cinnamon rolls, an old-fashioned, and a jelly donut. My stomach rumbles after I’ve consumed my weight in dough and frosting, and I have a bit of a sugar high, but Ollie’s company keeps me from ruminating on Simon. Perhaps donutswerethe cure.

“Maybe you should confront him for ghosting you, you know? Like show up at his place and tell him how that made you feel.”

I shake my head and lean back in the small plastic chair in the small shop. It creaks under my weight, and I sigh. Perhaps I shouldn’t have consumed almost a half dozen donuts on my own. Seems I’ve gained two hundred pounds.

But damn, they were good. Addicting.

Like Simon.

“If he wanted to talk, we could have done it. He chose to leave.”

Ollie takes a long slurp of coffee. “So you’d rather wallow in self-pity?”

I eye him, annoyed, and yet that’s exactly what I do. I wallow and wade through the bitter disappointment of my empty bed and misplaced obsession.

When I see Simon at work the following day, I ignore him…or ignore him the best I can. I wear sunglasses for most of the workday so my wandering eyes don’t give me away. Simon peeks over at me, but I turn my back on him, wanting to press up against his body, wanting to press my lips against the skin of his neck, but refusing to behave like an over-eager pup.

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