place.
⚫15 BONUS
Chapter 19
Jessica had always been proud; rejection wasn’t something she was used to. But lately, I had turned her down again and again.
“Seb,” she whispered in a shaky voice, her eyes reddened.
I turned to meet her gaze, catching the flash of fear there. I knew what she was afraid of.
For so long, she was my whole world.
I was a man with my own dignity, yet I repeatedly bent over backwards for her, swallowing my pride to be a backup option she could rely on whenever it suited her. I put my feelings on the line, only for her to trample over them as if they meant nothing.
When Cameron first left the country, Jessica had been so desperate not to lose him that she packed her bags and followed him.
That summer, I was like a ghost of myself. I didn’t even have the desire to cry. I was just a hollow shell sitting by the window, day after day. Whenever someone tried to talk to me, I just smiled and acted like nothing was wrong.
I thought I was hiding it well; that no one could tell how wrecked I felt. But one day, while I was cooking, my hands gave out, causing boiling water to splash all over my leg. Samuel hurried over and quickly led me to the bathroom. He turned on the shower, letting the cold water flow over the burn on my leg
“It was an accident. I just… ran out of strength,” I said, trying to brush it off.
Samuel didn’t say a word at first.
After a long pause, he exploded, yelling, “What’s wrong with you?! Are you really just going to let her ruin you like this? Are you gonna stop living because Jessica left?”
Our other roommates joined in, just as fed up as he was. Turns out, they had seen everything. While I was falling apart, they watched from the sidelines, just as heartbroken for me.
Eventually, Jessica came back alone after failing to find Cameron. For the next five years, I was the only constant
in her life.
But now, maybe she was realizing that even I was ready to leave.
I turned around and went home. Worried that Jessica wouldn’t leave, I simply turned off the lights and prepared to sleep. But a few minutes later, the doorbell rang.
Assuming it was Jessica again, I stomped to the door, ready to put an end to it.
“Can you just stop
As soon as I opened the door, I abruptly swallowed the words on the tip of my tongue.
It was Selena, who was beaming up at m
“Seb, what are you saying?”
I pulled her inside. “Wait, didn’t you go to your hometown? How are you back already?”
She looked down, her cheeks turning pink as she fidgeted just… missed you too much.”
Almost shyly, she added, “I always spend New Year’s with my parents, but I didn’t want to leave you here alone. It’s our first year together, so I wanted to stay with you.
-15 BONUS
Chapter 19
I chuckled, brushing her nose with my fingertip. “You’re such a goof.”
As we settled on the couch, she said, “I thought I saw Jessica downstairs earlier. She was standing quite far away, so I wasn’t sure if it was her.”
“She called and wanted to meet up, so I went to talk things out and end it, once and for all,” I explained, not wanting to hide anything from her.
Noticing Selena nervously twisting her fingers, I tilted her face toward me.
“Hey, I know what you’re thinking. Even if you hadn’t shown up tonight, I would have made things clear with her. I looked her straight in the eyes, determined to make this clear. “Selena, we’ve been together for a while, but I still owe you a formal confession. Tomorrow’s New Year’s Eve. Even if you hadn’t come back tonight, I would’ve driven to your place first thing to tell you this.”
Taking her hands in mine, I added, “I don’t want to wait till next year. I love you, Selena. Really, truly, I do.”
For a moment, she just stared at me, wide–eyed. Eventually, tears began to well up in her eyes, spilling down her
cheeks.
I laughed softly, wiping them away as I pulled her into my arms. “Happy New Year, my wonderful girlfriend.”
