Chapter 11
“Oh, by the way,” Ethan seemed to suddenly remember something and pulled out some papers from his bag, “our research group has a seminar next week. The professor wants to bring in some outstanding freshmen. Want to give it a try?“[]
Riley hesitated.]]
She was used to keeping to herself. Joining a group meant interacting with more people, and her past interpersonal relationships had been nothing short of disastrous.[]
“Don’t worry,” Ethan seemed to sense her concerns, his voice gentle, “everyone in the group is really friendly, and… your insights would be really valuable to our research.“]
His eyes were sincere, without any hint of pressure or pity.[]
Riley was quiet for a moment before finally nodding: “Okay.“[]
Ethan smiled–that smile like a ray of winter sunshine, melting some frozen corner of her heart.[]
Over at Georgia Southern, in the guys‘ dorm, Jaxon lay in bed staring at the ceiling.]]
His phone screen was lit, showing his chat history with Riley.[]
The last message was still from over a month ago.
Riley: [Weather says it’s gonna rain today, don’t forget an umbrella.]]
He’d been out shopping with Sophia at the time and had only replied with “k“-didn’t even bother typing another letter.
And now that text just hung there by itself, with nothing after it, which was weirdly getting on his nerves.[]
He restlessly rolled over and started scrolling up through their old messages:]]
[Chicken tenders in dining hall–amazing! Taking you next time. Plus they got that smoothie bar now!]]]
[Still sleeping so won’t wake you. Headache, going to health center. Made soup, it’s on the stove][]
[Library cat’s back! Keeps following me around lol. Makes studying less boring][]
[Coming home tonight? Got you snacks]]]
Reading message after message, Jaxon felt like a massive weight was crushing his chest, making it hard to breathe.[]
He realized he might have lost something really important.[]
And that something might never come back.]
Riley used to share every little detail of her life with him so earnestly, but what about him?]
He’d either give half–assed one–word replies or just leave her on read.[]
Mi Pashark!
Chapter 11
And now, she probably felt so disappointed that she’d completely walked away.[]
His phone suddenly buzzed–Sophia had sent several messages, all in that demanding tone:[]
[Jaxon, I just saw this super cute dress. Come pick me up right now so we can go buy it.]]]
Normally, Jaxon would immediately reply “sure” and drop everything to patiently take her shopping.
But today, looking at that message, he felt inexplicably annoyed.[]
Sophia had been getting more and more demanding lately, throwing tantrums over the smallest things.]
Yesterday it was pouring and traffic was crazy–he was maybe five minutes late and she completely lost it, threw her fork down and stormed out. Had to buy her a bunch of designer bags just to get her to stop being mad.]
He suddenly thought of Riley… she’d never acted like that.[]
No matter how late he came home, she’d quietly warm up food for him without complaining.
No matter how many times he ditched her for Sophia, she’d just wait patiently, never making a scene.[]
“Fuck…” Jaxon sat up abruptly and ran his hands through his hair.]
What the hell was he thinking about?]
Riley was just a substitute–he’d always liked Sophia, hadn’t he?[]
But why… did this panicked feeling keep getting stronger?
He clicked into Riley’s Instagram, only to discover she’d blocked him ages ago.[]
