My Bestfriend's Ex

It was the end of the first week of freshman year, and Alana Gilmore had ticked off all the items on her bucket list. She had managed to score an invite to a party, drank her first bottle of beer, made out with a random guy she'd only just met at orientation, and gained an insane amount of popularity, all in one week. It was everything she'd imagined. Except for one thing. Sophie wasn't there. For so many years, Alana had planned her future alongside her best friend. Now, without her, it felt like their dreams had been dashed. Alana sighed. At least Ethan had been a strong source of comfort the past few days. As annoying as he could be, seeing a familiar face around campus was a nice distraction from the fact that her friendship had been tested by disappointment and distance. The rejection had torn Sophie apart. Not only would she be thousands of miles away from her best friend and boyfriend, she would also be letting go of her dream to attend her late mother's Alma Mata. A dream she'd had long before she even met Alana. Sophie had responded in the way she always did. By retreating and cutting off everyone. Alana couldn't help but feel terrible that Sophie had ended things with Ethan after he also got accepted into Bronwyn College. The school of their dreams. The truth was, their love for Bronwyn only started when they met Sophie. She talked so much about it that she'd practically forced them to fall in love with the school. Now, being here without her felt very wrong. "Earth to Alana," she was jolted back to reality by a hand waving in her face. She looked up to see Ethan beaming with joy. "What's got you all excited?" she asked, raising an eyebrow as they both exited the lecture room. Ethan held up his phone to her face, still grinning from ear to ear. Alana squinted her eyes as she read the tiny texts. "She can transfer in Spring? Who or what is this about?" Alana asked, confused as she looked up again at Ethan. "Well," he started. "I've been talking to some people. There might be a way for Sophie to still attend here after all." Alana stopped in her tracks after hearing that. "Are you serious? Well, spill!" She demanded, pulling him towards a set of benches. "Basically, she just needs to do extremely well at her current school for the first semester, then apply to transfer in spring. If her grades are really good, they won't care about high school grades." It did sound like a good idea. She'd thought Ethan had given up on Sophie after the break up, but it turned out she was wrong. Even though they were no longer together, he still cared about her very deeply, and he wanted nothing more than to see her happy. "I won't lie. That sounds very reasonable." Alana said, her voice unable to hide her concern. Ethan studied her face. He knew Alana well enough to know when she wasn't convinced about something. "But?" he asked, resting his back against the bench. "How do we even reach her to tell her this? She's already blocked us on everything. You know how she is right now," Alana answered, sinking into the bench. "We have to at least try," Ethan sprang up to his feet, extending one hand to pull her up. "I could send a message to her dad." Alana sighed. She wanted nothing more than being in the same place as her best friend. It was supposed to be the best time of their lives. They were finally going to live together. "Fine. Let's do it." They gave each other a high-five and continued walking.