I still couldn’t believe it—Carter had been in love with me all along. It felt like a dream, or maybe a cruel joke. How could I trust his words? The boy who had once been my best friend had ignored me for years, treating me as if I didn’t exist the moment he got together with Emily. And now he expected me to believe he had done all that out of fear of losing me? It didn’t make sense.
At lunch, I sat with Emily for the first time in weeks. To my surprise, she didn’t rush off to be with David. I thought she’d be thrilled that Carter wasn’t bothering her anymore, but instead, she seemed unusually subdued.
“Why are you worrying about this?” I asked, puzzled. “I thought you wanted him to leave you alone.”
“Of course I do,” she said, stirring her drink absentmindedly. “But it’s… sad, you know
