A Writer's Odyssey

Chapter 6/ The End III

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“He’s just a close friend.”

Those words kept replaying in my mind for quite some time as I kept thinking about it.

My girlfriend had texted me that the guy in the picture was just a close friend.

That was surprising, though.

A close friend? I never knew she had a friend she was that close to.

And somehow, that was the most heartbreaking part of it.

I couldn't help but confront her about it.

“Why didn't you ever tell me about him?”

Her reply came shortly afterward.

“I just made friends with him, though.”

“It was during this vacation.”

Then another message followed.

“Don't worry. There's nothing going on between us.”

I stared at the messages for a while.

During this vacation?

And somehow, he had already become close enough to her to be holding hands with her?

I had a feeling of something I couldn't quite explain.

It wasn't exactly anger.

It wasn't exactly jealousy either.

It was just... a strange feeling in my chest that I couldn't put into words.

Still, I decided not to make a big deal out of it.

I typed my reply.

“Okay. No problem then.”

I sent it.

But even after the message went through, my mind was anything but okay.

It was in complete turmoil.

I then decided to change the topic.

“So, what are we having as events at the upcoming festival?”

Normally, our school held a festival before the actual resumption date. It was something the students looked forward to every year.

It gave new students a chance to get familiar with the school and allowed many of us to meet and get to know one another before classes officially began.

There were also several events and activities organized throughout the festival, which made the whole thing more exciting.

And that was what I was asking her about.

“You really need to be coming to school during the holidays so you can keep up with the trends in school,” she texted.

I had never really liked coming to school during the holidays. There were always plenty of other things that needed my attention, especially at home.

I simply replied with a “smiles.”

She then updated me about the event.

Apparently, the main activity we would be having during the festival was sporting activities.

I simply replied:

“Okay.”

Then I pretended the conversation was over.

Actually, I had expected her to bring up something she had always been obsessed with whenever occasions like this came around.

But she didn't.

And somehow, that surprised me more than it should have.

Then came the question I had been expecting.

“What outfit are we to put on for the festival?”

That was usually what came next.

She had always brought it up whenever we had occasions like this, mostly because she liked matching her outfit with mine.

It was one of those little things that showed just how clingy she had been with me.

And honestly, I loved that part of her.

But this time, she didn't ask.

She didn't seem to care about it at all.

I stared at our conversation for a while, and that small difference somehow hurt more than I expected.

Maybe it was nothing.

Maybe I was simply overthinking everything.

But after what had happened recently, I couldn't help feeling heartbroken.

I turned my phone off and went to sleep unusually early that day.

I was heartbroken.

Even my brain kept telling me that something was going on, but my petty heart just couldn't keep up with it. I still wanted to believe everything was fine.

Two days passed in what felt like a flash.

Then came the day of the festival.

The school was already buzzing with activity. Students gathered in groups, chatting and gossiping about all sorts of things I couldn't seem to care about.

I made my way toward the venue designated for the high school students, since I was a high school freshman.

Yet, somehow, something felt off.

I had been there for a while, but not a single student had come over to welcome me or even properly acknowledge me since I arrived.

I stood there quietly, looking around at the unfamiliar faces.

For some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was completely alone in the middle of everyone.

I arrived at the high school venue, and almost immediately, several seniors shifted their gazes toward me.

I kept moving, looking around for either my girlfriend or one of my classmates. I even considered calling my girlfriend to ask where she was.

Just then, a student approached me.

He said he had just come from the gents and had spotted me while passing by. Somehow, he ended up showing me the way toward where the other students were gathered.

And eventually, I found my classmates.

Marinette was there, along with some of the others.

Then Kenny, one of my favorite friends, spotted me.

“Dalton!”

He came over to welcome me, greeting me with the usual warmth between friends.

Soon, a few others joined us, and before long, we were all chatting and joking about different things.

For a moment, I forgot about everything that had been bothering me.

I felt like the main character once again.

Then, just as I was beginning to settle into the moment, I saw her.

My girlfriend began approaching me.

Then, an uneasy feeling suddenly came over me.

I became tense as my heart began throbbing faster.

For a moment, I didn't even understand why I was feeling that way.

Then, almost instinctively, I glanced toward Marinette.

Our eyes met.

We stared at each other for a few seconds.

Then she looked away, shaking her head as though she had just witnessed something that disgusted her—or perhaps something she pitied.

I couldn't tell which.

Before I could make sense of it, a strange dizziness washed over me.

My head suddenly felt heavy, and my thoughts became strangely cloudy.

Something was wrong.

I just couldn't figure out what.