Chapter 3
Ava was dressed in the most ordinary, casual clothes, but she was so stunning it was impossible to look away.
My gaze must've lingered a bit too long.
Ava, clearly used to that kind of attention, smiled and held out her hand. "Hey, I'm Ava."
"Dylan Hayes," I stammered, shaking her hand a little too fast.
The moment our skin touched —warm, real— something clicked.
Something that felt a lot like fate, or maybe a curse.
High school was a total drag.
Ava was a grade below me.
Whenever she got stuck on a problem, I could help her out, and whenever I was clueless about the latest gossip, she could fill me in on every detail.
Plus, her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Morgan, were often busy with work.
When they weren't home, it was just the two of us looking out for each other.
With the two of us spending so much time alone together, in that kind of setting, it was only natural that something was bound to happen between us.
And honestly, I could tell Ava saw me differently from the others.
Maybe it wasn't love, but there was something. I was sure of it.
Then, one afternoon, everything changed.
Ava brought a bunch of her classmates over to hang out at our place.
When she introduced me, they all shot Ava these teasing looks, their eyes full of mischief.
"We get it, Ava, no need to explain!" one of them teased as the others burst out laughing.
"Don't worry, we'll keep it a secret!" another added.
"Congrats, you two!" another chimed in.
Ava glanced over at me, seeing how embarrassed I looked, my cheeks burning bright red.
She laughed and playfully cut them off. "Congrats my foot! Dylan's just like my brother. If you all keep spreading this nonsense, how am I ever going to get a boyfriend?"
It was right then—everything changed inside me.
There was no mistaking it: a sour pang rippled through my heart, leaving me aching.
"Oh, so you're really planning to start dating now?" one of her friends teased.
Ava just shrugged, totally unfazed. "Not until after college exams.
"There's a time for everything."
After that, she thought for a moment, then turned to me. "Am I right, Dylan?"
To anyone else, it was nothing. But to me, that line was a spark hitting old ashes.
So I told myself I'd wait. After the exams, I'd tell her how I felt.
By then, everything would just fall into place, naturally.
Except it didn't.
Instead, I got a phone call. Her voice on the other end was hesitant, almost like a confession that she was seeing someone.
That night, I sat in the living room, chain-smoking all night.
But just before I was about to head to bed, my phone rang—it was Ava.
"You awake?" she asked softly. Her voice didn't sound like her usual self.
"No—" I barely got the word out before she hung up.
I had no idea what she wanted.
But that call, short as it was, brought back every ghost of that old crush I thought I'd buried.
I put out the cigarette, ready to call it a night, and then came a knock on my door.
It was Ava.
That night, we lost control.
The next morning, I thought she'd yell, call me a monster, tell me I'd crossed a line. But she didn't. She didn't regret it.
She just changed.
The bright, carefree girl she used to be was gone. What remained was someone calm, almost distant, a version of her I didn't quite recognize.
We stayed together for seven years.
Friends turned lovers, but our rhythm barely changed.
After graduation, Ava took over her family's business, and I found a stable job in her city.
It should've been the perfect time to get married— everyone thought so.
But Ava never wanted to.
Every time I brought it up, she'd just go quiet. Her silence drove me insane.
More than once, I tried to end things, convinced I couldn't stand the uncertainty anymore.
And every single time, that was when she'd finally cling to me.
Funny thing was it was the only moments I ever truly felt she loved me.
By the time I finished scrolling through every post on her account, dawn was already breaking.
I rubbed my tired eyes, unable to sleep.
Then, from the next room, came a heavy thud.
Instinctively, I started to get up to check it out.
But the next second, I heard Ava's voice, low and urgent. "Is Eric really back?"
My room and Ava's were just separated by a single wall.
The balconies were joined together as well.
So whenever the glass door on the balcony got pulled open, I always heard it loud and clear.
With a click, her words were cut short as the door shut behind her.
She was so cautious, making sure I couldn't overhear anything.
I looked sluggishly toward the balcony, my thoughts blank and slow to catch up.
Out of nowhere, Charlotte's words echoed in my mind. "Treat us to seafood tomorrow night."
What a coincidence. Liam grew up by the sea. Seafood was his favorite.
Ava had even kept a list of all the dishes he loved on her notes app—bookmarked, organized, preserved like a treasure.
That kind of devotion was impossible to forget.
No wonder she said "us."
It all made sense now.
And with that realization came another crack in my chest.
A love that devoted, caring down to the smallest detail—Ava had never loved me like that.