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My heart sinks.What?
“I wanted more,” Henry adds, his eyes clouding in pain.
Dare’s hand tightens on my shoulder.
My pulse picks up speed.
My brain misfires.
The truth is written all over Henry’s face, and I quickly glance away.
No, this can’t be right.
I wish I was mistaken. Wish I didn’t have the superpower I did. Wish I could turn a blind eye to it the way, it seems, I’ve been turning a blind eye for months.
My best friend is in love with me.
Henry gives me a look full of emotions. Raw. Vulnerable.
In the chaos of my melting brain, I pick up the sound of my mother’s voice. I grew up hearing her, and it’s almost like my brain can lock into her frequency. Instinctively, I turn to find her standing in the doorway, staring at everyone with a perplexed look. Her light brown eyes jump from Henry to me and then to Dare. Her hands remain fixed on the doorknob, but her gaze is screaming ‘what’s going on?’
I have no idea.
Panic is crowding out every other thought and I can’t find my bearings. It feels like the ground just shifted from under me.
Talia appears next. She’s waving to her uncle, beckoning him inside. From the way she’s smiling, mom probably offered to make brownies. Talia is a chocolate addict and her favorite activity is baking with mom, although she despises the clean up afterward.
Mom points at Dare and arches an eyebrow in another silent question.Is that your boyfriend?
I hesitate to nod.
My heart is about to explode.
The chaos is too much.
I raise a hand to my throat and squeeze.
Henry is still looking at me earnestly, like his entire world is about to shatter if I don’t answer.
How long has he felt this way? Since before his ex-girlfriend Lacey? Or just recently when I started dating Dare?
The history Henry and I share is now under a microscope, everything called into question.
Why didn’t he tell me sooner? What would I have done if he had?
So many questions. So many lies.
“Please,” Henry signs, eyes collapsing in agony and desperation, “please. Can we go?”
Dare is behind me, upset. I don’t need to turn around to feel that. The energy coming off his body is thick, crowding me.
I swivel, equally flustered and confused. Dare is neither of those things. He’s looking at me calmly, confidently, as if he knows I’ll choose him. As if there’s no world that exists where we wouldn’t choose each other.
My hands tremble when I press them against his chest. The warmth of his skin beneath his shirt is calming. I close my eyes and take a breath.
He’s the man who made me feel cared for, protected, valued…
And heard.