Chapter 6: Falling For Her, Failing Myself
I stopped reading, stopped studying, and let myself fall—hard—right alongside Savannah.
And so, my grades started dropping. Lower and lower.
The first time, of course, I handed first place to Carter.
When the teacher called out his name as top of the class for the first time, Carter went nuts with joy.
He grabbed the report card and stared at it forever, like he couldn’t believe it was real, then burst out laughing.
Of course, I noticed his smug, supposedly casual glance at my scores, but I acted like I hadn’t.
I just quietly thought to myself: time to collect my reward.
Sure enough, Savannah was thrilled that day too.
She ran to me from across the lot, her school uniform fluttering, all sun and wind.
Maybe that’s why, when I pulled her into my arms, I still felt warmth.
I asked her why she was so happy.
She said with a smile, she’d won a big tennis match that day.
I smiled too.
Pretending I didn’t know that match never happened, I slipped a hotel keycard into her hand.
“Today’s my eighteenth birthday.”
“Will you celebrate with me?”
My voice barely made it past the lump in my throat, but I forced a grin. It was the first time I’d ever asked for something just for me.
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