Page 84 of Don’t Forget Me

She sighed. I think she was giving up. At this point, I had ran out of reasons to fight her on the topic.

“And he apologized. He told you the truth in one of the most heartfelt letters known to humankind. He has been paying for his mistake for the past five years. He made this deal with you to have an excuse to be close to you and make your dream come true.”

“I know,” I muttered.

“He deserves a second chance.”

“I thought you were Team Lysandra,” I teased.

Camille beamed. “I am Team Lysandra, but it also requires me to be Team Ezra because he adds on a lot to your happiness.”

“Mmm,” was all I could think of saying.

“You have to test the waters tomorrow,” Camille suggested.

She was right, but I couldn’t continue this conversation or I’d have a nervous breakdown. “Ice cream?”

It was scary to think of opening myself up in that way again. I loved him, I was sure of that much. I was just wary of trusting him again, even though I had seen all of his good deeds to make it up to me. I didn’t have any guarantees that he wouldn’t break my heart again, and I hated that.

“Only you would have the idea for ice cream on a crisp autumn night,” Camille said, giving me a playful glare. Nonetheless, she laughed and followed me as we made our way to the markets.

thirty six

EZRA

5 YEARS AGO

Spring ended, and summer had begun. Although the next few months were known to be the warmest of the year, they felt the coldest. I missed her. I yearned for her embrace, her comfort, her solace, her person.

My many attempts to repair what I had damaged were for nothing. She refused to listen to me. Not once had she directed a word to me, not since she had left me battered at the school’s sports pitch. I could do nothing but watch as she switched seats in our history class. I watched as she was the first to leave the classroom when she knew that I was in the far section of the lecture hall. I remained silent as she pushed past me in the corridors. Whenever I would go to her room, she’d lock herself inside and wouldn’t come out even if I remained outside for hours.

I probably sounded like a loser.

I should’ve been honest with her from the beginning. And now, the summer break was about to begin and I had failed at fixing my mistake.

What am I to do?

Besides my misery, I couldn’t help but worry about her wellbeing. Where would she stay for the summer? Did she have someplace to live? How would she feed herself? These questions took all my energy.

The familiarity of her presence came near. I looked up and saw that she wasn’t too far, making a right turn into another dark hallway.

I rushed to meet her as her coiled strands passed by my peripheral version. “Lysandra!” I called.

She looked back, brows scrunched. When she recognized my voice and expression, she continued walking ahead. I hurried even more until I was beside her. Her lips were set in a thin line. There’d not been a single drop of emotion on her face, which troubled me. Perhaps I was foolish in nearing her and attempting some civilized discourse between us.

“Hey,” I began, but she ignored me. “Hey, stop. I need to ask you something.”

She remained silent.

“Do you have someplace to stay this summer?”

Nothing.

“Lysandra this isn’t a joke. Just answer,” I said.

Silence.

My patience wore thin. Here I was, worried about her safety, about her health, about her, and she couldn’t even give me a simple response.