AllFreeNovel
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Photos of us.
Photos with old friends.
Photos of our moms.
She hasn’t posted anything all week, which isn’t too unusual, but I’m dying to know what she's up to. I’m dying to know how she’s coping. How she’s getting on with herself and her life. I selfishly hope that she’s broken without me, while simultaneously hoping she’s found solace with our friends, and she’s enjoying a Travis-free life. I hope they’re fixing all the cracked and broken pieces of her that I left behind.
Talk about feeling fucking conflicted.
When I refresh the page, a new post pops up on her feed, and I stop. A selfie. Only she’s not the same.
Her emerald eyes are a dull, mossy green, and her bright red hair is gone. Now a platinum blonde, her hair hangs long and straight. She doesn’t look like my Spencer. She doesn’t look happy. It looks like the light is gone from her eyes, and it dawns on me just how badly I must have broken her. I broke the one thing I love most in the world.
Shutting the lid to the laptop, I angrily hurl it across the room. The sound of the laptop puncturing the drywall is loud enough that I'm worried my dad may have heard it from the other room. If he didn't, I'll have to make it a point to fix the gaping hole in the wall before he notices. Huffing, I slide further down the bed, yank the blankets over my head and try to breathe through the searing pain that's ripping my insides apart.
I just need some time. Just a little bit of time.
I’ll never stop loving her, and I hope like hell she doesn’t stop loving me. Because I’m going back for her. As soon as I can, I’ll go back. No matter how long it takes.
Part 2
Present
Chapter eleven
Aria
Blue and green lights flash overhead in sync with the pulsating beat pumping through my chest. Wet, sweaty, strands of hair stick to my cheeks, and I clench down on the wad of gum in my mouth as I close my eyes and sway my body to the DJ. I’m not sure if it’s the bass or my heart rate, but my entire body is vibrating.
In a sea of people, I rub against the nearest body and it feels like my flesh is tingling. Every care slowly dissipates into the hot air of the club, and a feeling of weightlessness takes over. I switched from tequila to water, but it feels like I can’t consume enough, so I pour the remnants of the bottle over my head. The dancing lights glow and flicker, increasing in brightness, so vivid I can feel the neon against my skin. Everything is in high definition, exploding across my visual field.
My body moves faster, the beat demanding motion from my muscles, playing my body like a game. Like a glass of champagne bubbling over, my insides feel fizzy in the best fucking way. For the first time in months, my lips curl into a real smile. Not forced, just genuine joy. There’s no pain, no agony, just the effervescent feeling of floating.
“Aria!” My name is shouted above the music, and I open my eyes.
“Cole! Dance with meeee, it’s amaaazing!” I shout, drawing out my words, as I roll my body to the side and take hold of his hand, pulling him close to me.
His voice cuts through the music again but the lyrics invade my soul and I can’t hear what he’s saying. Large hands pull me forward, and I glide across the floor, landing against a warm chest.
“Aria, look at me,” rolling my face across the soft, smooth fabric of his t-shirt, I flick my eyes up at Cole as I grind my teeth into the gum again.
“Aria what did you take?”
“Do you feel that Cole?” the neon sizzles against my skin and the blue illumination tastes like cotton candy.
Maybe it’s the gum. Yeah, the’s the gum.
“I love you so much Cole,” I declare, rubbing my cheek against his chest. “Your shirt is so soft, do you feel that? It’s incredible.”
“Aria are you rolling?!” Cole shouts. His eyebrows creep up into his forehead, disappearing beneath his sandy blonde strands.
“Yesss,” I lengthen the word as Cole guides me toward the bar, spinning in circles, feeling the warmth of the lights blanket my body. Closing my eyes, I move my limbs to the bass and the beat with an infinite amount of energy, when Cole grips my hand again.
“Aria, drink this,” he shoves an icy bottle of water into my hand. Tilting my head back, I swallow the frigid liquid in long, slow gulps until the bottle is empty. Handing Cole the empty plastic, I lean against his chest again.
“I love you Cole. You’re like the brother I never got to have.”
“I love you too Ar, but you’re rolling pretty hard, we need to get you out of here.”
