Best Friends Forever_ Think Again

I had vowed to transfer schools with my childhood friend, Caleb Vaughn, after he told me he was being bullied by the lacrosse team.

We had everything planned for our transfer to an arts high school in Oregon.

But the day before we were set to submit our applications, I overheard a conversation between Caleb and his teammates outside the gym. He wasn't being bullied at all—it was an elaborate lie he'd concocted just to get rid of me.

I froze, then silently turned and walked away.

That night, I opened our joint application email, deleted the file for the arts high school, and attached my acceptance letter to the London Design Institute instead.

Everyone, it seemed, had forgotten a crucial fact: Caleb and I were never equals.

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1

The moment I overheard the truth, my heart hammered against my ribs.

For the past month, my childhood friend, Caleb Vaughn, had been feeding me stories about being ostracized by his teammates and having his locker vandalized.

I was constantly stepping in to defend him, but I couldn't shield him from everything. When things became unbearable, I suggested he transfer schools and start over.

That day, he showed up soaked to the bone, claiming someone had pushed him into the lake, his sharp cheekbones deathly pale. He grabbed my hand, his whole body trembling. "I can't face a new environment alone."

We had grown up together, inseparable for over a decade. And deep down, I had been secretly in love with him.

So, feeling a rush of fierce loyalty, I promised, "Don't worry, Caleb. Wherever you go, I'll go with you."

But standing outside that locker room door, I realized it was all just a cruel ploy to push me out of his life.

Inside, his teammate was still talking. "Ava is crazy about you. What if she falls for someone else in Oregon?"

"Her?" Caleb scoffed, the idea clearly absurd to him. "She's so loyal she'd take a bullet for me. You really think a little distance is going to make her stop loving me?"

"I don't know, man," his teammate muttered. "She doesn't seem like the kind of girl you can just screw over."

"No way," Caleb said lazily. "Our school is full of rich kids. Has she ever given any of them the time of day?"

His tone dripped with disdain as he continued, "She's always hanging around me. It's so damn annoying."

A burst of harsh, mocking laughter erupted from the room. I wanted to run, but my feet felt bolted to the floor, forcing me to endure the humiliation.

One of the guys clicked his tongue. "First time I've seen a guy push away a girl who's head over heels for him. I'm impressed, man. But if she annoys you, why not just tell her? She doesn't seem like the type to cling."

Caleb frowned. "She's too damn stubborn. You can't just be direct with her."

He paused, then dropped the real bombshell. "Besides, Chloe gets sad whenever she sees Ava. She only feels better when I'm holding her hand. I'm doing this for Chloe. Ava will just have to put up with it for now."

Suddenly, everything clicked. Caleb had started faking the bullying right after Chloe Miller, from the cheerleading squad, began getting close to him.

"You sly dog! A few cheerleaders show up and you're totally whipped?" someone laughed. "But Chloe does have that soft, helpless, damsel-in-distress vibe. Guys eat that up. Not like Ava. She's sharp, and she's always got this icy glare that keeps people at a distance. No matter how gorgeous she is, it's hard to get close."

The others chimed in, tearing me apart like a pack of wolves. Caleb didn't stop them. He didn't defend me. He even chuckled, adding his silent agreement to their jabs.

My heart sank, plunging into a dark abyss. For a moment, I wanted to kick down that door and confront him.

Why lie? Did he feel no guilt watching me get hurt for his sake? Did our years of friendship mean nothing?

But my mother's words echoed in my mind. "Don't waste your emotions on people who aren't worth it."

In the end, I turned and walked away.