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1. Wilde

August 2026,

Scars Bay, USA

Jayden

"Thank you for your service," I said as I fastened my belt and opened the door of the bathroom stall.

My phone rang and, instinctively, my eyes flew to the screen. Kate. Goddammit. I put my phone on silent and slid it into my pocket.

"Who is that? Is she your girlfriend?" she asked in a high-pitched, slightly annoyed tone.

"She is none of your fucking business." I walked out and began washing my hands, which seemed to aggravate her further.

"I had a great time. We should do this again sometime." I would not consider having sex in the bathroom stall of a bar a great time, but each to their own.

"I'm flattered, but not interested," I said without sugar-coating it because frankly, I did not care enough to lie.

Oscar Wilde said that everything in the world was about sex except sex. Sex was about power. One of the very few quotes of his that I didn't agree with. I thought that sex was a means to an end. A thing to cross off my week's to-do list so I didn't become an unbearable asshole.

"God, you're such an asshole!"

Correction. Too much of an unbearable asshole.

"He is indeed an asshole." I completely agreed with her. Sometimes, I really think that God messed up people's lives just for the heck of it.

I walked out of the restroom, paid for my drinks at the bar, and left.

Once I was in my car, a deep breath escaped my lips and my shoulders slumped. Sex always left me feeling cold and empty. It fulfilled my needs, sure, made me less frustrated and slightly easy to be around. But it weighed heavily on my shoulders. I hated sleeping with random women. It was monotonous while it was happening, felt good for a couple of seconds, but once it was done, it made my skin crawl.

My phone vibrated and I groaned. Without even looking at it, I knew it was Kate. For some reason, she had been trying to get a hold of me for the last couple of days.

I picked up. "What the hell do you want?"

"Jayden Carlton!" Mum scolded. "Is that how you talk to your mother?"

"I'm sorry, Mum. I thought it was someone else." My eyes slid shut. I didn't need this right now.

"Where are you?"

"I'm on my way home," I replied.

"Stella came over earlier. She was crying, Jayden! How could you forget your four-year anniversary? I raised you better than this!" Mum seemed really worked up.

Stella had long blonde hair, brown eyes, an ever-present smile on her face, and a great figure. Anyone would take one look at her and think she was beautiful. She was once a good friend of mine. I had pushed most of my friends away but Stella stayed. She stayed by my side on days I wanted to kill myself. She took care of me when I couldn't get out of bed for weeks. She seemed to be the one I turned to for comfort. But I didn't have romantic feelings for her. I couldn't.

When she made a move, I was drunk out of my mind and mistook her for Alya. They had the same long blonde hair and similar brown eyes. I slept with her that night. I knew it was a horrible mistake the moment I opened my eyes the next morning. But I felt like I couldn't reject her after everything she had done for me. It just felt wrong. And while being with her felt more wrong and made me feel like the biggest piece of shit ever, it made my parents happy. They didn't worry about me as much after we started dating. So I tried to keep the only three people left in my life happy.