Your pov
It's been a month. Things changed drastically, I guess.
Sometimes I ask myself why am I going through these things at 16. I sat in my bedroom for what seemed like a decade for the first two weeks, just thinking. Maybe some self-reflection as well. Not that I completely shut myself out from the outside world but somehow, I'm surrounded by barricades, that I built. Thick ones. Probably made of steel. And I questioned myself. What did I do wrong? What did I not do?
I was in Texas about 5 weeks ago. Visiting my family. It was a visit that meant a lot to me because I seldom got to see them ever since I moved out to London with my best friend, Sabrina. It felt like it was the right time to introduce him to my family. And I was ready for it. He was too. I got my hopes up in the end, which suck. A week later, Brooklyn told me he couldn't make it to Texas to meet my family. Well, I haven't told them that he wasn't coming yet. 3 hours later, my social media applications started blowing up more than usual. The tweets and comments had totally confused me. I opened up Twitter. And I felt water stream down my face. Tears actually. The paps got photos of Brooklyn and his friend, Sonia, kissing. Something that I do with Brooklyn. Well, something that I DID with Brooklyn. And, I just left it there. I didn't feel the need to comment about anything.
That night, he called me about 50 times, sent a bunch of texts and left a whole lot of voicemails. But I didn't respond. Maybe it's just my way of dealing with situations that I've never experienced before. Escaping. I stayed in Texas with my family for a couple more days before flying back to London. I didn't explain to my family about it at all, and I tried not to. I didn't want them to worry too much about me.
It was a genuinely long and dreadful flight. But everything became a little better when I saw Sabrina waiting for me at the arrival hall of the airport. We hugged but both kept quiet. She knew I was tired. She knew I didn't feel like talking. And that's probably why I treat her not only as my best friend but my sister from another mother. She truly understood me. That's what I needed the most. I was mobbed by paparazzi the moment I stepped out of the arrival hall. I expected them coming to be honest. The whole "Brooklyn, Sonia and I" thing blew up and they were probably curious as to why I didn't say anything. That I didn't react to it. Well, at least, that's what the public thought.
So for the first two weeks, I didn't talk about it. I just led the normal life. Just a little different. I was exceptionally smiley. I was much more lively. And that gave the news agencies more opportunities to write articles about how happy I am with Brooklyn and Sonia together. They made sweeping statements about what I was feeling. Those were completely false because I don't even know what I was feeling to be very honest with people. But I just continued with my life anyway. Sabrina obviously knows, I wasn't myself. I was different? She wanted to know what I felt but she didn't pry or try to get things out from me because she knew I would, eventually. Like what I said earlier, I thought about the things, the events that happened, a lot. And I felt ready to tell Sabrina that one day. All the feelings that I have kept from the outside world, including my family and her. Maybe even myself.
I went up to my bedroom with Sabrina following close behind me. I sat on my bed and wrapped my arms around my knees and I felt the bed dip on the other side. Sabrina sat next to me and sighed.
"You know what's screwed up?" I asked Sabrina.
"I'm tearing myself apart so other people can't."
"I'm changing myself for people who don't even care or give a shit about me anymore."
"I won't open up to anyone because I'm scared they'll break my heart."
Sabrina looked at me, teary-eyed.
"I'm scared that if I gave him a chance to explain, I'll lose myself again. I'm scared he'll hurt me with his explanation like how those pictures hurt me that night. I'm scared that this relationship will turn out to be the ones that you know ---- People told me they'd always be by my side, but they end up leaving. They move on to better, more capable people eventually."
"i'm just scared that he might end up admitting that he doesn't love me anymore." My voice started shaking a little.
"Babe, I-" I cut Sabrina off. "People try so hard to protect themselves. Building up walls to barricade themselves from the hurt and negativity. But they always fail. Don't they?" I gave a forced smile.
Brooklyn's pov
I didn't intend to break her heart. But I guess I messed up.
Your pov
2 years passed. I know, I'm 18. I'm older now. Well, update. Brooklyn started dating Vanessa a while after he ended things with Sonia. And I guess Vanessa didn't really know much about his past love life. Because I met her, coincidentally. And she told me a lot, not knowing about my heartbreaking past with Brook. It's been 2 years. But, I wouldn't say I don't completely think of him every now and then. I thought about how we could've something real. Maybe I'm wrong but I thought he could've loved me. He meant a lot to me. Every smile. Every glance from across the room. Every time he made me laugh so hard I couldn't breathe meant a lot to me. But he's doing all that and more with her now and I'm just left here. Wondering if I ever meant anything to him at all.
I was walking to the mall with Sabrina. We were going to shop for a dress to wear to the premiere of The Hunger Games next week. I guessed I was too engrossed on my phone while walking that I bumped into someone. "Oh s-sorry." I said and looked up. I looked into a pair of eyes that seemed so familiar yet so distant. "H-Hi." I said, to the stranger that I once had something with. "H-Hey." He murmured back to me. Everything fell silent. Sabrina broke it by saying, "I'll leave you guys for a while. Babe, call me when you're done", she gave me a small smile. With that, she left us both. Alone.
We went to a nearest park and sat on one of the wooden benches. "So..How are you doing?" He asked, with a sense of guilt. I didn't want to answer that question. "I met your girl the other day." I told him. Brooklyn started shifting uncomfortably. "She's really pretty. She has bright eyes and a radiant smile. I could see why she chose her." I continued. "You know her?" He asked curiously. I told him yes, that we were friends. I guess it was true enough. Vanessa and I were friends in a way.
"She knew who I was, but she didn't mind. I didn't tell her anything. That you broke me. She doesn't deserve that." I sighed and stared at my shoes. Brooklyn just stared at me. I continued with what I wanted to say. "She said something that threw me overboard you know. She said, 'He's great, isn't he?'. And I told her, 'Yeah.' But what I didn't tell her or say, was that you were so great I fell in love with you. And I also didn't say I still am."
I paused a little while before continuing.
"So don't you dare break that girl. She deserves to be happy." I told him, staring straight into his eyes.
I smiled at him, and left.
With that said, I actually felt relieved and free. And I couldn't explain why.
A/N: Hey friendly humans! So I wanted to try something different and I kinda really like this chapter a lot. I've just like to say that I've got my inspiration from storiesiwillneverwrite on Instagram. I stumbled upon their account and I genuinely fell in love with it. I tried to add some new things and change some bits a little. But I would still like to credit that account for this chapter. And if you liked it, please do vote and comment. It will mean a lot. Thank you!
Love, Valencia
