Goddamn Tragedy

II

The past twelve years were filled with just the two of them. They read books and spoke about them without worry of upsetting another. They went downtown to the old theatre and watched black and white movies while stuffing their faces with popcorn. They listened to jazz music and pretended to be dancers from the roaring twenties.

But now Wells had a girlfriend. A girlfriend he had failed to mention until the day before she came home.

She wasn't jealous until she sat across from the two and watched the way Wells Jaha looked at Harper Jenkins like she was the most magnificent thing in the world. His eyes lit up when she laughed and his smiled formed a shape she never saw before when he locked eyes with the girl beside him.

She couldn't take her eyes off the two of them. She couldn't shake the wave of envy and the feeling of loss.

She learned that Wells met Harper in their psychology class this past spring semester. In his own words, "She looked at me and I went mental." She didn't understand it but Harper laughed and laughed while Wells once again got the weird look on his face.

She wasn't used to being on the outside when it came to Wells Jaha. She was entirely sure what she was expecting to begin with. Wells went to the University of North Carolina while she went to Yale. The six hundred some miles seemed like nothing at first. They sent texts and videos and Skyped every weekend.

She should have noticed something was wrong when all of that slowly stopped in March but she was too busy herself to even notice the day of the week.

"So, Clarke." She turned her head toward the smiling brunette. The smiling was making her feel sick to her stomach. "Anything juicy you have about this one?"

She cast her eyes onto her best friend who's eyes grew wide. She had plenty of information on Wells. She watched him throw up in sixth grade because Todd Travers put applesauce in chocolate milk. Well, she threw up too but that wasn't the point. She witnessed him pee his pants in ninth grade because of an SNL skit. She knew what his first concert was. She knew he hated guitar over the piano. She knew his favourite book was Atlas Shrugged.

However, she didn't know he was changing his major to psychology until twenty minutes ago. She didn't know he started to attend slam poetry readings and she surely didn't know he drank. A lot apparently.

She knew everything about the old Wells. She didn't know a single thing about the new, college Wells.

So when Harper looked at her with wide green eyes, she shrugged and threw a fry in Wells direction. "I'm sure you know everything."

"Come on, there has to be something."

She widened her eyes again and gave Wells a look that he only mirrored. At least he knew her despite the fact she felt like he was growing more and more apart from her as the minutes ticked by.

She turned her eyes back toward Harper. "He hates hiking." She almost smiled at the memory.

Harper made a strange face before glancing at Wells. Wells turned his attention back toward her and sat up. "I wouldn't say hate, Clarke. I like hiking just fine." He glanced toward Harper before continuing. "Harper took me hiking for spring break in Hocking Hills. It was great. You would have loved it."

She wasn't sure if she kept her face neutral but she must have because the pair before her was smiling widely back at each other in remembrance or ignoring her completely.

Wells hated hiking. He hated it all the times she begged and begged him to do it.

She faked a grin and nodded her head anyway.