ᴜɴᴇᴅɪᴛᴇᴅ ʟᴇᴛᴛᴇʀs ᴛᴏ ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏʏ ɪ ʟᴏᴠᴇ » ᴄᴏʀʙʏɴ ʙᴇssᴏɴ

hurt

Hurt pounded through my veins, flooded my system, clouded my vision.

But like all the pain of the past, I was able to hide it from you, fold myself into a complexity of layers even you couldn't see through.

You came back from tour, right on schedule, and waltzed into Willis' like you owned it. In a strange sense, you did, as the only returning customer the fast-food restaurant had ever had.

You threw your arms around me in the most obnoxious, bone-crushing, comforting hug we'd ever shared and while I was held against your chest I had to remind myself that it was just a hug, a simple gesture.

And we sat. It was noon and no one in their right mind came into Willis' for lunch, so we sat in one of the booths with the cracked cushions and fake marble table and talked for minutes, hours, an eternity.

You relayed countless stories of tour, and in turn, your success. I told you everything I couldn't manage to reveal over the phone-my new job, mom's new job, college. You smiled and yelled and cheered like always.

And then you were telling me about her, another social media influencer you'd connected with while on tour. You told me how you met, how much time you spent together, how you stayed in contact, how you asked her to be your girlfriend five weeks before.

I didn't react. I don't think I could have if I wanted to, but you didn't notice.

The day melted into itself and you stayed until closing time. We went our separate ways on the sidewalk outside.

It hurt, but I smiled, for you.