Four days. That's how long it takes me to go from absolutely devastated to full of rage. Yes, I broke Vale's heart. And I have no one to blame but myself for him moving on. But did he really have to move on with Maddie Shaw? It's like he picked the one person who would hurt me the most, which really, really infuriates me. I never intended on hurting him. But this? It's so clearly intentional, and so horribly cruel. And every day that goes by, I find myself staring out my bedroom window, watching for a sign that she's back again. But I don't see her. I don't see him either though, so I'm not sure if that means much. I'm probably missing them both somehow. Oh well. Good riddance.

On the ninth day, Keke practically drags me out of my own house to hang out with the friend group. She has no idea what's been going on, so I lie to her and tell her I've just been sick. It's easier than explaining why I suddenly don't want to be around anyone. But even though she's a germaphobe, she insists that whatever bug I've had has now moved on, and it's safe for me to join the land of the living again. I can't argue with her, because I'll give myself away. So I join her instead.

We get to the mall, and my eyes lock on Vale the moment we walk through the automatic doors. He's sitting on the counter, the soles of his sneakers resting flat against the wall. There's a smile on his face when I walk in, and I can tell he's laughing at something by the way his lips are curved on his face. But it dies when his eyes meet mine, and it feels like the entire temperature of the mall has dropped twenty degrees in a matter of seconds.

I don't sit with him. Instead, I sit in a chair on the outskirts of the group, my arms folding across my chest. And an outsider looking at all of us probably wouldn't notice anything different. But everything is different now. I do my best to avert my gaze from Vale, because seeing him makes my blood boil. Never in my life would I believe he could stoop so low as to hook up with Maddie. It disgusts me. Sickens me. Makes me want to throw up right here in the middle of the mall.

"You okay, Gen?" Taylor asks, and I give her a tight-lipped smile as I nod my head.

"Yes," I reply quickly. "Just still getting over that bug."

Taylor takes a sip of her pop and sets her cup on the counter before saying, "Yeah, I heard there was something going around. Hit you pretty hard, huh?" I nod my head again. "Surprised Vale didn't get it. Usually you guys are sick at the same time."

Another tight smile. God, I wish I could just go back home. "Guess he's just lucky."

My eyes land on Vale again as a scoff escapes his lips. "Right," he says as he shakes his head. "I'm the luckiest guy in the world."

Keke's eyebrows shoot up so far that for a moment I think her hair has swallowed them whole. "What's your problem?"

He opens his mouth to talk, but I cut him off. "Vale doesn't have a problem. He's the luckiest guy in the world, remember? I'm sure he's doing just fine."

Taylor, Tree, and Keke are all watching us closely now, while Tyler is sitting beside Vale, trying his best to fight off a wince. But Vale's face is getting redder as his brown eyes turn to slits. "I am doing just fine. I mean, I've got nothing to hide. A completely open book. What about you, Gen? Do you have anything you'd like to share with the rest of the class?"

Now my face goes red as everyone turns to stare at me. "What's he talking about, Gen?" Keke asks, and my pulse quickens in my veins. I was totally willing to go public with Vale before I saw Maddie wrapped in a towel in his doorway. But now there is no way I'm going to expose my summer activities with anyone. Ever.

I shrug my shoulders before shooting Vale a nasty look. "I have no idea what he's talking about. But I will say that for someone who claims to be an open book, he sure does love keeping his own set of secrets. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black."

"Hey, you know what sounds good right now?" Tyler says in a feeble attempt to get everyone's attention. Keke, Taylor, and Tree all turn to look at him, but Vale and I are too busy shooting daggers at each other to focus too hard on what he's saying. "Some fries down at The Buoy. Do you guys want to come with?" He's not talking to Vale and I, and we both know it. Keke, Taylor, and Tree all turn back toward us before Tyler jumps to his feet and says, "Come on, ladies. Let's go."

"But—" Keke begins.

"Go!" Vale and I both shout together, and the three girls jump and scurry out of the mall, barely turning to look back at us as they go through the double doors with Tyler. A heavy silence falls between us, and I cannot believe how furious I am. In all my life, I don't think I've ever felt this way about anyone. And yet here I am, having such angry thoughts about my best friend. It's enough to make me vomit.

"I don't know what secrets you think I'm keeping," Vale growls finally. "But the only one keeping secrets this summer is you. So I would appreciate it if you wouldn't lie to my friends."

"First of all," I reply as venom practically spews from my mouth. "They are our friends. And second, don't you try to act all high and mighty."

He scoffs again and shakes his head. "I have no idea what the fuck you're talking about, Gen."

"I can't believe you would do what you did," I snap, and for a fraction of a second I see his eyes widen in surprise. "Seriously, I never believed you would stoop so low. Guess I never knew you at all."

He laughs. Really laughs. And for a moment I'm brought back to all those secret hours we spent together alone in his bedroom or his car. "You are really a piece of work, do you know that? You think I'm the one stooping low? I never would've done what you did."

I roll my eyes. "And what did I do, Vale?"

"You fucked me and then left me!" he yells, and I see a few people turn their heads toward us in curiosity.

My face turns red again. "You told me to get out of your house," I whisper angrily. "You screamed at me to get the fuck out, remember? And besides, don't act like you're all broken up about it. You and I both know how quickly you moved on. What was it, just a few days?"

He shakes his head. "I have no idea what the fuck you're talking about," he says again.

The fact that he's playing dumb is really pissing me off. "I never meant to hurt you, but what you did... there's nothing that could've hurt me worse. And you knew that, which is the worst part of it. You knew how that would make me feel, and you did it anyway. It's disgusting."

He gets to his feet now and storms toward me. I stand up, holding my head high as he gets in my face. "No, you know what's disgusting?" he growls, and I feel his hot breath brush my cheeks. Another flashback enters my head. His body against mine. His fingers brushing against my most sensitive areas. His tongue in my mouth as he pushed himself inside of me. Warmth floods my cheeks, and it takes me a moment to shake those thoughts off and stare into the brown eyes of the person who once was my best friend. Who I actually believed could be more. "Making me think we were okay, having sex with me, and then dumping me again. That, Gen, is what's really disgusting."

"I never once, in that whole day, said that I wanted to continue our relationship," I respond as I glare up at him. "You misunderstood the situation."

"I asked you," he whispers.

"No, you didn't."

"Yes, I did. I asked you with my fucking eyes, Gen. And you nodded your head." I think back to that day, and I realize that he's right. He did ask me with his eyes, and I did nod my head. Shame wells up inside of me again, and it's almost as raw as it was that day. "I loved you. I wanted more. I always wanted more. I told you I wanted more. And what did you do? You broke my fucking heart. So excuse me for not giving a shit about how you feel right now. About how anything that I might've done could've hurt you. Because there's nothing that I could've ever done to you that would hurt you the way you hurt me."

Now it's my turn to laugh. "Right. Okay, Vale. You keep telling yourself that. You keep acting like you're the only one who was hurt."

"I didn't do anything to you!" he yells again, and I take a step back. But he grabs my shoulders and lowers himself to my level so he can look straight into my blue eyes. "I don't know what your problem is, Gen, but I swear to God, you're making me fucking insane."

I pull myself away from him as I shake my head. "You know what? I think you were right about one thing." His eyebrows raise ever so slightly. "I think our friendship is over. Lose my number. Don't call me. We're through."

He blinks, and I can tell he's surprised. His fingers slide through his curly black hair, and for a moment he grips his locks in frustration. "I just don't understand it at all," he says. "What the hell could I have done to you for you to be acting like this toward me?"

I roll my eyes again. "I'm sure if you think really, really hard, you'll figure it out. I'd say go fuck yourself, but it sounds like you have someone taking care of that already." His eyes widen again, but I don't stick around for his response this time. I take another step back, and I watch his hands fall limply to his sides. He seems so defeated, but for once, I don't care. "I mean it, Vale. I don't ever want to see you or talk to you again. Just leave me alone."

And with that, I storm out of the mall, leaving him looking confused, frustrated, angry, and broken. I wait until I get to my car before I let the tears flow. Tyler texts me and asks me if I'm okay, but I don't answer him. There's only one thing that matters now, and that's the trading game. I need to get the rest of my tuition money. I need to get out of here. Everywhere I look, I see things and places that remind me of Vale. I feel like I'm surrounded by ghosts, and I know Boston is my only escape now.

When I pull into my driveway, I scroll through my TikTok messages and see one from someone with one of those weird generic names. I wipe a stray tear from my eye as I open the message. "Hey, I don't know if you'll see this or not, but my name is J. I saw you had a bracelet for trade. I live in CDA. Would you be willing to meet up to trade for a ring? Had it appraised for $10,000. Let me know if you're interested."

Ten thousand dollars. Holy shit. The fact that this message is coming in now is like a sign. I take a few moments to catch my breath before replying, "Yes, I am most definitely interested, J. Want to meet up downtown tomorrow afternoon?"

I'm expecting J to take a bit to reply, but he must be online, because he immediately writes back. "Absolutely. I'll text you the address tomorrow. See you then. My heart is racing in my chest. Tomorrow I'll be making my biggest trade yet. Which is just another step toward me getting the hell out of this stupid town and leaving Vale behind for good. And when I leave, I don't plan on ever looking back.

Author's Note:
This chapter was so hard to write. I hate seeing Gen and Vale argue like this. Hurts my heart. Also, sorry that this one took me so long to write. I had a bit of writer's block, so I thought I would take a break for the holiday to try and figure it out. I hope you liked what I came up with. Can't wait to write the next chapter, as it's one that's been in the works since the beginning of the story!

Side note, I hope you all had a splendid holiday with your families. I spent mine in Idaho and Washington, enjoying good food and even better company with the people I love most. But I'm back to work tomorrow. New chapter coming later this week, so be on the lookout! And as always, stay safe and healthy, my dears!
XOXO,
~Aly