I rushed to the hotel entrance just to deliver a box of condoms for my childhood crush. The moment the door opened, I saw the passion he gave another girl. And in that instant, I finally understood: Twenty years of companionship had never meant anything to him. I thought I would never be able to love anyone again— until a boy named Ethan Callahan pulled me out of the darkness with nothing but his genuine heart. But just when I thought the past was over, Tyler suddenly turned back. (1) My “friend” suddenly announced he had a girlfriend. The caption read: “I’m not good with words, I just want to see you.” In that instant, my SnapChat exploded. All our mutual friends bombarded me with messages: “Riley, isn’t Tyler’s girlfriend supposed to be you?” Indeed. Why wasn’t I Tyler Harper’s girlfriend? Before I could process what was happening, Tyler sent me a message: “So, what do you think? Isn’t my girlfriend pretty?” Each word felt like a knife twisting in my heart. My hands were shaking so much I could barely see the screen through my blurred vision. He must have grown impatient waiting for a response because he sent another message: “My girlfriend knows we’re close. I don’t want her to get the wrong idea, so maybe don’t come find me for a while.” I read his messages over and over, then threw my phone aside and burst into tears. All these years, everyone knew I loved Tyler. Everyone except Tyler himself. He always thought I was just his best friend. His family without the blood ties. In this world, if we’re talking about who knows Tyler Harper best, I, Riley Bennett, would say I’m second to none. I know he likes his egg pancakes without green onions, his beef noodles without cilantro, his winter hoodies without hoods, and that his sneakers are half a size bigger than his regular shoes. I’ve made all his literature notes since we were kids, and when he first started college, I bought him his first set of formal wear. I used to be so proud of how much space I occupied in Tyler’s life. I thought no other girl could leave as many traces in his life as I had. I thought there was just one small step left between us. One opportunity that would make it all fall into place naturally. But I never got that opportunity. Instead, I got the fact that Tyler now had a girlfriend. He kept chattering away on SnapChat, telling me how great his new girlfriend was. How she surprisingly liked green onions and cilantro, and now he liked them too because she did. He shared pictures of the hooded sweatshirt she bought him, saying he loved it so much he’d wear it every day. He even mentioned how cute it was that she bought him sneakers that were too small. Every word felt like it was erasing my past. Finally, he sent me one last message, “My girlfriend says if you could bring us some condoms, she’d believe we’re just friends. Riley, hurry and bring them over!” He attached the address of a hotel. His audacity with me was entirely my own doing. Since childhood, I’d always given him whatever he wanted. If he asked for the stars, I’d have built a ladder to fetch them for him. Even his mom said there wasn’t another person in this world who’d be as good to him as I was. It was precisely because I was so good to him that he took such liberties. He took me for granted. I wiped away my tears and actually went. When I arrived, he was already impatiently waiting. As soon as he opened the door, he snatched the condoms from my hand, giving me a dirty look: “Riley, what took you so long? My girlfriend almost got suspicious!” He didn’t even give me a chance to speak before slamming the door shut. Before the door closed, I caught a glimpse of the girl. She was wrapped in a towel, her hair loose, water droplets still clinging to her skin. I saw Tyler eagerly walking towards her, about to embrace her… Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably. I didn’t want to look so pathetic in front of Tyler, so I tried to cover my mouth, but I still couldn’t hold back a sob. Suddenly, I felt like a complete joke. I wiped away my tears and tried to message him in as calm a tone as I could muster: “Tyler, I won’t bother you anymore.” After sending it, I blocked him. Tyler and I had known each other since we were in diapers. After more than twenty years, there were too many memories. Just the photos of us together took up over 30GB of my phone’s storage. I deleted them all. Not just that, I even deleted all those childish photos we’d taken together years ago from my social media accounts. I made up my mind. From today on, I would no longer love Tyler Harper. (2) The next day, after class, Tyler cornered me. He looked at me, exasperated, as if I was being unreasonable. “Riley, what’s your problem?” I admit, it’s impossible to forget someone you’ve loved for so long overnight. Seeing him again, my heart still ached a little. I pretended nothing was wrong and acted like I hadn’t heard him. He was clearly getting impatient. “You’re making Mia really uncomfortable. She thinks she’s the reason we’re not getting along.” I looked at him, feeling a bitter taste in my mouth, unable to say a word. I could only quicken my pace to leave. Tyler cursed behind me, “Damn it, Riley, are you getting too full of yourself? Making such a fuss just because your bro is dating someone. Mia was right, you’re acting like a possessive bitch. Don’t tell me you actually like me?” I stopped in my tracks and turned to look at him. Suddenly, I had the urge to lay it all out. “What if I said yes?” “Huh?” Tyler awkwardly rubbed his fingers, seemingly caught off guard by my response. “I was just kidding. Uh, I gotta go. We’ll talk later, okay?” For the next two months, Tyler didn’t contact me, and I didn’t reach out to him either. I heard he’d been getting pretty serious with his girlfriend. They even signed up for a travel group, planning to go on a trip during summer break. My friends were indignant about this and messaged me to complain: “Doesn’t Tyler have a heart? How can he be so public about it? Doesn’t he worry about hurting you?” I paused for a moment before replying: “Let him be.” It would get better slowly. While Tyler was flaunting his relationship, I cried silently in pain several nights. But I forced myself not to think about it, not to ask about it. Later, I truly stopped thinking about it. I started focusing on my studies, keeping myself busy every day. Then one day, my roommate informed me that I was featured on the university’s confession wall. The confession was simple: “Riley Bennett from second-year Economics, I, Ethan Callahan, have decided you’re the one for me.” Well… To be honest, it was a bit underwhelming. Who still uses these cheesy, domineering pickup lines these days? I didn’t take it seriously at all, thinking it was just someone’s prank. But what I didn’t expect was that Ethan Callahan really did start pursuing me aggressively. Because of what happened with Tyler, I was extremely averse to the idea of dating, so I was very cold towards him. But he never got discouraged. In fact, he seemed to become more determined with each rejection. At first, every time I came out of the library, I’d see him waiting there, always holding a cup of my favorite cheese grape tea. He’d hand it to me as soon as I came out. At first, I refused to accept it, but he didn’t get upset. He just smiled and said, “But senior, I’ve already bought it. It’d be such a waste.” “If you really don’t want it, why don’t you just transfer me the money?” And just like that, he successfully got my SnapChat contact. I thought giving him my contact might be troublesome, but he was very considerate. He’d only occasionally like or comment on my posts, rarely actively disturbing my life. Gradually, I even started to get used to it. After a while, when I tried to transfer him money for the milk tea again, he refused, giving a very reasonable explanation: “We’re so familiar now. Treating you to a cup of milk tea is just what I should do.” Reading this message, I found myself sprawled on my bed, laughing uncontrollably. I never thought this kid would be so good at pursuing girls. He handled the boundaries between men and women just right. I started to enjoy interacting with him. After all, who doesn’t like a good-looking guy who knows how to treat a girl right? As I got to know him better, I found out that Ethan’s college entrance exam score was actually over 30 points higher than our university’s admission line. I couldn’t understand it: “Then why did you come here?” He seemed a bit embarrassed for once, scratching his head: “Because the person I like is here.” The atmosphere suddenly became a bit awkward. I coughed uncomfortably: “With 600 points, you don’t seem like someone who’d write that kind of confession.” This time, he was even more embarrassed, a blush quickly spreading across his face. “That was posted by my roommates. They were just messing around.” Ethan is very good-looking, a bit more than just conventionally attractive. Growing up, the most handsome person I’d ever seen was Tyler. But looking closely, Ethan seemed no less attractive than Tyler. As I stared at him for a while, I suddenly realized that I hadn’t thought about Tyler for quite some time. He seemed to have really disappeared from my life. Ethan started to occupy my time. Every day, he’d find new ways to cater to my preferences. I didn’t like eating breakfast in the cafeteria, so he’d wake up two hours early to buy me breakfast from my favorite store. It wasn’t just me; even my roommates benefited. Every time he brought something to my dorm, he’d bring a portion for my roommates too, making sure everyone got a share while ensuring mine was always the best. If I posted on social media in the morning saying I wanted to go out, by afternoon he’d be dressed up ready to take me on a suburban outing. When I casually mentioned wanting to eat a strawberry cake, that evening I received a strawberry cake he’d bought. It had the logo of “South Family Rice Shop” on it. This shop was near my home. I looked at him in surprise: “When did you go buy this?” Ethan looked a bit embarrassed, still catching his breath: “I went as soon as I saw your post. I was playing ball with my roommates in the afternoon and saw it a bit late. I almost didn’t make it in time.” This shop had always been popular. It had been there since I was little, but the owner was someone who really knew how to live. Every day, without fail, he’d close shop at 5 PM, regardless of whether there were still customers or not. The reason I knew this so well was because I’d passed by their shop countless times, but never bought anything. Their prices were about a third higher than other places. Even my mom only bought me one on my birthday each year. I couldn’t bring myself to buy one, but I always craved it. Every time Tyler saw me looking, he’d pat my head and comfort me like a child: “Don’t look anymore, little one. Big bro Tyler will buy you one next time.” But I waited year after year, and it never happened. Every time, he had an excuse. He’d spent all his allowance, or he didn’t have time to go buy it, and so on. Back then, I believed him. Now, looking at the small 6-inch strawberry cake in Ethan’s hands, I suddenly felt my eyes getting warm. So, if someone really wanted to buy it, it only took two hours. So this is what it feels like to be cherished. I couldn’t help but cry. Ethan immediately panicked, “Don’t cry! I really was playing ball and didn’t see your message, or I would have brought it earlier.” “When I got there, the owner was about to close. I had to beg him for a while before he agreed to make one for me.” “Riley, please don’t cry.” He looked so pitiful, seeming like he wanted to wipe my tears but didn’t dare. He was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. His reaction made me laugh. I took the strawberry cake and asked him: “Ethan, you really like me, don’t you?” “Of course!” He rolled his eyes, exasperated. “I wouldn’t spend two hours buying a cake for a girl I didn’t like.” Hearing this, I smiled slowly: “Then remember this. From today on, you have a girlfriend.”
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