Page 6 - My FlipBook

Eric Walters

Ella had been my best friend from seventh grade on. She
always spoke in rapid bursts, usually ending in an exclama-
tion mark. It was one of her best features. And one of her most
annoying ones. Not that I’d ever let her know I felt that way.
“Hey, Soph, hey, Ella,” Luke said as he joined us.
I threw an arm around him. He’d been my boyfriend for
part of my junior year and through the entire senior year. Ella
didn’t like him and wasn’t afraid to say that to me—or to him.
She didn’t care what he thought of her. She was fearless about
things like that. Again, both refreshing and at times annoying.
“Can we talk?” Luke asked me.
“Sure.”
“Privately.”
I looked at Ella. “Hey, no worries,” she said. “I’m always
willing to go someplace where Luke is not.”
“Charming, as always,” Luke said.
“Not trying, as always.” Ella walked away and joined in
the celebration around us.
Luke took me by the hand and led me into an empty class-
room, closing the door behind us. I could still hear the cele-
bration outside.
“I’m not sure how to say this,” Luke said.
“What are you trying to do, break up with me?” I joked.
And then I saw the look on his face, and I stopped smiling.
“You’re breaking up with me?”
He nodded. “I’ve wanted to tell you for a while, but there
just wasn’t—”

“You’ve wanted to break up with me for a while?”
“I’ve been thinking about it for a few weeks, but I was
waiting for the right time,” he said.

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