• Chapter 19

  • Chapter 19

  • I accepted admission to Stanford, moving with my family to Palo Alto.

  • When I heard Zephyr had managed to get into UC Davis after all, I simply nodded, unsurprised.

  • Despite everything ugly between us, we’d known each other most of our lives.

  • I was genuinely glad he’d found his way back to a better path.

  • For his sake and his parents‘. But Stanford and Davis- One in Silicon Valley, one in the Central Valley. Different worlds, different futures, different lives.

  • I spent the entire summer traveling, exploring national parks and cities I’d never seen.

  • It wasn’t until welcome week that I heard from old classmates: Zephyr had been frantically searching for me all summer.

  • I hadn’t shared my location with anyone from high school. I

  • ‘d made sure my parents understood the full situation to prevent any accidental information leaks.

  • But somehow, he still managed to find me on campus during the first week of classes.

  • Zephyr looked rough–his usually perfect hair unwashed, dark circles under bloodshot eyes, clothes wrinkled like he’d slept in them.

  • A year ago, I would have found his disheveled appearance heart–wrenching.

  • Now I just noticed how ordinary he looked without his carefully maintained image.

  • still glanced his way, but with confusion

  • What are you doing here?” I

  • looked down at me, desperation in

  • word. You can’t

  • 44.4%

  • Chapter 19

  • Davis together. I busted my ass to get in. Why aren’t you

  • I made

  • “Phoebe, you can’t

  • throwing away thirteen years over one bad patch.”

  • broke up with Katherine, cut off Derek and Mason and all those guys, quit drinking, haven’t touched a cigarette in months–I

  • but mild annoyance at the interruption to my

  • all things you should have done for yourself, not for me.”

  • Katherine. I genuinely don’t care about your

  • anymore.”

  • stung him.

  • help me

  • begging, I’ll do it right here in front of everyone.

  • take…”

  • been through, don’t I deserve one more

  • can’t sleep, can’t focus–I need you back in my

  • childhood stuffed animals–the rabbit and dog–holding them out like

  • I’ll spend forever making

  • didn’t reach for them, just replied quietly: “Some things can’t be fixed with

  • you’re sorry, I can’t forget what

  • me, treating my body like a convenience, laughing about me with your friends,

  • of Velvet

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