22. MR. OBLIVIOUS
Chapter 22
MR. OBLIVIOUS
Dylan
The reunion slowly comes to an end, although it takes everything in me not to leave after that encounter with Jenna. Her words keep ringing in my head. She didn’t cheat on me… it was all because she needed to leave Hartlow…
I believe her, and now I feel stupid and horrible for all the words I spewed at her. I was so angry every time I remember that she cheated with Paul but she never did. Worse, I never gave her the benefit of doubt. Why did I not stop to ask? Why did she have to take such a desperate measure? My heart throbs with pain in my chest.
I kick a bottle lying on the ground with more force than necessary, sending it flying in the distance. The sound of the bottle as it hits the floor is the sound that cuts through the night.
Maggie coughs beside me, wrapping her arms around herself. I shrug off my jacket and wrap it around her.
She glances up at me with a tentative smile. “Thanks.”
We've been walking side by side for a few minutes, the silence stretching between us, every footstep heavy with the things we’re not saying.
Her presence beside me feels... off. Something's shifted; something's changed since the kiss. I can feel it in the way her breath comes too fast, uneven.
And it’s awkward.
It’s late by the time we reach Maggie’s front steps. The porch light spills over us, casting shadows across her face, but I can still see the tightness in her expression. The corner of her mouth trembles like she’s holding something back.
“Thanks for walking me home,” she says quietly, her voice barely a whisper. She stands there for a moment, fidgeting with her keys.
“Sure thing,” I reply, trying to sound casual, but my voice comes out flat, like I’m a million miles away.
“Are you not going to ask me why I kissed you?” Her voice sounds small.
“Why did you, Maggie?”
“You’re such a damn—” She catches herself and lets out a breath.
“Good night, Maggie.”
Before I can turn to leave, Maggie moves closer. I can feel the warmth of her body against mine, and then her hand is on my arm, gripping tightly.
“Dylan, wait.”
Her voice is different now—urgent, almost pleading. She steps in closer, and before I can process what’s happening, her lips brush against mine, soft yet insistent. For a second, I freeze, my brain scrambling to catch up with reality.
I gently push her back, my hands on her shoulders, keeping a distance between us. "Maggie, what are you doing?"
Our gaze meets, and hers is dark with something raw and broken. I’ve never seen her like this before—never seen this side of her. There’s pain etched across her face, deep and real, like I’ve hurt her in a way I don’t understand. She backs away, her lips trembling.
“Why, Dylan?” Her voice cracks. She lifts her hands and shoves me in the chest once, twice. Not hard, but enough to make my heart lurch. “Why are you so blind? Why won't you notice me? Why can't give me a chance?”
I just stand there, stunned. I don’t know what to say or what to do. I grab her hands. “What are you talking about Maggie?”
“Why can't you forget Jenna and love me? Why don't you see how much I want you? I’ve been in love with you my whole life,” she sobs, her words spilling out between gasping breaths. “And you don’t even see me, Dylan.” She sobs brokenly.
“What?”
“It’s always been her for you. You’re so blind that even when I told you about the dumb fool I was in love with who didn't notice me, you still couldn’t put two and two together.”
She cups my face in her hands as tears stream down her face. “Why can't it be me, Dylan? I hate that I’m being this way, but I’ve kept my feelings bottled up for years, hoping that one day you’ll see me but you never did.”
I feel like the world tilts beneath me, the ground slipping away as her confession sinks in. Maggie... loves me? I stare at her, dumbfounded, trying to piece it all together. How? When did this happen? Maggie is not only one of my closest friends, but she’s like family to me.
“Maggie, I... I didn’t know.”
“Of course you didn’t,” she snaps, wiping her face with the back of her hand, angry now, her voice shaking with frustration. “You don't even realize that you’ve kept your heart locked away for someone else. For her.”
She’s pacing now, her words rushing out faster than I can keep up with, each one hitting me harder than the last.
“I hate myself for loving you, you know that?” Maggie’s voice cracks again, and she’s crying harder now, her sobs ragged and raw. “I hate that I’ve spent years watching you long for her, pretending it’s fine, pretending I’m fine.
And now that she’s in town, seeing the way you can’t keep your eyes of her... God! I hate that I can’t stop loving you, no matter how much it hurts.”
“Maggie, I’m sorry...” My voice is barely a whisper, and it feels useless, like it doesn’t even matter anymore. She shakes her head, her eyes red and swollen, refusing to look at me.
“You can't love me, and I have to accept that,” she says, her voice hollow now, defeated.
Her words echo in the air between us, like the sound of a door slamming shut. I feel a deep ache in my chest, an emptiness that I didn’t expect. I care about Maggie; I do, but not like this. Not the way she wants me to.
There’s nothing left to say. Nothing I can do to make this better. So, I just stand there, watching as Maggie crumples in on herself, her shoulders shaking with silent sobs. After what feels like an eternity, she turns and walks inside, the door closing softly behind her.
I don’t move. I can’t. My mind is spinning, my thoughts a tangled mess of guilt, confusion, and something else I can’t quite place. Maggie’s words keep echoing in my head, looping over and over again until they blur together.
Love. Hate. Jenna.
Jenna.
Somehow, it always leads back to her.
Before I know it, my feet are moving, carrying me away from Maggie’s house, down the quiet streets. The night is silent; the only sound is my footsteps on the pavement. I don’t know where I’m going, but somehow, I arrive at Jenna’s place.
The lights are still on when I get there, a soft glow filtering through the curtains. I stop at the edge of her driveway, my heart pounding in my chest, my breath coming in short, uneven gasps.
I could knock. I could walk up to her door and tell her everything—about Maggie, about how confused I am, about the way my head is spinning with all of this. But I don’t.
I just stand there, staring at her house, my mind racing.
It’s all too much. Too complicated. Too messy. I can’t make sense of it. I don’t even know what I’m feeling anymore.
After a few minutes, I turn around, my feet carrying me away from Jenna’s house, back toward the empty streets.
The night air is cool, prickling my skin through my thin shirt, but the chill is nothing compared to the knot twisting in my gut.
Maggie loves me. Has always loved me. How could I have missed all the signs. How could I have not known?
Then there’s Jenna. The girl I once loved completely but broke my heart.
Can I trust her with it again? or will she break it all over again.