Chapter Twenty-Five
Sophie
My phone beeps on Saturday morning.
Then I see it’s a text from Axel.
Both my eyes pop open as my body lights up with thrill. Did he wake up early to wish me a good morning? That’s so sweet and cute.
Axel: Things are not working out. I think we should break up.
It feels like a tidal wave crashes over me, leaving me gasping for air. I blink a few times and stare at the screen, my brain not comprehending the words I’m reading. Axel is…breaking up with me?
“No, no,” I say as I start tapping out a response.
Sophie: What do you mean? What’s wrong?
It takes a while, but he finally reads my text. He doesn’t respond.
Sophie: Did I do something wrong? Shouldn’t we talk about this?
Again, he reads the text but doesn’t respond.
Sophie: I deserve an explanation, Axel.
Finally, I see that he’s responding. It takes a long time, as though he’s either texting something and erasing, or debating whether he should send it or not. In the end, his response appears on my screen.
Axel: You’re just not who I thought you were.
It feels like ice passes through my veins.
Sophie: What do you mean? I’ve always been real with you. I never lied about anything. Where is this coming from?
Again, he’s tapping out a response. And again, it takes forever to come.
Axel: I never said you did. I’m just looking for a different kind of girl.
A different kind of girl?
Axel: Look, it’s just over, okay? You didn’t do anything wrong. You’ll meet the right guy one day. Have a good life.
“I can’t believe this!” I chuck my phone on my bed, tears blurring my eyes. This can’t be real. It feels like a nightmare. Can I please wake up? I pinch myself and cry, “Ouch!”
Raven moves on her bed and groans. “What time is it?”
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”
She blinks at me before slowly sitting up. After glancing at the clock on the wall, she grimaces. “It’s okay. I was having a stupid dream anyway. You know those dreams where you say something you would never say in real life? And then it gets you into loads of trouble and…”
Her voice trails off, probably because I’m not paying attention to her.
All I’m thinking about is what I could have possibly done to cause Axel to break up with me.
I thought things were going well between us.
Was I deluding myself all this time? How could I not have seen that he wasn’t into me? It couldn’t have come out of nowhere.
“Sophie, what’s wrong?” Raven asks with deep concern.
I slowly lift my eyes to her, though it’s hard to see because of the tears. Raven gasps when she takes in my tear-stricken face. “What happened?” She crawls out of bed and dives under my blanket. “You’re scaring me.”
“Axel broke up with me,” I whisper.
She gawks at me like I told her I have two heads. “What do you mean he broke up with you?”
I stretch my hand to grab my discarded phone and show it to her. Her eyes move rapidly across the screen as she reads the texts, her jaw falling open in disbelief. “How could this be? I thought things were going well between you guys.”
“I thought so, too. Clearly, I have no clue about anything. Not about boys, not about relationships, not about romance. I’m just a big loser who should disappear from the world.” I throw my blanket over myself and smash my face into my pillow.
Raven rubs my back through the blanket. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Sophie. Axel’s a jerk for breaking up with you. He doesn’t know what he’s missing out on.”
“Obviously he does. He got to know me well enough to know he wouldn’t miss out on a thing if he let go of me.”
“Sophie, I don’t like you talking so badly about yourself. Why are you letting this guy get to you? You’re amazing. He’s the loser, not you.”
“I know you’re trying to make me feel better, but I was right all along. Real-life romance sucks compared to book romance. From now on, I’m only going to invest myself in book romance.”
I feel her get up from my bed and then she taps something on her phone. It doesn’t take a genius to know she’s asking Carly and Addie to come over. Although, it seems to be taking them longer than usual because it’s so early in the morning.
But when they do arrive, I hear Raven whisper something to them. They both gasp and ask her a million questions, their voices laced with shock.
“Did he seriously break up with her over text?” Carly demands. “How low could you go?”
“Poor Sophie.” Addie sits down near me on the bed and rubs my back. “Sophie, Carly, and I are here. Do you want to talk?”
“I want to pretend the last few days never happened.”
“That’s understandable,” Carly says as she lowers herself on my other side. “Of course you’re hurt. But you need to understand that you shouldn’t be crying over him. If he thinks he can just break up with you over text, good riddance. He doesn’t deserve someone as amazing as you.”
I uncover my face. “I appreciate you trying to make me feel better. But why did he break up with me? What did I do wrong?”
“Do you have any idea?” Raven asks as she joins us on my bed.
“No. As far as I was concerned, things were going well between us. And then he just broke up with me out of nowhere?”
Raven grabs my phone. “We’re texting him right now and demanding an explanation.”
“Raven!”
But it’s too late. She already sent the text.
“I can’t believe you did that!”
She just shrugs.
My phone beeps. I snatch it before she can read his response.
Axel: I didn’t want to be a jerk, but you insisted so here goes. I don’t want to be with you because I thought you were rich. But you’re just a scholarship student.
My eyes widen. “Is he serious?”
“What?” they ask.
Sophie: Why didn’t you break up with me after you found out? Why did you dance with me and make it seem like you were having a good time?
Axel: I would have looked bad in front of the other kids if I dumped you at the party.
I reach for my pillow and hug it to my chest, trying hard not to cry again.
“What did he say?” Raven asks.
I hold out my phone, and they bend forward to read the texts.
Carly scowls. “So the only reason he went out with you is because he thought you were rich?”
I nod, squeezing my eyes shut.
“Stupid jerk. He must have thought he could get in with the cool kids if he was your boyfriend,” Addie says. “Maybe he thought he could be popular, and then maybe one day when he was older, he could be part of the elite crowd.”
“He just used me,” I whisper.
“I’m so sorry, Sophie,” Carly says as she gathers me in her arms.
Fresh tears well up in my eyes. “I can’t believe he threw me away because I’m not rich.
That just proves he never liked me. Because if he did, it wouldn’t matter how much money I had.
No wonder he seemed excited when I first told him I go to Harrington Bay Academy.
He probably planned from the beginning to use me to get closer to the rich kids.
Everything we did together, all of our dates and discussions, they were all fake. ”
Raven and Addie wrap their arms around me, telling me how sorry they are and saying encouraging words. I feel so rotten, but having my best friends here with me makes me feel better. I have no idea what I would do without them.
“Looks like I won the challenge after all,” I say as I wipe my eyes. “Book romance is and always will be better than real-life romance.”