Now
GRAYSON
Violet Prescott is standing in front of me.
My Violet.
Well, she used to be my Violet.
Now, she’s just the girl who broke my heart into a million pieces.
I feel like I took a time machine back to high school, but she doesn’t look anything like she did back then. Well, she does, but somehow she’s gotten more beautiful.
Her blonde hair is framing her face, the same way it used to. She’s wearing a gray sports bra and jean shorts that hug her thighs just right.
There’s a part of me that wants to kiss her and another part of me that wants her to leave and never come back.
I can’t get over what she did to me, but I haven’t stopped thinking about her. It’s frustrating and maddening.
She’s staring at me with those ocean blue eyes of hers. There the same eyes I got hypnotized by when we were teenagers.
Goddammit, why can’t I stop staring at her lips?
“Vi,” I say through a broken breath.
She comes closer to me. “Are you okay? It looks like you saw a ghost or something.”
I see a beautiful ghost that’s been haunting me for the past six years, but she’s not a ghost at all. She’s a human being.
I run over to get the basketball I was using before it disappears underneath a row of bleachers. “What the hell are you doing here?”
“I came here because you deserve to know the truth about what happened all those years ago, and I’m sorry it took me so long to come and talk to you.”
A laugh that reeks of sarcasm escapes my lips.
I can’t believe she decides to show up today out of all days. We’re practicing for our homecoming game, which is a week away. Coach Taylor emphasized to us that distractions aren’t allowed.
Yet here I am, with the biggest and prettiest distraction I could ever have.
Being Captain of SCU’s basketball team isn’t a walk in the park. It comes with a ton of responsibility, such as managing a bunch of horny dumbasses. Don’t get me wrong, I love these guys. Sometimes they make me want to lock them in a room for a timeout, but we’re family.
“You deserve to know why things ended with us in the way that they did. I know how hard this is for you, me coming here without any notice.”
“You have no idea what I went through after you abandoned me, Violet. Please don’t try to sympathize or pity me.”
“I would never do that. Also, I do know some of what you went through. Noah told me.”
That son of a bitch.
I’m going to kick his ass when I get back to the apartment later. He’s not going to know what hit him until my fist comes into contact with his face.
“I’m so fucking confused right now.”
“I’ve been in contact with him for the past six years. We text, call, and FaceTime. I wanted to know how you were doing and what you were up to.”
“Why didn’t you reach out to me?”
“I couldn’t.”
“What do you mean by you couldn’t? It’s not that hard to pick up your phone and text, call, or FaceTime me.”
“It’s not that simple, Gray. And you could’ve reached out to me, too.”
“Okay, explain it to me then. I’m all ears.” I sit down on one of the chairs closest to the court.
“You know we’re going to be here for a while, right?”
“I know.” My voice strains.
“Where do you want to start on our trip down memory lane?”
“High school. Sophomore year. Your family’s annual Halloween party.”
“Why do you want to start there?”
“It’s when I fell in love with you, and sometimes I still think about that night.”
She moves a stray tendril behind her ear, bringing her legs into her chest. “Oh.”
The only part of sophomore year I can remember clearly is falling in love with Violet. Everything else is a total blur. It’s not because I don’t want to remember it.
It’s because I genuinely don’t remember anything, except for the moments I shared with her.