CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE #3
“I heard her,” his mother replied.
“So she broke up with me,” Wes insisted.
His mother sat in the chair across from him. “She said it after you announced that the two of you were already over.”
Wes shook his head. “She made it official,” Wes said.
“What did you think your video did?” his mother asked.
“I said what happened,” Wes replied.
“You said you weren’t together anymore,” his mother reminded him.
“Because I thought we weren’t,” Wes said.
His mother nodded slowly. “Now you aren’t,” his mother said.
Wes looked back at Bee’s frozen face on the screen. Hearing his mother say it plainly made his stomach twist.
He pressed play again. Bee told people not to attack him. She refused to show screenshots or share their private conversations.
“Some things were ours,” Bee said in the video.
Wes swallowed. Bee was protecting what remained private between them.
“If you like Wes, keep liking Wes,” Bee continued. “If you support him, keep supporting him.”
His mother watched his face. Bee reached the part that hurt worse than the breakup announcement.
“I hope Wes heals,” Bee said.
Wes stared at her. Bee still wanted him to heal.
“I hope he gets back to work,” Bee continued.
His throat tightened. She still wanted him to return to the work he loved.
“I hope he gets another truck he loves as much as the last one,” Bee said.
Wes looked down. The kindness in her words made the final boundary hurt more.
“I’m done talking about him,” Bee said.
His mother stayed quiet while the rest of Bee’s video played. Wes listened as Bee told people not to ask about him under videos about coffee or Grandma. She mentioned shopping and broken carts too.
Then came Bee’s final boundary. Wes looked back at the screen.
“My page existed before Wes,” Bee said. “It will exist after him.”
Wes stared at the screen. Bee was taking her page back from everything they had made public.
The video ended. Wes did not move. His mother let the silence settle before speaking.
“She didn’t attack you,” his mother said.
“I know,” Wes replied.
“She could have told them a lot more,” his mother said.
“I know,” Wes repeated.
“She kept the private things private,” his mother pointed out.
Wes’s jaw tightened. “I know,” Wes said.
“She told them not to attack you,” his mother added.
“I heard the video, Mom,” Wes said.
His mother studied him. “Then hear what she was actually saying,” his mother said.
“I did hear her,” Wes replied.
“No, you heard the part where she said you’re officially broken up,” his mother said. “You stopped listening to everything else after that.”
Wes looked at her. His mother’s expression softened.
“You told the internet you were over before you and Bee agreed you were over,” his mother said.
“I thought she ended it,” Wes replied.
His mother shook her head. “You wanted to believe she ended it,” his mother said.
“That’s not fair,” Wes said.
His mother sighed. “There’s that sentence again,” his mother said.
Wes rubbed his good hand over his face. “Can you not do this right now?” Wes asked.
“I’m not trying to fight with you,” his mother replied.
“She just told everybody we’re officially broken up,” Wes said.
His mother nodded. “Because you made a video first,” his mother said.
Wes stared at her. “So this is still my fault?” Wes asked.
“I didn’t say that,” his mother replied.
“It sounds like you did,” Wes said.
His mother leaned back in the chair. “You wanted the internet involved. Now the internet is involved,” his mother said.
Wes looked down at his phone and opened Bee’s page again. Her video was gaining views faster than his breakup announcement. The comments were divided. One username caught his attention.
@sarahlee: I still understand Wes’s side. He was trying to save the relationship. Now everybody is acting like caring enough to show up makes him the bad guy.
For the first time, Sarahlee’s defense did not make Wes feel better. Her comment sounded like the story he had wanted people to believe a day earlier. Wes scrolled farther.
@livvyrose: Nobody said caring was wrong. Bee asked for time. Those are different things.
Another comment appeared beneath it. This one made Wes stop.
@rachaelw_22: The saddest part is that neither of them seemed to want a breakup until the internet got involved.
Wes read the comment twice. The words settled somewhere uncomfortable because he could not argue with them.
His mother watched him from across the room but did not ask what he was reading. She seemed to understand there was nothing left to say.
Wes locked the screen and placed the phone beside him.
Yesterday, he wanted people to understand that Bee had hurt him.
Now thousands of people believe exactly that.
It was over. Wes leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes.
For the first time, he could not tell himself that Bee had done all of this to him. He had helped make it happen.
His mother stood so quickly that the legs of the chair scraped against the floor. Her coffee remained on the table while she stared at Wes.
“Now do you understand what you did?” his mother asked.
“Yeah,” Wes replied.