- 22.
“The first time I saw you, at freshman orientation, you said your name was Maya
Evans. I never forgot it…” Ethan’s story revealed a side of my younger self I hadn’t known. He’d fallen first. I was just the one who
confessed first. And my method of showing
affection had been wrong from the start. I’d
used the one thing he lacked to entice him.
That made it almost impossible for him to
speak his truth. He’d told me he liked me, many
times. But no one believed him. Everyone
assumed he was just being polite, trying to
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flatter me. Eventually, I believed it too. Even he started to believe it. Did he like me, or did he like his grandfather’s medical bills being paid? After countless taunts, countless reminders of the disparity between us, Ethan wasn’t sure himself anymore. He was torn, torturing himself day after day. Anyone could have helped him. Except me. Because money tainted everything.
Ethan hadn’t been so proud, he could have easily taken advantage of me. But he didn’t. And that’s why I loved him. Ethan picked up an orange and started slicing it methodically. I suddenly remembered our reunion at the
karaoke bar. “What did you mean by all those things you said?” “You can say things out of anger, can’t I? I thought you were bored of me, that you dumped me and disappeared for four years, like you were deliberately avoiding me… I can’t even be a little angry?” I guess he could. “But Ashley said you hated me.” “I’m sorry. That was my fault, I should have corrected her.”
Ethan finished slicing the orange, his
movements precise and deliberate. He sighed
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softly. “I thought you really…didn’t want me
anymore.” Snow fell outside, making the
apartment feel warm and cozy. At that moment,
I finally knew. Through the river of time, my boy
had finally made his way back to me.
