I Was Cut Out of the Video About My Boyfriend's Youth Chapter 1

Graduation season arrived, and my boyfriend's childhood friend, an influencer, posted a video titled "The Four of Us Through the Years."

It went viral overnight. Viewers envied the friendship the four of them had maintained for ten years, and many began shipping her with my boyfriend as childhood sweethearts.

What no one knew was that I had filmed every piece of footage and written every word.

The video was twenty minutes long, yet my name never appeared, and neither did my face.

When I asked my boyfriend why, he replied flatly, "You didn't come along until college. You weren't part of those years."

Later, I found a folder on his childhood friend's computer.

Every clip that included me had been cut out and placed inside. The folder was labeled: [Outsider in Frame.]

My boyfriend had even reminded them in their private group chat:

[Make sure you get every last bit. Don't spoil the whole 'four of us' thing.]

I didn't argue. I simply revoked their permission to use any of my footage.

If there was no room for me in their memories, then they could stop using my footage to relive them.

* * *

Xenia's POV

The moment I withdrew permission to use my footage, a notification banner appeared at the top of my phone. Nora Quinn had replied to a comment.

The top comment read: [The script and the footage work perfectly together. You can tell whoever filmed this did it with love.]

Nora responded with a shy emoji.

[Thank you! I wrote the script and filmed everything myself because I love them all so much.]

The replies were filled with people praising her talent. I stared at the words "filmed everything myself" and found the whole thing almost laughable.

I met Xavier Zimmerman during our freshman year of college. Back then, I had believed with all my heart that a relationship was between two people, but I eventually realized that Xavier came with a tight-knit trio no one else could break into.

For the first two years, I tried hard to become part of their group. They reminisced about the street behind their high school and the times they had skipped class to go to gaming cafes.

I had nothing to contribute, so all I could do was listen quietly and keep everyone's glasses filled.

At first, Xavier would take my hand and try to rescue me from the awkwardness.

"Can we stop talking about the old days all the time? Xenia has no idea what any of you are talking about."

After a while, however, Nora would tear up and ask whether she was intruding on our relationship. Xavier began letting go of my hand.

"If you always feel left out, Xenia, maybe you need to ask yourself why," he told me with a frown. "No one here is excluding you. You're just too sensitive."

It wasn't until our junior year, when Nora realized I had a talent for photography, that they finally came to me with smiles on their faces.

"Xenia, could you take a picture of us?"

From that day on, I finally found a way to belong in their group. I became their personal photographer.

Whenever we went anywhere, I carried the heaviest equipment. I either hurried ahead to find the best angle or hung back to capture candid shots.

I never complained. I was even grateful because looking through the photos was the only time they ever praised me.

"Xenia, you're amazing."

The video "The Four of Us Through the Years" really had been filmed with love. It was simply my one-sided love, poured into trying to win them over.

The memory faded as I pushed open the door to the photography studio. Xavier and Nora were sitting with their heads together, watching the viral video on the computer.

Xavier had paid to open the studio for Nora during our senior year. Yet I had handled everything, from setting up the space and purchasing the equipment to filming their daily content and planning the scripts.

All Nora had to do was put on her makeup and smile for the camera.

At the sound of the door opening, Xavier turned around and immediately frowned.

"What are you doing here?"

I walked over to them and spoke calmly.

"The video's gone viral. Aren't you going to add a note to the description crediting me for the footage?"

Xavier paused, then responded impatiently.

"Do you have to ruin the mood right now, Xenia? Wouldn't it be strange to add the name of someone who never even appears in the video?"

Beside him, Nora tugged gently at his sleeve before turning to me, her voice soft and innocent.

"You've never liked being on camera, Xenia. I assumed you wouldn't care about something as superficial as getting credit. Besides, the video's a hit. You should be happy for me."

I looked at the entitlement written across her face.

"I stayed up for three nights editing that video, and I wrote the entire script."

Xavier's expression hardened as he stepped in front of Nora.

"Does it really matter who filmed it? People care about the story of the four of us, not the photographer behind the camera. Do you have to fight over this now and embarrass Nora?"

I stood there, looking at the boyfriend I had loved for four years. In his eyes, all my hard work and everything I had done for them mattered less than Nora feeling slighted.

I nodded.

"Fine. I won't fight you over it anymore."