Say goodbye to the past Chapter 1

The day our final high school grades were released, Reina threw a huge celebration party for Alex.

But she didn't invite me.

Later, when her meticulously planned drone light show over the Hudson River made local headlines, I quietly changed my college application from Columbia to NYU.

Eighteen years of being inseparable, and in the end, I lost out to the new guy. I never thought the person I would lose to would be the underprivileged student I had personally vouched for.

And this time, I don’t think I can ever forgive Reina.

* * *

I only found out about the party because someone in our class group chat accidentally posted and then quickly deleted a video.

The moment Alex saw his grades, he let out a whoop of joy and swept Reina into a massive hug. "Reina! I can go to Columbia with you!"

Reina didn't push him away. She just smiled and slipped a wristband with a small, silver "King" charm onto his wrist. "Congratulations," she said.

In the background of the noisy video, our classmates were all cheering for him. It felt less like a celebration of his grades and more like they were celebrating him and Reina finally getting together.

And there I was, staring at my phone, the punchline to a joke I didn't even know I was in.

I hesitated for a second, then called her. After two rings, a voice I didn't expect answered. It was Alex.

"Hey, Liam. Reina's in the bathroom. She's been running around all night planning this party for me, this is the first break she's had." He paused, realizing his mistake. "Actually, I told her to invite you, but she said you might be bummed about your scores, so she didn't want to bother you."

"I'll have her call you back, okay?"

"Whoa..." I heard him gasp, like he had just seen something incredible.

I didn't care what it was. "Don't bother," I said, my voice flat. "You guys have fun."

I hung up. A local news notification popped up on my phone. A drone show over the Hudson. When I saw the image of the drones spelling out "CONGRATULATIONS ALEX - COLUMBIA BOUND," I understood his gasp. A gesture that grand, that public… what guy wouldn't fall for that?

I glanced at my computer screen. A perfect 1600. I had worked my ass off for the past six months. I could get into Columbia, no problem. I could get into any school I wanted.

Once, going to Columbia together was our plan, our promise. After Reina got in through early decision, that promise became a heavy weight on my shoulders, making every practice test a source of anxiety.

But now, it seemed like I was the only one who even remembered that promise. And there was no point in keeping it anymore.