Chapter 221: A True Story
** Harper ** Under her palm, his heart skipped a beat.
"He was her first crush." Harper didn’t pause to give him a break. "One that lasted years. She never told anyone about it, keeping it a precious secret that belonged only to herself, letting those delicate feelings in her heart grow with her as she aged. She called him on every major holiday, every birthday, and whenever she did, the sound of his voice would keep her happy for a whole week. By the time she was done with high school, she made it her goal to go to the same college he went to, so that they would have one more thing in common when they met again as adults. When he invited her to his graduation ceremony on the day she received her acceptance offer, she thought that all the stars had finally aligned."
Eli’s heartbeat was racing now. Harper hoped that she wasn’t starting to blush herself, and she tried to hide it by pressing her cheek to his chest.
It was just a little embarrassing, to talk about her teenage crush out in the open like this. But at the same time, it felt nice. Cathartic and freeing. She had never put those hidden feelings into words, and she was glad that the first time she did, it was in front of him.
"However ... The story didn’t end there in a Happily Ever After." She let out a soft sigh, getting to the real part of the tale that was the answer to his questions. "On the day of the boy’s graduation, the girl picked her dress so very carefully, wanting to give him a lovely impression the first time they saw each other again after so long. But what she didn’t expect ... was to be introduced to his girlfriend the moment she saw him.
"She was a gorgeous young woman. Tall, radiant, with glamorous blonde hair and striking blue eyes. She looked so perfect standing next to the boy — who was now a handsome man with an immaculately polished, charismatic air — and the girl looked at herself, thinking back about her plain face untouched by makeup, her simple canvas shoes, her ugly pajamas that she used to wear all the time while lounging on the couch playing games with her best friend ..."