Somewhere deep in Roman's ego—or maybe his heart—he thought that if anyone were to end up with Tabitha, it would've been him.
After all, wasn't that how these stories went? Bully-turned-lover. Redemption arcs. Slow-burn pining. Mutual growth.
Except . . . she had rewritten her story. And she had left him out of it.
Which might've been easier to swallow if Gwendolyn wasn't also doing the exact same thing.
She was avoiding him like the plague. Ducking out of hallways. Blocking his number. Ignoring his attempts to talk, text, even just say hi. Roman had expected her to be shaken, sure—things between them had escalated quickly. But what he hadn't expected . . . was distance.
Most girls—he hated how confident this thought came to him—fell harder after intimacy. Especially the first time.
Especially after he took their virginity.
And yet, Gwendolyn had done the exact opposite.
She withdrew.
