POV: Ava Mitchell
Letting go was never something I thought I'd have to do. Not with Liam. Not with the boy I once dreamt of being with. But after everything—after all the pain and the truth I'd come to realize—it was the only choice left.
The day after I deleted our conversations, I woke up with a strange sense of clarity. The kind that comes when you realize you've been holding on to something that was never yours to keep. The weight on my chest had lifted, and I felt… lighter.
I wasn't crying anymore. I wasn't wishing for a future that would never come. I had made a decision, and I had to stick with it. It was time for me to move forward.
The first step was disconnecting. I knew it was going to be hard, but I had to stop being the girl who was always there for him. I had to stop letting his presence in my life distract me from my own healing process.
But I couldn't just cut him off entirely. He was still my friend, and deep down, I knew that's all I was ever going to be to him. So I decided to start slow.
I unfollowed him on social media. I made sure that his posts no longer popped up in my feed, taunting me with reminders of what could have been. It wasn't about jealousy anymore. It was about taking control of my own heart, even if it meant sacrificing the connection we once had.
I also told Riley—my best friend, the one who knew everything about my feelings for Liam. She was supportive, as always, even if she didn't fully understand the extent of my emotional attachment to him. She was the first person I reached out to after the conversation with Liam.
"Ava, are you sure about this?" Riley asked one night while we were on a video call.
"I have to be," I said, my voice steady, though the ache in my chest was still there. "I can't keep holding on to something that's not mine. I'll never get over it if I don't let go."
She nodded, though I could tell she was concerned. "I just don't want you to hurt yourself more."
"I won't," I promised. "I'm tired of hoping for something that's never going to happen."
It was a hard truth to swallow, but it was the truth nonetheless.
In the days that followed, I started focusing more on myself. On my healing. On the things I had ignored for so long because I had been so wrapped up in Liam.
I spent more time with my family. I started drawing again, something I hadn't done since my brother's passing. I even went back to volunteering at the local animal shelter, something I had always enjoyed but had pushed aside in my emotional turmoil.
But most importantly, I learned how to stand on my own. I learned how to be okay without him.
I started talking to new people, getting to know others in a way that didn't feel like I was constantly comparing them to Liam. It felt strange at first, but in a good way. For the first time in a long while, I felt like I could breathe again.
Then, one afternoon, as I sat in the park sketching, I saw a familiar face. It was him—Liam. He was walking with his girlfriend, looking happy, as he always did when he was with her. They were laughing, and for a moment, I couldn't tear my eyes away.
But then I remembered. I remembered what I had to do.
I took a deep breath and forced myself to look away.
It didn't hurt anymore.
I didn't feel that crushing disappointment. I didn't feel the longing that used to consume me.
Instead, I felt something else.
Freedom.
For the first time in a long time, I wasn't tied to the hope that one day Liam would choose me. I wasn't holding on to a version of him that never existed. I was looking at my own future, and for once, I didn't need him to complete it.
I gathered my things and walked away from the park, a quiet smile on my face. There was a new chapter ahead of me.
One where I wasn't defined by my past. One where I wasn't waiting for someone who wasn't waiting for me.
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