I'm just standing there. Staring at her like an idiot as she rattles off all of the supposed reasons why she's about to walk away.

Just like I just stood there before everything changed. In the hospital hallway as she listed all of the reasons why she had "a thing" for me. This beautiful girl, spilling her secrets and her heart all over the floor at my feet. I could almost feel them dripping onto the toes of my boots. Could almost see them swirling in the air from her pretty lips to my deaf ears before falling.

And now, even after everything has changed, I just stand there and let her lie to me.

"Being with you is a reminder of all the horrible things we did." No.

"We're better off as friends." Wrong.

"I think I just need to be alone for a while." Please don't do this.

But I don't say anything. She tells her little lies and then spins on her little heels and walks away. And I don't stop her. Because I never stop her. I'm bad at this part these days. Staying. Chasing. Opening myself up and laying in wait for pain.

She's gone now. And it doesn't feel real. Just like it didn't feel real back at the start. When she was desperately trying to write the beginning of our love story. Showering me with undeserved compliments that just seemed to bounce off of me and pool at my feet.

It had seemed too simple. To love someone because they bring you happiness and comfort. Too easy. Not painful enough. I couldn't seem to make sense of it, so I excused it as friendship, let it slip by unnoticed, let it get away from me before I even had it.

Every word out of her mouth and her dramatic exit was Oscar-worthy. She was a drama major, after all. Educated in the art of telling lies. I just had never been on the receiving end of it from her before. It hadn't felt real as she'd walked away. Because it wasn't real. This wasn't over. This hadn't even begun.

Surprising even me, my feet sprung into action. Carrying me toward the corner, jogging toward the girl who so desperately needed to be chased for a change. And I couldn't help but feel like I was running toward my future. And for the first time in so long, everything felt real.