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this time and didn’t tell him. My chest began to get tight, as if someone were digging a bolder into my sternum. I clutched my middle, grasping at my shirt. Curling up in a ball on my bed, I gave in to the pain and sobbed. Blaine and I are just friends. That is all we will ever be .

     

Chapter 12
    The next day, I kept my plans with Blaine and Jared and headed over to Blaine’s house. We played video games, joked around, laughed, and ate pizza. I kept up a front of everything being normal to avoid having to drop the news on them both that night. I wanted the night to be special. It wouldn’t be if I added my moving drama to the mix. So I was surprised when, after Jared walked out the front door to go home, Blaine asked me, “All right, Laquin, what’s up?” Looking down at me, he wasn’t buying my act. With an anguished sigh, my lip began to quiver. I don’t know what compelled me to do it, but I threw my face into Blaine’s shirt and bawled for what seemed like forever. In response, he just wrapped his arms around me and combed his fingers through my hair. I felt so safe, so warm, in his arms. Finally, when I was sure I could hold my composure, I pulled back. “Sorry,” I sniffled, wiping my eyes with the back of my hand.
    “Wanna talk about it?” Blaine offered, guiding me back into the family room.
    I plopped myself onto one end of the sofa, and Blaine sat on the opposite end. Looking up, my gaze met him square in the face, and I told him everything.
    It came as a shock for Blaine too, but he seemed to be handling it well. I guess while consoling me he had managed to talk himself down as well. Or maybe he was glad I was moving. Surely it couldn’t be that. He was giving me a speech that was more grown up than I would have thought Blaine was capable of, but he was. When he was finally finished, we agreed that I would tell the rest of our group tomorrow at Lingo’s, so there wouldn’t be a scene. It would be easier for me having to make the announcement in public. I would be less likely to cry with a crowd full of people around me.
    And so that next day, we carried out our plan. It would have gone perfectly had it not been for the fact that we had no idea Crystal wasn’t afraid to cry in public. We spent most of the lunch consoling her. She finally left with Jared, eyes red and swollen.
    The next couple of weeks were a blur. Blaine and Jared had postponed their camping trip for the week after I left, so they could get as much time with me as possible before the move. Blaine made sure my last couple of days were packed full of activities, so I wouldn’t have time to think about leaving my friends. We went indoor rock climbing, hiked on the trails, visited the zoo, and played Frisbee golf. We would have been in a paintball war if Jared hadn’t pulled his hamstring during our hike. The “fearsome foursome” had never had so much fun before, and we were all exhausted by the end of each night. It was the best sendoff anyone could be privileged to get.
    ***
    On my last night, Blaine had nothing planned because I had to finish packing up my stuff for our trip early the next morning. So, while I was stuffing my clothes into a big brown box, I was surprised to hear the doorbell at 9 pm. Hearing muffled conversation out in the hall, then a knock on my bedroom door, I opened to find Blaine standing on the other side. His face looked ragged, and there was pain in his eyes. He was gripping two envelopes so hard they were crinkling in his palms. He smoothed them out and handed them to me, slowly. “These are for you. I won’t be there in the morning when you leave. I think it is better that way. Everything I want to tell you is in this letter.” He pointed to the envelope marked “READ NOW.” Then he pointed to the envelope marked in bold red lettering “DO NOT OPEN UNTIL MARCH 12, 2013 @ 5AM.” Okay, that is a little exact .
    Before I could say anything, he rushed down the hallway and out the front door. A