Prologue

Sequel to 'Private Lessons' but can be read as a stand-alone also.

"Always and forever?" I asked, gazing into his crystal blue eyes and he held my hand, giving it a slight squeeze.

"Always and forever, Lu." Theo gave me one of his dashing smiles and I grinned widely, tucking my hair behind my ears shyly.

Theodore Phillips was 14 years old and I was 13. Even though we went to different schools and our houses weren't nearby, we were always together. He was my best friend in the whole wide world and we knew everything about each other but little did I know about the disaster that was going to happen later that day that would break us apart. 

"I'll be right back. My friends are at my house waiting for me." He stood up and started to dust his pants while I remained seated on the muddy grounds of our nearby park with a slight pout on my face. 

"Ugh! This is the third time, Theo." I sighed, trying not to sound desperate. 

"I promise you, I'll be back this time in 10 minutes max." He assured me and I looked up at him.

"Promise?"

"I promise." He grinned, playfully tousling my hair, and jogged towards the entrance of the park while I pulled out my favorite Nancy Drew novel and started to read, resting back against the bark of the tree. 

Time flew by and yet he was nowhere to be seen. I tried to remain as calm as possible. It was almost two hours but I didn't give up. He promised me and I knew he wouldn't break his promise. Maybe he was caught up somewhere. I tried to convince myself but as hours passed by, I knew he wasn't going to come back and it was going to be just like the other two times when he stood up on me. Tears brimmed my eyelids and I stood up to pack my things as it was getting dark. I walked towards my bicycle and started to ride it towards the direction of his house. 

This was the third time I was being stood up and I wasn't going to take this anymore. Once I reached his house, I got down and walked towards the door to ring the doorbell.

"Lucy? What are you doing here at this time, dear?" Mrs. Philip, his mother gasped as soon as she opened the door and looked at the clock behind her. It was 8 pm and I knew it was a school night. My mom would freak out more than her if she knows I drove all the way to his house all alone at this time of the night. 

"It's okay, Mrs. Philips. I'm here to see Theodore. Is he here?" I asked, trying to maintain a straight face even though I was fuming with rage inside.

"Yeah, he is in his room with his frie--." I rushed inside even before she could complete her sentence while she gave me a confused look. I have been in his house and in his room a million times to know exactly what he was doing with his friends right now.

"I'm gonna call your mom and let her know that you are here." His mother called out while I made my way towards his room. I stopped dead on my tracks when I heard his voice. 

"It's all good, bro." 

"Dude, you said you had to leave nearly four hours back. Lucy must be waiting for you."

It was his friend's voice. 

"Fuck! Is it really four hours? Well, she would understand, Mike. She can never stay mad at me. Now, focus on the game, will you?" He yelled and I could hear the shooting sounds from his video game through the door.

What the hell?

I wiped away my tears angrily and turned back. I was so done with him and his friendship. He was not going to take me for granted anymore.

"Lucy? What happened?" His mom asked as soon as she saw me rushing towards the door. I tried to hide my face and took a deep breath before responding to her.

"I'm fine, Mrs. Philips. Can you please pass on a message to Theo for me?" I asked, turning around to face her.

"Sure, dear."

"Tell him that I never want to see his face ever again and we are done," I stated in a cold voice and rushed out of the door before she could ask me any more questions. I got on my bicycle and started to ride, crying all the way back to my house.

Halfway through the ride, I could hear a familiar voice calling out my name from behind. I turned around to find him, pedaling his bicycle swiftly, rushing towards me. I stopped immediately and got down from my seat.

"Lucy!" He kept yelling and I squeezed my eyes shut to hold back my tears before turning around to face him.

"My mom said you came home and said something weird. Why didn't you see me?" he asked, out of breath, and got down from his seat.

"Screw you, Theo. Just forget it. I don't want to talk to you anymore." I spat at him angrily and he gave me a confused look.

"Are you seriously mad because I didn't come back?" he asked and I shook my head, letting out a small laugh.

"Yes, I'm mad because you bailed on me, not for the first time, Theo but for the third time. I'm sorry if it's not a big deal to you and I'm being dramatic." 

"Come on, Lu. I lost track of time. I'm sorry." He tried to convince me and came closer but I stepped back, holding my hand in front of him.

"Don't. Just don't." I stopped him, wiping my tears, "It's always going to be like this, Theo. You have found new friends and I get it, they are more important to you than me. I can't let you take me for granted anymore. I don't deserve this and you clearly don't deserve my friendship." I rushed out and walked towards my bicycle.

"So that's it? You are going to walk away from me? What about our always and forever pact?"

"Always and forever?" I scoffed, rubbing my nose with the back of my sleeve, and continued, "Another one of your fake promises. We are no longer friends so you don't have to make me any more fake promises." I stated bluntly and could see the hurt expression on his face.

"You know what? Fine but don't come running back to me when you need a friend because we are done just like you said." He yelled after me while I shook my head and kept riding my bike. 

I lost my best friend that day because of my anger and his ignorance. I know I over-reacted but he hurt me so much that I couldn't control myself. He didn't value me as much as I valued him. 

And with that, our friendship was officially screwed that day!