Tristan ventured into the woods behind the towering high school building, the same place he and Renee had once walked as students. Twigs snapped and dried leaves crunched underfoot, filling the silence with their brittle song.

He pressed deeper until the trees parted to reveal a small stream, its surface rippling under the soft breeze. The earthy scent of damp soil clung to the air as he stepped over a fallen log and finally spotted a familiar figure.

Renee sat alone on a log by the water, absently stirring the stream with a stick.

Tristan paused, watching silently. Renee stiffened, sensing him there-but just as quickly, his shoulders sank, and he relaxed.

Tristan stepped closer, stopping when Renee's voice broke the stillness.

"I knew you'd come."

That voice sent a strange calm through him, as if he were hearing it for the first time in years.

"I had to," Tristan murmured, easing down beside him. Renee didn't look at him, just kept his gaze on the water.

"Surprised it took you this long," Renee said, a faint smile playing at his lips.

"I thought you might need space," Tristan replied, watching him. The breeze tousled Renee's wavy brown hair, and he brushed it away absently.

"Yet you called. Over and over," Renee said at last, finally turning to meet Tristan's eyes.

"I was worried," Tristan admitted. "You disappeared. No calls, no word. I feared the worst."

Renee's brow furrowed slightly, though his voice stayed soft. "I just... needed time to think."

"Think about what?"

Renee hesitated before answering, his voice dropping. "About us."

Tristan blinked, confused. "Us?"

"Yeah," Renee said after a beat. "I don't think this best friends thing is going to work anymore."

The words sank like stones in Tristan's chest. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... we shouldn't see each other. We shouldn't talk anymore."

The knot in Tristan's stomach twisted painfully. "What?"

"I said," Renee began, faltering, "I don't want us to be best friends anymore-"

"I heard you," Tristan cut in, his voice tight. "Why? What did I do? Tell me!"

Renee shook his head quickly. "No. It's not you. It's just that-"

"That what?"

"I... I can't do this anymore," Renee finally stammered.

"Renee, please." Tristan's voice cracked, raw and desperate. "Help me understand. I thought we were okay. We were finally okay again. But you left with that look-"

"What look?" Renee asked, though his tone betrayed a tremor.

"That look that said you were hurt. Like I'd done something to you and didn't even know it. And it tore me apart. I didn't know why you didn't come home, or why it took you so long. Please, just tell me what I did wrong."

Renee looked away, the memory of Tristan and Nicole kissing still vivid in his mind, still sharp. He hated that it hurt so much-hated that it even mattered. Tristan didn't belong to him. Yet it still cut deep.

He thought maybe if they stayed apart, the feelings would fade. Maybe if they became strangers, the ache in his chest would stop.

He swallowed hard. "You didn't do anything wrong, Tristan. I just... need space from everything. From you too."

Tristan flinched as if struck. "From me?"

"Yes," Renee whispered. "I can't be what you expect me to be. I can't keep pretending I don't want more than this. When I saw you with Nicole, it... it hurt more than I can explain. I wish we had more time. I really do. But this-whatever this is-it's not healthy for me."

The sky above darkened, thunder rolling in the distance.

"So you want us to be strangers? Just... pretend we were never close? Because you still... feel something?"

Renee nodded once, his throat tight.

Tristan stepped closer. "I feel it too, Renee. I still feel it. Whatever we had-it's not gone. Don't do this. We can figure it out."

"No," Renee said firmly, though his hands trembled.

*"We can!" Tristan insisted. "We can work through this!"

"We can't!" Renee shot back, his voice breaking. "You don't understand how hard this already is. Being close to you but never having you-it's unbearable. Every time you're near, my heart races. It's wrong. All of it was a mistake, and we can't keep letting this go on. If we stay close, I'll only want more. And I can't have that. So this has to end here."

Rain began to fall, drenching the ground around them, but neither moved.

Tristan stepped forward anyway, gripping Renee's hand. "No. I won't accept that. Don't you dare call what we had a mistake."

Renee wrenched his hand away, his jaw tight. "One of us has to be the rational one here, Tristan. We can't let our foolishness ruin everything. We have to stop before this gets worse. Please... just let me go."

Tristan stood frozen, watching as Renee stepped back, his wet hair clinging to his face, his shoulders trembling.

"I... I can't be away from you, Renee. It... it would hurt too much."

Tristan's voice cracked as his eyes glistened, though whether it was from tears or the rain was unclear. Both of them stood there, drenched, clothes clinging to their skin, shivering more from the heaviness of the moment than the cold.

Renee turned away, raking his fingers through his wet hair. He couldn't bring himself to look at Tristan. Seeing the hurt in those warm brown eyes twisted his insides into a painful knot. He hated himself for putting that expression on Tristan's face. But he forced himself to stay strong.

"Renee..."

He finally glanced back, locking eyes with him-and damn it, how he wished he could erase that sadness, wipe it away forever.

"Please..."

"All I need from you is to accept this," Renee cut him off, his tone flat, masking the war raging inside him. "No texts, no calls. Tomorrow we'll act like everything is fine in front of everyone else. No questions, no whispers. But after that..."

He faltered for only a second before finishing, "After that, we part ways. And hopefully... everything settles down."

Tristan shook his head furiously, his chest tightening. He stepped forward, but Renee instantly retreated, holding up a hand.

"Don't come any closer. You won't change my mind," Renee warned.

Each word landed like a dagger in Tristan's heart. This wasn't what he came here for. This wasn't how it was supposed to go.

For God's sake-he'd left Nicole waiting just to find Renee and fix this, only to be blindsided by this painful rejection.

The thought of never seeing Renee again, of never hearing his laugh or teasing him or catching that subtle smile, crushed him.

Didn't Renee care? Didn't he understand how much this hurt?

Renee was driving him insane, yet he couldn't let him go. Not like this. Not without a fight.

"Renee, I can't just stop talking to you!" he burst out, his voice shaking now. "I can't stop wanting to see you, to hear you, to tease you, to... to just be with you. You can't just tell me to turn it off-it's not fair!"

And then, finally, Renee snapped.

"Not fair?" His voice was sharp, cutting through the sound of the rain like a whip.

He took a step closer this time, his own composure fracturing.

"You think this is fair? You think it's easy for me to stand here and shove this down my throat? To see you with someone else, knowing I can never have you? Do you know what it's like, Tristan? To smile and pretend it doesn't hurt? To go home and sit in the dark because seeing you happy with her tears me apart? You're angry because it hurts to let me go-but try living with this every damn day. So don't tell me what's fair."

Tristan flinched at the rawness in his tone, his breath hitching. He'd never heard Renee speak like that before.

But even as he lashed out, Renee's expression hardened again, as though he'd sealed himself shut.

"Please, Tristan. Don't text me. Don't call. Don't come see me anymore," Renee said quietly, but firmly, as if every word cost him something.

And Tristan could feel it. He could feel the weight behind every syllable, how much Renee was fighting to keep this wall between them.

He wanted to argue. He wanted to scream. But he knew Renee-when he made up his mind, nothing would move him.

So he just stood there, drenched and defeated. His heart felt like it was collapsing in his chest.

Finally, he nodded. Weakly.

"Okay," he whispered.

Renee studied him for a long moment, his own expression slipping just for an instant. A tiny part of him wished Tristan would fight harder, say something to break his resolve. But deep down, he knew even if Tristan resisted, he'd still force this to end.

It had to end.

He couldn't let himself fall any deeper.

"Thanks," Renee muttered at last. "For... understanding. I hope you do."

But Tristan's broken voice answered back, "I don't want this."

"I know," Renee said, his own voice cracking despite himself. "I'm sorry."

And then he turned, backing away slowly before finally walking off into the rain, his heart clutched painfully in his chest.

Tristan just stood there, staring at his retreating figure, feeling like the entire world was pressing down on his shoulders.

When Renee disappeared from view, Tristan finally sat on the log where they'd talked, utterly drained.

The words replayed in his mind again and again.

"Renee left me."

It shouldn't hurt this much.

But it did.

God, it hurt so damn much.