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“How can you know if you don’t give ood one, I pro I was a fool who retted every day since…”

“I don’t… I…” Her breath rushes out as she brings her hands to my chest and pushes “I need some space Please”

I sit back, rolling ontothe loss of her warut

For all I know this ht be the last time I’ll ever touch Lark

I orried about her being with soh I don’t see a ring on her finger—not that she would hate ive me a chance to explain

Iht she’d hearperson She didn’t hold a grudge She didn’t even get er passed like a su the air cleaner when it was gone

But this isn’t the Lark I knew, I think, as I watch her sit up and brush the grass off her dress This is the Lark I left behind, the Lark I hurt in a way she’d never been hurt before

Lark has a wonderful farew up in a safe, happy ho that ever happened was a scraped knee or one of her sisters not getting picked for the cheer squad Her heart was innocent, trusting She had absolutely no frame of reference for the kind of pain that wouldhe wanted ht to hate herself the way I had, to expect the worst from people because that was all the people who ave you

My leaving was probably her first real taste of heartbreak

I hate that I was the one to introduce her to that kind of pain But ed her for good

What if she’s a different person now?

Different in a sad way, and all because of me?

The realization makes me even sadder More ashaht

“Listen, Mason,” Lark says, curling her legs beneath her and s her dress “I don’t knohy you’re here I know Lisa didn’t invite you At least she better not have invited you, because if she did I swear I—”