The words die on your lips as you realize that you haven't seen or spoken to Maya since your ex's birthday party last August. Your girlfriend through your last two years of high school had been acting more withdrawn over the summer, as the time neared when you would each be attending colleges in different areas of the country. At first it had manifested as bitter remarks attempting to bate you into arguments. With only a few weeks until you both left for school, the last while had been unbearable, with her flying into tirades, claiming that you're bound to cheat when you moved into your dorm. Your honest denials hadn't done anything but goad her into greater fits of insecurity and hysteria. As her birthday approached, you found it difficult to even spend time with her, and were seriously considering breaking up with her. Only a naive sense of nobility had kept you from doing it before her birthday.
After an embarrassing fight in front of a houseful of birthday guests, you had gone upstairs to try and cool off.
A chance encounter with Maya had soon evolved from an attempt at comfort to an event of debauchery that had ended your relationship with your ex with abrupt finality. |