Page 73 of See You Again

“I’ll bring you something special for dessert,” Cami said to assuage her guilt.

After ending the call, Cami lay on the sofa clutching a throw pillow to her chest. Anxiety clawed at her, and she forced herself to list all the things that were working in her life. It didn’t automatically make her a failure that, even with her education and career in psychology, she still couldn’t help her own mother. And her longing to have someone she could lean on, instead of being the one that was always the support, didn’t mean she was a terrible daughter. Now, if only she could make herself believe it.

Out of habit, Cami kept things light and sunny for her mother. She always had. Even as a child, Cami knew her mother couldn’t cope with any emotional stress beyond her own. She tried to keep the peace so that her parents wouldn’t fight. But it hadn’t been enough. Nothing she did was enough to fix either her parent’s marriage or her mother’s mental health.

Cami swiped at a tear that trickled down her cheek, her smile forming into a rictus across her cheeks. A therapist once told her, “If you can smile through the pain, it may not hurt as much. Soon, you’ll be smiling because you actually want to.”

It was just that sometimes the smile was hard to keep.

Cami managed to stay off social media for another hour as she prepared to leave for her mom’s house. When she finally gave in and allowed her finger to tap on the app, she saw immediately that she had over a hundred notifications.

What the heck? They can’t all be for the picture James posted?

But they were.

James Bloom's name alone meant that in less than twenty-four hours, friends and acquaintances across the internet had come out to follow him. Each of the pictures she posted on her own account now had multiple likes and comments. Most were aimed at James personally along with comments saying, “Surprised to see you here” and “We should catch up.”

Cami smirked. She would bet James hated it. A couple of comments made her scowl. Attractive women responded under the picture James had posted with the words:

I sent you a DM

Really? The only pictures he’s posted are of me. And these thirsty bitches are posting that!

He’s not really your boyfriend, Cami reminded himself. Her blood boiled, and annoyance spread. A sensation that felt suspiciously like jealousy coursed through her.

One comment, however, caught her eye. It was from his brother Luke.

I always knew she was the one.

What the hell does that mean?

Cami clicked on Luke’s profile, but it was private. She wondered how long it would take James to realize he would need to make his settings the same now that he’d picked up so many followers.

But just as she was coming to her feet to grab her purse, a text came through from James.

Was he a mind reader? She wouldn’t put it past him.

James: I posted a picture of us and tapped that heart thing on each of the pictures you put up. I thought it would help sell our story.

Did he really type “heart thing”? Is he eighty?

Cami: I saw the picture at the pizza place. I don’t even remember it being taken.

The dots appeared instantly. Cami dropped her keys back in her purse and sank to the sofa.

James: It was after midterms spring semester.

A vague memory tickled at the back of her mind.

Cami: Huh. That sort of rings a bell.

James: You drank a pitcher of beer by yourself that night. I’m not surprised you don’t remember.

His words were all it took for images to cascade through her mind. Not of the night. But waking up in her dorm room the next morning, a trashcan by her bed, and James Bloom sprawled on the floor asleep.

Her heart turned over with a combination of pain and tenderness at the memory. James took care of her that night. No one ever took care of her.

Cami didn’t know what to type back. She couldn’t admit that, now that he’d put it in context, she remembered every detail of that morning.