Bad Boy Chemistry

51. The Bad-Word Jar

Charlie's POV

"What's on your mind?" Ryan wondered as we sat down at our usual lunch table.

The moment was playing on repeat in my head, those words coming out of Ace's mouth. He was right, we weren't friends. We were just two random people who were assigned to sit next to each other.

"I was just thinking." I said.

"About?" He pressed.

"Nothing." I exhaled a breath. "Shouldn't you be at football practice? Don't you have a game tomorrow?"

He sighed. "Crap, I totally forgot!"

He finished off his can of soda before running off towards the football field.

"Are you going to watch the game tomorrow?" Ella wondered as she stabbed into her salad with a fork.

I shrugged my shoulders.

"You okay Charlie?" Clayton asked.

"Not really." I sighed.

"What's up?" Ella asked before shoving a forkful of salad into her mouth.

"I was going to break up Ryan yesterday, but then he... kinda told me he loved me?" I replied.

Clayton almost spat his drink out, but managed to keep it in.

"What?" Ella's jaw dropped.

I nodded my head.

"Wow, uhhhh. What are you going to do?"

I sighed again. "I don't know. What do you guys think I should do?"

Clayton gulped down his drink. "Well, i think maybe you should still break up with him."

"Really?" I asked him.

"Don't get me wrong, Ryan seems like a nice dude now. But you can't be with someone if you don't really feel it." He explained.

Ella nodded her head in agreement, stabbing her salad again.

"I've never broken up with someone before. How do I do it?"

"Just let him down gently. Do not do it over text, that's for cowards, and you, Charlie Harrington, are no coward." Ella said. "Tell him you think he's great, but you don't really feel the same way."

I groaned frustratedly. "He'll hate me."

"It'll be awkward. But he won't hate you." Clayton advised.

~

"I think we should break up." I said, stoically.

Of course, it was much easier to say that to a mirror than to actually say it to Ryan's face.

I'd been practicing breaking up with him for at least twenty minutes now.

"Hey Ryan, uh. Let's break up." I shook my head.

Let's try that again...

"Ryan. You, me, over." I said to the mirror before smacking myself in the head.

Seriously Charlie?

I cleared my throat and did another take.

"Sorry, Ryan but we have to break up.... I've taken a vow of solitude."

Then another take...