4—Apology Accepted, Not!

Unlike usual, today, Eddy was anxious. He doesn’t know if there is any such thing called Karma, but he knows one thing for sure, he has to apologize to Evy soon, or else he will lose her. Maybe he had already lost her?

NO, Eddy will get their friendship back on track. He just needed to tell her sorry. That’s it—five-letter words.

After an hour or so, he drove to school. It took him around fifteen minutes to reach. He wanted to solve their misunderstandings. So, he thought about waiting in the parking lot. You might peg him as a desperate guy. But no, he is not desperate. He wants Evelyn back in his life. During this one year, he missed her a lot.

His train of thoughts was intervened by the view in front of him. Evelyn, Owen, and Hailey were cycling to school. And he would be lying if he said it didn’t matter to him.

You might be wondering why the hell he is creating fudge about them riding a bicycle.

His answer to your question is that two to three years back, all three of them used to come to school cycling. It was their thing. But when he got popular, they stopped.

Seeing them now brings back those blissful memories. Those memories are stored in his heart. It doesn’t take a genius to see that those three were enjoying themselves. They parked their cycles and entered the school building. Eddy did see them looking towards him for a few seconds. He saw hurt in Hailey’s eyes, and Owen was giving him a sad look, but Eve looked at him like any other classmate.

Like they hardly knew each other.

He was trying to find a way to talk to Evy the whole day, but it seemed like she was busy. For a full day, she was hanging out with Owen and Hails. Guess what makes the matter worse? Those three are in all his classes.

Finally, the school ended, and he was waiting for Evy to show up. After five minutes, she came.

“Uh, hey Evy,” Eddy spoke nervously.

“Hi,” she said with a poker face.

“How have you been?” He was scratching his neck.

“What do you want, Edward?” She directly came to the point.

“You can call me Eddy.”

He didn’t like Evy saying his full name. People call him Edward when he is in trouble. Usually, he goes by Eddy or Ed.

She was about to leave when he suddenly blurted, “I am sorry.”

She turned back.

“Evy, I am really sorry. I know I have been a jerk to you, and I feel guilty about it.”

“It is okay.” She cut me off.

“What?” Her answer stunned him.

“I said it was okay.” He was halfway from hugging her, but she took a step back.

“Whoa! Watch out, buddy. You asked for forgiveness, and I accepted it—no need to go buddy-buddy with me. Like every day, you go on your way, and I will go on my way. We won’t want you to ruin your so-called reputation by seeing with me now, do we?” With that, she left.

Though she accepted his apology, it still seemed she had not yet forgiven him.

Evelyn had a good time today. She was feeling like herself again. They rode bicycles today. It was like an old-time when Eddy and Hails used to cycle to school, but when Eddy became popular, he stopped their little tradition. When they reached the school, she saw him looking at them. She knows that it hurt him to see Owen taking his place. But he had it coming. He has always taken her and Hailey for granted.

Today, Evy noticed something different about Owen. He was chirpy and cheerful in a different way. Hails and Owen were getting along well. Well, something is growing in their relationship.

At the end of school, abruptly, out of nowhere, Eddy asked for an apology.

Sorry, five-letter word. Sorry is said when you have hurt someone. But nowadays, the real meaning of sorry is lost. People use this word every day and for every goddamn thing. They don’t even mean it despite that. They go ahead and use the word ‘sorry.’

But when Eddy used it, she was disappointed and hurt. She didn’t even know if he actually meant it. It had been a daily routine for him to make mistakes and apologize to her. So, if he doesn’t mean it, then why should she go ahead and accept his apology wholeheartedly. Old Evelyn Brook might have accepted it and hugged him, but not the new one. She had learned it the hard way. If he wants their friendship back, he needs to earn it. He is not going to get everything on the platter. He is getting the same treatment that he has given her for the past few years, and he deserves every bit of it.