Contos sobre Inspirational e Romances com Bias e Campus

On graduation day, my childhood friend, Liam Carter, handed me a college application. "Apply to Williams College with me, and I'll be your boyfriend." Williams College was tucked away in the mountains, far from home. If I went there, I would rarely get the chance to visit my family. But I took the application without a second thought and signed my name. The day I received my acceptance letter, I happened to see the messages on Liam's phone. They were from my parents, my brother, and Liam. [Has Audrey agreed to go to Williams College?] [Of course! She got her acceptance letter today!] [Now that we've sent her far away, Vera can finally stay with us in peace.] [Liam, you must have had a hard time keeping up the act. At least you won't actually have to go live in the mountains with her.] I stood there and read the messages from the people closest to me over and over again. They had no idea that when I signed that day, I had not only signed the application to Williams College. I had also signed a confidentiality agreement for a research program. In just three days, I would leave for the research institute. I would cut off all contact with the outside world and leave them behind for good. When I finally left, they all regretted it.

Thor and I grew up together—we were the definition of childhood sweethearts. We'd promised to attend the same university, graduate, and marry right after senior year. Everyone envied us. They said we were a perfect match, destined for a lifetime together. And I believed that too. I truly thought I'd spend the rest of my life with him. Until the final semester of our senior year in high school, when a new transfer student named Lina joined our class. At first, the two barely spoke. But as they grew familiar, their bond deepened in ways I could no longer ignore. He started staying after school to tutor her, bringing her breakfast every morning. When she was upset, he'd take her for a drive along the coast. If she craved Italian steak, he'd have fresh cuts flown in. Even during her period, he'd quietly prepare everything she needed. I was furious. I confronted him, argued with him, and even threatened to break up. The first time I said it, he thought I was joking and coaxed me out of my anger. The second time, he dismissed it as another tantrum and tried different ways to please me. The third time, he broke down—standing outside my house in the pouring rain all night, half kneeling before me, begging for forgiveness. Again and again, I tried to leave, and every time, he refused to let me go. Yet with each reconciliation, something in him shifted. He started taking me for granted, assuming I would always come back. His patience wore thin. His apologies turned perfunctory. Even when he came to make peace, there was no sincerity left in his voice. So I said it for the hundredth time, and that was the last. That was the moment I finally gave up on him.

My best friend, Emily Waters, was a born social butterfly. After my childhood friend, Lucas Mercer, got to know her, he no longer wanted to practice magic with me. He thought I was dull and awkward, always a beat behind in everything. Whenever the three of us ate together, the two of them would run off to play skyball and tell me to find them at the field when I was done. At diving practice, I couldn't keep up with them. Halfway through, my spell failed, and I almost drowned. Only when I called for help did I realize they'd already made it back to shore. Finally, there was the day we filled out our academy applications together. I was still going through the list when Lucas spoke up. "You're too slow. I've gotta go help Emily grab floor seats for the traveling circus, so I'm heading out. Bye-bye. "Oh, right. We're both choosing Aldridge, the best elemental magic academy there is. Don't pick the wrong one, you little dummy." Emily giggled. "Don't talk about my Wendy like that. She's so slow, there's no way she'd pick the wrong one." They were laughing so hard that they drowned out my voice. I mumbled, "You'll never have to wait for me again." I had applied to Starglow Academy of Potions, a school devoted to potion-making. Only the very best potion makers could apply, and for our safety, the academy was cut off from the rest of the world.