Tragic Love Romance Short Stories & Male POV Workplace Novels

Our department went on a team-building hike. When it was time to split into groups, I looked at Janet Wiley, the woman I had been secretly dating for two years, sure she would pick me. Instead, she walked over to Nash Fuller, her childhood friend who had just come back from overseas. "You're out of shape. Come with me. I'll make sure you don't fall behind." Nash gave her a crooked grin and rested a hand lightly on her arm. Our coworkers immediately started giving them a hard time. "Childhood sweethearts, huh? Ms. Wiley, you're still single, right? You two actually look pretty good together." Janet didn't move away. She just smiled faintly and said, "Yeah. I'm single." I went still. The night before, she was curled up in my arms, promising we would stop hiding our relationship soon. But after the groups were set, she never looked at me again. I ended up with whoever was left. Halfway up the trail, I rolled my ankle hard enough that I could barely put weight on it, so I texted her, [Janet, I can't keep going.] She read the message and left me on read. Forty minutes later, a photo from the summit popped up in the group chat. Nash stood close beside Janet with an arm around her shoulders, while she smiled brightly at the camera. The chat immediately filled with messages about how good they looked together. Someone even tagged me. [Bryce, you fell behind? Don't hold everyone up.] Another person wrote, [Nash made it to the top and you couldn't?] Then someone else added, [If you couldn't handle the hike, you shouldn't have come.] I made my way back down the mountain alone. By the time I reached the bottom, Janet was calling a ride for Nash. She saw me limping toward them and frowned. "Didn't I tell you not to message me privately? What if someone from work sees it and gets the wrong idea?" That was when it finally sank in. Our secret relationship only existed when it was convenient for her. In that moment, whatever we had between us was over. Janet no longer had a boyfriend to hide.

During a game of Truth or Dare at a gathering with friends, my girlfriend, Bridget Ellison, loses. Her punishment is to buy coffee for everyone. Half an hour later, she returns carrying more than a dozen bags and starts handing out drinks with a smile. "Francis, you've been pulling all-nighters for two days straight. Here's your iced long black." "Daryl, you like java chip frappe with extra mocha sauce, right?" "And here's yours. Lemon black tea, no ice. You've ordered it hundreds of times." One by one, everyone gets their drink. By the time she reaches me, only an empty bag remains. Everyone at the table freezes. "Where's Aiden's drink?" She pushes her peach frappe toward me and says, "I forgot. He can just share mine." A friend immediately groans and complains, "It's the same every gathering. If you two want to show off how loving you are, can you at least come up with a new routine?" Everyone around us laughs and teases us, but I can't bring myself to even take a sip of the drink. I'm the only one who knows the truth. The display of affection is an act. In reality, she has truly forgotten to buy me a drink. After four years together, Bridget still can't remember that I'm allergic to peaches. I set the peach frappe back on the table. I've spent four years settling for less. Now, it's time for me to leave.

For all four years of college, my girlfriend Vanessa Moore never once let anyone know we were together. "Dating someone in your own class is asking for trouble. If we break up, it'll be humiliating." To keep our distance, I never dared say a single word to her in front of other people. But Marcus Hale, the guy she grew up with, got to be glued to her side. On the way to the graduation party, a white sedan swerved out of nowhere and slammed into my car. Glass sliced open my face and my arm. When the dizziness cleared, I saw Marcus in the other car, smiling like he had just pulled something off. Blood kept dripping from the cuts. I was pinned, and I couldn't move an inch. Then Vanessa's car came down the road toward us. I called out for help until my voice went raw. She walked straight past me to Marcus. "Are you okay? Where are you hurt?" Leaning on my girlfriend's arm, Marcus limped over to her car and got in. She didn't come for me first. Ten minutes later Vanessa finally walked back, but she stopped three feet away. "It's the graduation party today. Everyone will be there. We have to keep our distance even more carefully. "I heard someone already called an ambulance, so just hang on. I'm taking him to the hospital first." Then she drove off without looking back. She had never intended to save me. My white shirt was soaked through red, and the pain shooting through my body cleared my head completely. A love that never answers back is a love you should put down.