"He's still alive!" Thorne exclaims as he opens his apartment door, greeting me with his infamous smirk.

I roll my eyes at my old friend's teasing, used to his sarcasm. "Seriously, man?" I question. "The phone calls didn't make that obvious?"

"There's a difference between a phone call and actually seeing you," Thorne points out. His green eyes gleam brightly as his smirk widens. "You went off the radar for a while there. It's good to have you back, man."

"It's good to be back," I admit truthfully. I enter the apartment and look around to find that I'm met with unfamiliar scenery. It's hard to believe that after all this time, I never made it to this place. It never crossed my mind to go to the people I love and trust when I needed help the most. How stupid had I been three years ago, believing that running away from Magnolia Heights and the people I loved would help me to outrun my problems?

It's hard to believe it's been years since the last time I saw Thorne Baxter. Now that he's standing before me, I find myself noticing all the time that has passed since we were last together.

Thorne is twenty-three now, two years my senior. He's graduated from college, living in an apartment that he shares with his fiancée, Mia McHenry. Studying Thorne, I notice slight differences in his appearance. He looks older somehow, less like a teenager and more like the young man he's becoming with time. Despite the air of maturity that now surrounds him, Thorne's bright green eyes still gleam with a mischievous light and his signature smirk is just as troublesome as ever. His dark hair is tousled and his sleeve of tattoos makes him look as menacing as ever, giving him an edgy look that tends to send people running.

Except for one person in particular.

I think everyone who knows Thorne Baxter and Mia McHenry knew that the two would be endgame for one another, and yet it's still hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that the duo is soon to be married. I know Thorne proposed to Mia around summer of last year, and I know that Mia said yes. But picturing two of my closest friends as husband and wife only makes me realize how fast time is flying by, and soon I know it's bound to catch up to me. I'm no longer the teenager I was years ago. Thorne and Mia are no longer simply dating. My father is no longer a divorced man, but one who is remarried, along with being a new father to my half-sister. Blake Rhodes is no longer the girl she was when I left. Everything is different. Yet somehow things are also relatively the same.

"Where's Mia?" I ask Thorne as we enter the kitchen. He glances at me over his shoulder as he opens the fridge.

"She's out with Charlie right now," Thorne tells me, mentioning a mutual friend of ours. I can't remember the last time I saw Charlie, though I know she's happily married to her long-term girlfriend, Violet, and that the two now own a house together. Thinking of this has me realizing just how much I've missed out on, which is a hard pill to swallow.

"She should be back in an hour or two, though," Thorne says, extending a water bottle to me. "She's gonna be surprised to see you. I don't think Mia even knows you're back in town yet."

"We can talk about me later," I tease. Thorne rolls his eyes in mock annoyance. "Right now i want to talk about the fact that you're engaged. Congrats, dude."

Thorne's grin is genuine, his expression instantly lighting up. I feel a small pang of jealousy, but only because once upon a time talking about Blake used to make me feel the same way. I used to believe the love Blake and I shared was the same kind of love Mia and Thorne have. It stings to find out that I was wrong.

"It's kind of hard to believe that I'm going to be a married man," Thorne admits. "Yet it feels right in a way I can't explain. I know I want to spend the rest of my life with Mia. Hell, we've been together since high school. There's nobody else I'd rather call my wife."

"I'm happy for you two," I say. "Do you have a wedding date planned yet?"

"We don't have a specific date in mind yet," Thorne reveals. "We both want to get married this year thought, so time is definitely catching up. We'll send out the invites when we have everything confirmed."

I nod in understanding. The two of us wander into the living room and take seats on the couch. After a moment, Thorne asks, "Have you kept in touch with Blake since you left?"

I wince at the question. "Um, no," I admit. Thorne's eyebrows raise in surprise. "Things between us didn't really end well. She's seeing some other guy now. Dylan. He's training to become a doctor." I can't help but say the last few sentences with an air of mockery. I get that I should be happy for Blake, but that in no way means I have to like the guy she's moved on with.

Thorne nods like he understands where I'm coming from, though his expression seems to be waiting for me to continue. "So?"

"So, what?" I ask.

"So what are you going to do to get her back?" Thorne asks as if this much should have been obvious, glancing at me like I'm an idiot.

I furrow my eyebrows in confusion. "Nothing," I admit. "What would I do to get her back? How would I even go about that? I hurt her, Thorne. Blake doesn't want anything to do with me."

The look Thorne gives me confirms my suspicions that he thinks I'm an idiot. I find myself thinking that he's not wrong.

"You're not serious, are you?" Thorne questions.

"Why wouldn't I be?" I counter.

"I can't believe I have to explain this to you," Thorne mumbles under his breath. "Noah, Blake loved you. And it was clear as hell that you loved her. You're telling me that you're willing to let all that love go to waste because . . . what? You skipped town like the idiot everybody already knows you are? Some other guy is in the picture? You're telling me you're not even going to try to win her back?"

"What would you do if you were me?" I bite back. "I mean, what am I supposed to do? Track Blake down and profess my undying love for her? Try to come up with some lame-ass excuse for my idiotic behavior? Make more promises to her I probably won't keep? Something tells me none of that will make Blake want to get back together with me."

"Whatever you say." Thorne shakes his head. "All I'm saying is that if I were in your situation and there was a chance that I was going to lose Mia for good, there's nothing I wouldn't do to stop it from happening. When you really love someone, Noah, it doesn't matter what tries to get in the way of that love. Nobody ever said falling in love was easy. In fact, it's the opposite. Why do you think so many relationships fall apart these days? Relationships fail when people realize that you have to actually put work into loving someone, and they run away because they don't want to put in the effort needed to make things last. Love is work all right, but it's the best damn job in the world. Falling in love with Mia was the best thing that ever happened to me, and I'd be damned before I lost that."

Thorne's words hit me hard. Maybe he's right. What if I am making a mistake, losing Blake for good? Lord knows that's the last thing I want to happen. Deep down, I still want to be the guy who gets to wake up to her in the mornings, the man lucky enough to call Blake his, the boy who gets to love and be loved by her.

But what am I supposed to do? I can't force Blake to feel for me what she doesn't. And I'm sure that the last things he wants is to see me again, especially after our last encounter. We've both changed. We're no longer the same people we were when we first fell in love. Does that mean it's impossible for the versions of ourselves we are now to ever love again, or does it simply mean that the way we love each other has changed too?

"What about you?" I ask in an attempt to change the conversation. "Have you and Mia kept in touch with Blake?"

Thorne nods. "We've talked here and here," he admits. "If I'm being honest, Mia is closer with her. They went to the same school for a year and all. Mia and Blake hung out a lot after you left. She's stayed over a few times. I think she really needed a friend during that time. Someone who knew you the way she did."

This is news to me. Unsure of what to say, I find myself asking, "What do you mean?"

"Well, after you left," Blake was kind of a mess," Thorne tells me gently. "You were gone, but Blake wasn't quite ready to let go of you yet."

I don't have a chance to respond before the sound of the front door being unlocked interrupts us, swinging open to reveal Mia. "Hey, babe, I was—" Mia stops short upon spotting my presence, and I watch as her expression lights up.

"Noah?" Mia questions, beaming at me. I rise from the couch and Mia rushes to give me a hug.

It's nice to see that Mia McHenry is still relatively the same, even after all this time. She still leaves her dark hair long and wavy, and her smile is as familiar as ever. She's matured with time, yet she's still as beautiful as always.

Mia's smile wilts into a frown as she pulls away from me, her eyes gleaming dangerously. I'm not prepared for her to pull her hand back and deliver a sharp slap to my cheek, leaving me stunned.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Mia exclaims. I cup my stinging cheek as she glares at me. "How could you, Noah. You just left! Do you know how upset I was—am—at you? Do you know how stupid you are? Do you even understand how hurt Blake was after you just ran off?"

I open my mouth to defend myself, only to be cut off by Mia as she blurts, "Do you think you have the right to speak? I am so mad at you right now, I could practically—"

"Sunshine," Thorne murmurs as he takes a step toward Mia, "as hot as you are when you're angry, maybe you should tone it down a bit. I don't think the neighbors enjoy your screaming as much as I do."

Mia's face flushes, clearly flustered. Thorne shoots me a wink before pressing a kiss to Mia's cheek, literally turning her frown upside down. I notice the way Mia absentmindedly twirls the engagement ring on her finger around as if it's become a habit.

Glaring at me, Mia snaps, "I'm still mad at you."

"But you still love, right?" I tease. Mia's lip twitches like she's holding back a smile, which is better than nothing.

Mia turns her back on me to follow after Thorne as he walks into the kitchen, though she pauses briefly in the doorway. Glancing at me over her shoulder, Mia offers me a small smile as she says, "It's nice to have you back, Noah."

____

a/n: i am officially a dancing queen. and my favorite part about turning 17 is the fact that i'm only a year away from being 18. 💀🥳