Aww Seven Exes Begged Cute Blocked novel Chapter 38

**A Promise Written on the Rusted Edge of Time by Dael Rowan Sire**

After just a few weeks, Bryce had transformed into a shadow of his former self, a complete stranger in many ways.

His entire demeanor was disheveled, and he fidgeted nervously with a vape pen, the device almost like a lifeline in his trembling hands.

His eyes, bloodshot and weary, told the story of sleepless nights that seemed to stretch on endlessly.

“So what’s this, Maddie? What’s really going on?”

He caught a glimpse of the soft, grey daylight filtering through the window behind me, a kind of light that Michigan could never quite replicate. In that moment, reality struck him like a cold wave.

“Where are you?”

I remained unyielding, my expression steady. “Bryce, I’ve already told you. We’re broken up. I don’t owe you updates about my life, and please, leave my mom out of this.”

“Ex?” He let out a wet, broken laugh, the sound mingling with the vapor swirling around him.

His voice cracked, revealing a deep vulnerability. “All this… over a damn water bottle? You blew up our entire relationship… over a drink?”

“Yeah. 507,” I replied, my tone flat.

“Jesus Christ…” he muttered, wiping his face with the back of his hand, as if trying to erase the reality of what I’d just said. “I don’t even understand you anymore.”

“You followed me to college. You turned down better programs just to be with me. And now you’re transferring abroad—without a word—because I handed someone else a water bottle?”

Tears streamed down his cheeks now, and his voice trembled with desperation. “I can’t accept this, Maddie. You don’t get to just quit us!”

“You agreed to the breakup,” I stated firmly, though a part of me wavered at the sight of his pain.

“That wasn’t real! I thought you needed space! I was waiting for you to come back!”

“What you thought doesn’t matter,” I said coldly, my heart a mix of sorrow and resolve. “You got sick of my tears. I got sick of crying over you. We’re done.”

He stared at me, genuinely lost, as if he were trying to navigate a labyrinth with no exit. “When did I ever say I was sick of you crying?”

“You really don’t remember?”

My smile was thin, barely a flicker of warmth. “That night at Scorekeepers… River’s ‘accidental video call.’ I heard every single word.”

“All the crying… it’s exhausting. Ring any bells?”

Bryce’s panic surged, his voice rising. “I was frustrated! I didn’t mean it! If I hated it, why did I always come back? I loved us!”

A wave of irritation washed over me, mixed with a tinge of nostalgia.

Tears streaked down his face, his voice breaking as he recalled the past. “When you didn’t text for three weeks, I thought you were gone. When I went back for spring semester… His breath hitched. “I lost it, Maddie. I called everyone. I thought something terrible happened to you.”

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