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my ex-forever
The music thumped softly in the background, a mellow beat that seemed at odds with the laughter and chatter filling the room. The house was packed with familiar faces, all of them gathered for Julie’s birthday—an event that had turned into a reunion of sorts. I wandered through the crowd, nursing a drink I wasn’t particularly interested in, trying to dodge the occasional blast from the past.
I had just escaped a conversation with an old classmate when I saw him. He was standing by the snack table, absentmindedly picking at a bowl of pretzels. My heart skipped a beat, then settled into a rhythm that was a little too fast, a little too anxious.
He looked different—his hair, once tousled and wild, was now shaved close to his head, and the stubble I used to love was gone, replaced by a neat beard. The sight of him pulled me in, even as every instinct screamed for me to turn away.
As if sensing my gaze, he turned around. Our eyes met, and for a moment, it felt like the world had narrowed down to just the two of us.
“Olivia?” His voice was a mix of surprise and something that sounded too close to longing.
I forced a smile, trying to ignore the tightness in my chest. “Renz. I didn’t expect to see you here.”
He glanced around, as if confirming that, yes, this was the same room we both found ourselves in. “Yeah, Julie insisted I come. Said it would be good to catch up.”
“Same here.” I raised my drink slightly. “It’s been a while.”
He nodded, looking down at the pretzels in his hand before putting them back on the table. His gaze lingered on them, like he was gathering his thoughts. “You look... different.”
“So do you,” I said, taking in the changes that time had etched into his face. My eyes couldn’t help but catch the glint of the wedding band on his finger, and I quickly looked away. “No more wild hair? And the beard... I almost didn’t recognize you.”
He chuckled, a short, almost nervous sound. “Figured it was time for a change. You know how it is.”
“Yeah,” I replied, my eyes drifting to the glass of water he was holding. “And the drink... water?”
He smiled, but it was strained. “Yeah. I quit drinking a while ago.”
I raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Seriously? No more weekend karaoke marathons?”
He shrugged, looking almost embarrassed. “Not really my thing anymore. Besides, she’s not much of a drinker.”
There it was—she. The word hung between us like a curtain, thick and unavoidable. I swallowed hard, trying to push down the rising tide of emotions.
“She must be something,” I said, keeping my voice as neutral as I could.
His smile faltered, and for the first time, he looked directly at me, really looked at me. “She’s great, Liv. But... it’s different.”
“Of course it is,” I said, my heart twisting. “We’re different people now.”
He nodded slowly, his gaze drifting away. His voice softened, tinged with regret. “Yeah. We are.”
The silence between us grew heavy, the noise of the party fading into the background as the years of unspoken words crowded in. I couldn’t help but wonder if he was thinking the same thing I was—that maybe, in some other life, we wouldn’t have been standing here like strangers with too much history.
“Do you ever miss it?” I asked quietly. “The way things were?”
His jaw tightened, and he looked down at the floor. “Sometimes. More than I like to admit. But I try not to dwell on it.”
I bit my lip, forcing myself to ask the question that had been on my mind since I saw him. “Do you ever regret it? Us?”
He hesitated, then shook his head, but his eyes betrayed him, filled with a sorrow he couldn’t hide. “Liv, I don’t know. What’s the point of regrets? We can’t change the past.”
“No, we can’t,” I whispered, the words catching in my throat. “But that doesn’t stop me from wondering... what if?”
He winced, his eyes filled with a pain that mirrored my own. “Don’t do that to yourself. To us. It won’t change anything.”
I looked away, trying to blink back the tears that threatened to spill. “I know. It’s just hard sometimes.”
His hand tightened around his glass, knuckles turning white. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice soft and full of regret. “For everything.”
“Me too,” I replied, my voice breaking. “But sorry doesn’t make it hurt any less, does it?”
He shook his head, his expression full of sadness, as if he was carrying the weight of every unspoken word between us. “No, it doesn’t.”
He hesitated again, then asked quietly, “And you? Anyone new in your life?”
I tried to sound nonchalant, forcing a small smile. “I’ve had a few, but no one steady. Just... nothing that stuck.”
He nodded, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes—something that looked like longing, regret, maybe even love. But it was gone as quickly as it appeared.
Julie’s laugh echoed through the room, pulling us out of our little bubble. I turned to see her surrounded by friends, her face glowing with happiness. It was a stark reminder that life had moved on, even if we hadn’t.
“I should go,” Renz said suddenly, stepping back. “It was... good to see you, Liv.”
“You too,” I whispered, not sure if I meant it or not.
And just like that, he was gone, swallowed up by the crowd. I watched him go, feeling the weight of all the things left unsaid pressing down on me.
I stood there for a moment longer, staring at the empty space where he had been, before I turned away and rejoined the party, trying to find my way back to the life I was still learning how to live.
© reddragonfly
#exforever #RenzxOlivia
I had just escaped a conversation with an old classmate when I saw him. He was standing by the snack table, absentmindedly picking at a bowl of pretzels. My heart skipped a beat, then settled into a rhythm that was a little too fast, a little too anxious.
He looked different—his hair, once tousled and wild, was now shaved close to his head, and the stubble I used to love was gone, replaced by a neat beard. The sight of him pulled me in, even as every instinct screamed for me to turn away.
As if sensing my gaze, he turned around. Our eyes met, and for a moment, it felt like the world had narrowed down to just the two of us.
“Olivia?” His voice was a mix of surprise and something that sounded too close to longing.
I forced a smile, trying to ignore the tightness in my chest. “Renz. I didn’t expect to see you here.”
He glanced around, as if confirming that, yes, this was the same room we both found ourselves in. “Yeah, Julie insisted I come. Said it would be good to catch up.”
“Same here.” I raised my drink slightly. “It’s been a while.”
He nodded, looking down at the pretzels in his hand before putting them back on the table. His gaze lingered on them, like he was gathering his thoughts. “You look... different.”
“So do you,” I said, taking in the changes that time had etched into his face. My eyes couldn’t help but catch the glint of the wedding band on his finger, and I quickly looked away. “No more wild hair? And the beard... I almost didn’t recognize you.”
He chuckled, a short, almost nervous sound. “Figured it was time for a change. You know how it is.”
“Yeah,” I replied, my eyes drifting to the glass of water he was holding. “And the drink... water?”
He smiled, but it was strained. “Yeah. I quit drinking a while ago.”
I raised an eyebrow, surprised. “Seriously? No more weekend karaoke marathons?”
He shrugged, looking almost embarrassed. “Not really my thing anymore. Besides, she’s not much of a drinker.”
There it was—she. The word hung between us like a curtain, thick and unavoidable. I swallowed hard, trying to push down the rising tide of emotions.
“She must be something,” I said, keeping my voice as neutral as I could.
His smile faltered, and for the first time, he looked directly at me, really looked at me. “She’s great, Liv. But... it’s different.”
“Of course it is,” I said, my heart twisting. “We’re different people now.”
He nodded slowly, his gaze drifting away. His voice softened, tinged with regret. “Yeah. We are.”
The silence between us grew heavy, the noise of the party fading into the background as the years of unspoken words crowded in. I couldn’t help but wonder if he was thinking the same thing I was—that maybe, in some other life, we wouldn’t have been standing here like strangers with too much history.
“Do you ever miss it?” I asked quietly. “The way things were?”
His jaw tightened, and he looked down at the floor. “Sometimes. More than I like to admit. But I try not to dwell on it.”
I bit my lip, forcing myself to ask the question that had been on my mind since I saw him. “Do you ever regret it? Us?”
He hesitated, then shook his head, but his eyes betrayed him, filled with a sorrow he couldn’t hide. “Liv, I don’t know. What’s the point of regrets? We can’t change the past.”
“No, we can’t,” I whispered, the words catching in my throat. “But that doesn’t stop me from wondering... what if?”
He winced, his eyes filled with a pain that mirrored my own. “Don’t do that to yourself. To us. It won’t change anything.”
I looked away, trying to blink back the tears that threatened to spill. “I know. It’s just hard sometimes.”
His hand tightened around his glass, knuckles turning white. “I’m sorry,” he said, his voice soft and full of regret. “For everything.”
“Me too,” I replied, my voice breaking. “But sorry doesn’t make it hurt any less, does it?”
He shook his head, his expression full of sadness, as if he was carrying the weight of every unspoken word between us. “No, it doesn’t.”
He hesitated again, then asked quietly, “And you? Anyone new in your life?”
I tried to sound nonchalant, forcing a small smile. “I’ve had a few, but no one steady. Just... nothing that stuck.”
He nodded, and for a moment, I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes—something that looked like longing, regret, maybe even love. But it was gone as quickly as it appeared.
Julie’s laugh echoed through the room, pulling us out of our little bubble. I turned to see her surrounded by friends, her face glowing with happiness. It was a stark reminder that life had moved on, even if we hadn’t.
“I should go,” Renz said suddenly, stepping back. “It was... good to see you, Liv.”
“You too,” I whispered, not sure if I meant it or not.
And just like that, he was gone, swallowed up by the crowd. I watched him go, feeling the weight of all the things left unsaid pressing down on me.
I stood there for a moment longer, staring at the empty space where he had been, before I turned away and rejoined the party, trying to find my way back to the life I was still learning how to live.
© reddragonfly
#exforever #RenzxOlivia
