And because I feel guilty for going against them when they’ve always tried to give me the world, I send one more text.

Me: I love you. I’ll call soon.

I walk inside the bar, a bundle of nerves. I’m anxious about making friends with my fake boyfriend’s best friend. Attaching myself to anyone associated with Nathan feels risky, but I miss having friends.

Camila and I text almost every day, but it’s not the same as having friends to do things with. Nights watching TV, weekends getting dressed up and going out, hanging out on campus and re-telling stories from drunken nights… I miss having all of that.

At Golden, I had a variety of friends. Being part of a team gives you an instant set of friends—well, assuming they don’t resent everything about you and wish you had never come to their college—but it’s nice to have people outside of that world too. Sometimes a girl needs to vent and let loose.

Being on a team is a delicate balance of friendship and respect. Camila was the best of both worlds. Outside of volleyball we still have a lot in common. We were paired together right off freshman year and were inseparable on and off the sand until I left.

Gabby spots me from the table she’s sitting at. She waves and stands and starts walking to greet me. Three more heads turn to look at me from her table.

“I’m so glad you came,” she says, hugging me and pulling me toward the group. “This is Blair, Vanessa, and Katrina.” She points to each of them individually. “Guys, this is Chloe. I was just telling the girls that Nathan finally settled down.”

Smiling awkwardly, I take a seat at the fifth chair they’ve pulled up to the end of the table.

“You need a drink?” the girl to my right asks and I nod. “I was just about to get a refill. Come on.” The bartender is busy, so we take a seat on the stools to wait. “I’m Blair,” she reintroduces herself. Long brown hair falls over her shoulders and brown eyes nearly the same shade take me in with a friendly glint.

“Wes’ girlfriend, right?”

Her smile could light up the neon signs hung all around. “That’s right. How long have you been dating Nathan? I haven’t seen him much since Wes moved out.”

“Not long.” I can’t bear to tell any more lies so I decide I’m going to keep it as vague as possible tonight.