Once, at a class gathering, a girl who liked Mason deliberately made things difficult for me, daring me to kiss him in front of everyone.
I was panicked, and the mocking jeers only magnified my insecurity.
But Mason calmly smiled and waved at me. "It's fine, kiss me. I like you too."
At that moment, the breeze lifted the hair from his forehead. As if by some unseen force, I reached out and held his hand tightly.
In the countless nights that followed, I always felt like I had grasped the hand of a god.
Eventually, we really got together, though no one believed in us. They envied and mocked me, saying Mason was like a flower planted in manure. His admirers never took me seriously, thinking I was just someone he spent time with out of boredom.
I was incredibly anxious, constantly fearing someone would steal him away, or that he would leave me.
So I did everything I could to be good to him, like a devout follower, offering up everything in my life to him.
He gave me affection and a sense of security in return.
When Claire came back to the country, everything changed.
His attitude toward me became more and more dismissive, and his interactions with Claire became increasingly inappropriate.