After Reading My Boyfriend’s Mind, I Dumped Him for Good Chapter 04
The moment I got home, I started searching online.
[Should I break up with my boyfriend if he doesn’t like me?]
[Ten signs your boyfriend is actually into you.]
[Cold and distant guys—are they just bad at expressing themselves or do they just not care?]
I scrolled through article after article.
Then I noticed the typing bubble in my chat with Atticus.
I finally looked away from the search results and focused on my phone again.
I’d spent so much time looking for answers, yet I still hadn’t found any.
The only thing that had changed was the time. It was already past nine.
Normally, I’d text Atticus the second I got home.
I’d tell him what my mom made for dinner and bug him until he called me.
Sometimes I’d even ask if he’d missed me, even though we’d only been apart for half an hour.
This was the first time since we started dating that I hadn’t begged him to video chat.
The typing bubble stayed on my screen for five or six minutes.
But no message ever came through.
Maybe I really was exactly what everyone thought—a clingy, annoying girlfriend.
I locked my phone, and another search result came to mind.
[Do guys really have trouble turning down a pretty girl who throws herself at them?]
The top comment had been blunt.
[Yes. Even if they’re not into her, most guys won’t turn down a hot girl throwing herself at them.]
The next morning, I opened the door, and sure enough—there was Atticus.
The only difference was that there were faint dark circles beneath his eyes.
The moment our eyes met, he held out breakfast.
Thinking about the nightmare I’d had the night before, I didn’t take it.
“I already ate. You can have it.”
There it was again. [So annoying.]
I really didn’t want to hear Atticus’s thoughts anymore.
Exhausted, I walked ahead while he trailed behind me.
“Atticus! Basketball after school today?”
The suffocating silence between us shattered.
Julian came jogging up from behind, energetic as always.
“I saw you two from way down the street. What’s up? Not glued at the hip today?”
“I’m not going.” Atticus shrugged off the arm Julian tried to throw around his shoulders.
Then he looked at me. “We’re going to a movie tonight.”
My steps faltered.
I’d almost forgotten it was Wednesday.
Atticus had always been the quiet, reserved type. But I was clingy enough to make up for it.
Saturdays and Sundays weren’t enough—every Wednesday, I had to drag him out somewhere.
At cinemas, I’d sit in the dark and lace my fingers through his.
At amusement parks, I’d sneak kisses in haunted houses while standing on my tiptoes.
Every time I saw his face flush red and felt his fingers tremble with nervous excitement, I would secretly celebrate.
My boyfriend was crazy about me—at least, that’s what I used to believe.
Now, that thought just seemed laughable.
[So annoying.]
Right on cue, after mentioning the movie, I heard Atticus’s thoughts again.
Well, of course it was annoying. Going on dates with someone you didn’t even like had to be exhausting.
I turned to Julian and smiled. I didn’t even spare Atticus a glance.
“It’s fine. I have plans tonight anyway. You guys go ahead.”
A hand suddenly caught my wrist. Atticus’s fingers tightened around it.
“What plans?”
[So annoying. So freaking annoying.]
I took a deep breath.
Then I pulled my arm free, covered my ears with both hands, and looked at him.
“You do your thing. Stop worrying about me.”
God, could these thoughts just leave me alone already? I was getting so sick of this.
Atticus’s face paled even more.
He was already fair-skinned to begin with. Now he looked almost bloodless.
