K. Hulsey

Clay Johnson has the abs of Adonis and the deadly smirk of the devil, himself. There’s hardly a day he’s not headline material during football season, and never a day he isn’t a bullseye target for every girl on campus. He used to be the easiest of all the players for me to wrangle as the public relations coordinator, but after a nasty breakup with his high school sweetheart, he’s a mess.

Promises are lies dressed up for the party. Secrets poison the fairest of fairy tales. Lies stain the purest of loves. I've paid the ultimate price for my choices. The tendrils of those sins bind me to my past. The remnants of my love hold me captive. Then he walks into my life, and makes me believe in second chances. He awakens feelings in me I know I shouldn't have. I yearn for a future without guilt. With him, I dream of a love untainted. Regret is a far-reaching emotion. It barrels through time like a blazing comet, and its path isn't always straight.

Perfection. One word. Three syllables. Every reason why I'll never have the one thing I truly want. I stand dutifully on the pedestal he's built, waiting for the day he truly sees me. Then one amazing night, he lets down his walls, only to leave me the next day. Years have passed, and I've tried to move on with my life. But I still dream of him. I still miss him everyday. The memories haunt me. How can I look to the future when my past remains a mystery? The time has come to find the boy who stole my heart and ran away without a word.

Today is the day; the day that the man I love marries someone else. I don't deserve pity or sympathy. I've made my bed. I left Mason and ripped his heart to pieces as I ran away. The guilt and sorrow consume me, threatening to choke me everyday. But today is a new beginning. Today is the day I will wake up with a renewed resolve and determination to do better...to be better...to be worthy. My name is Sara Preston, and this is my story about what happens after.