The next few days Evan spent less and less time with Anna. She noticed him talking to other female campers and even the female camp leaders. He would disappear from camp activities. Yet, every night he went to her room to have sex with her. Friday night, the last night of the camp, Evan knocked on Anna's door and when she opened the door, she found him standing there with a small gift box in his hands. He looked almost nervous for the first time since they had met. The sight of him after four days of distance sent a confusing mix of hope and resentment through her chest. "What is this?" she asked warily, crossing her arms over her tank top. "Did you finally decide to bring me chocolates instead of just showing up for sex?" She stepped aside to let him enter, closing the door behind them. The room felt smaller with them both inside. Evan set the box on her desk beside a botany textbook from an earlier lecture. "I figured... Since tonight is out last night... I should do something nice," Evan mumbled awkwardly. He stood there for a while then added, "Like a parting gift or whatever." Anna's expression hardened at his words, the hope draining from her face. "A parting gift? Is that what I am to you, Evan? Some souvenir you can leave behind when you are done with your summer fling?" She moved to sit on the edge of the bed, the mattress dipping under her weight. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides as she stared at the box of chocolates like it was a venomous snake. "For two weeks, I thought this meant something. I thought we were building something real, even if it was crazy and forbidden." Her voice cracked slightly with emotion. "But you have been pulling away all week, talking to other girls at meals, disappearing during hikes."
She finally looked up at him, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. "And now you show up on our last night with chocolates like that makes everything okay. Like that makes up for using me and then tossing me aside?" Evan ran a hand through his hair. "What did you think this was?" he asked with a soft laugh. "I thought you loved me," Anna said loudly, the frustration and hurt in her voice evident. "Love you? You are so naive. Why would I date a nerdy freak like you when I could take turns with the cheerleaders?" Evan said cruelly. Anna's face crumpled at his cruel words, the tears she had been holding back finally spilling down her cheek. The pain in her chest was sharp and immediate, a physical ache that made it hard to breathe. "You think I am some kind of freak?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "That is what you see when you look at me? Not the girl who gave you everything, who trusted you completely?" she stood up from the bed, her hands shaking as she wiped furiously at her eyes. "I can't believe I actually though you cared about me. That maybe this could be something real." Anna paced back and forth in the small room, her bare feet making soft sounds against the wooden floorboards. "I was so stupid. Of course, you were never going to feel the same way. Guys like you don't fall for girls like me." She stopped pacing and faced him directly, her expression a mix of anger and heartbreak.
"Well, duh" Evan said casually. "Look, I am sorry if you thought there was more to this. You were a good fuck; I will give you that." Anna's breath hitched at his crude dismissal, the casual cruelty in his voice cutting deeper than any physical blow. The tears flowed freely now as she stared at him in horror. "A good fuck?" she repeated, her voice barely audible. "Is that all I was to you? Something convenient to pass the time while you waited for better options?" she shook her head slowly, disbelievingly. "I gave you my virginity, Evan. I trusted you with parts of myself I had never shared with anyone. And you see me as just... A hole to stick your dick in?" Her hands clenched into firsts at her sides, nails digging into her palms hard enough to draw blood. The anger was beginning to overshadow the pain- hotter, sharper, more dangerous. "Hey, I had never fucked someone for more than a week. So, it is not like you were not special or whatever," he said awkwardly, he seemed uncomfortable as he stood with his back to the door. Anna let out a sharp humourless laugh that quickly turned into a sob. An expression of worry crossed his face but was quickly masked. "Oh, wow. So, I should feel honoured? That I got to be you longest fuck buddy ever?" She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. The anger was burning hotter now, overriding the hurt. "Don't you dare try to make this sound like some kind of achievement for me. Being your 'special' hookup doesn't mean anything when you are treating me like trash." Her voice grew louder, more defiant. "You think you are so cool, don't you? Big man on campus who can get any girl he wants. Newsflash, Evan- you are an asshole." she took a step toward him, her small frame radiating furry. "I am an asshole, you knew that," he said with a low, calm voice. His expression is serious when he looks at her. "Was that not a part of the fantasy for you. Sexually taming the asshole jock?"
Anna's furious expression faltered, replaced by a look of utter bewilderment. The sheet audacity of his question hung in the air between them. A bitter laugh escaped her lips, sounding hollow in the quiet room. "Taming you?" she echoed, shaking her head slowly. "You think this was some game for me? That I was trying too 'tame' you?" She took another step forward, closing the distance until she was standing directly in front of him. Her voice dropped to a whisper, laced with raw hurt and disbelief. "I fell in love with you, Evan. I didn't want to tame you- I wanted you. The guy who held me after we made love and told me I was beautiful." Evan took a step back. "Yeah, you did seem to get pretty serious there for a moment," he says softly and looks away awkwardly. "But I don't want to be serious." the last of Anna's anger deflates into a hollow ache. The casual way he dismissed her feelings was worse than any cruel word. "Don't want to be serious," she repeated quietly, her voice losing its earlier fire. "Right. Because god forbid you actually cared about someone who isn't a cheerleader or some other trophy for your arms." she turned away from him, walking back toward the bed where she sat down heavily. The room suddenly felt suffocating small. "You know what? Just go. Take your chocolates and your pride and leave." Her voice was flat now, stripped of emotion. "I don't want your pit or your explanations. I just want you to be gone so I can stop crying over you." Her shoulders shook slightly as she wrapped her arms around herself protectively. The finality in her tone made it clear she was done arguing with him tonight.
"So, no goodbye sex or hate sex?" he asked hopefully. Anna looked up at him through tear-filled eyes, a bitter laugh escaping his lips. "You are unbelievable. Even now, all you can think about is getting you dick wet." she stood up from the bed, her movements sharp and deliberate as she walked toward the door. Her hand gripped the doorknob tightly. "No," she said firmly, pulling the door open. "There will be no goodbye sex or hate sex. I am not your fuck toy anymore, Evan." The cool night air from the hallway washed over her face as she held the door open expectantly. "Now get out of my room before I start screaming and get the camp leaders involved." Her voice carried a finality that brooked no argument. The hurt in her eyes was palpable, but beneath it lay a newfound strength. Evan smirked and walked towards her, but instead of leaving immediately, he pulled her into a deep kiss. "It's been fun darling. See ya around," he said playfully and released her, then he slipped past her into the hallway. Anna stood frozen in the doorway for several long moments after Evan disappeared into the hallway. Her lips still tingled from his forceful kiss, a confusing mix of anger and lingering desire warring within her. She finally slammed the door shut with more force than necessary, leaning back against it as her legs gave out. Sliding down to sit on the floor, she pulled her knees to her chest and buried her face in them. The finality of his words- "See ya around"- echoed in her mind like a death sentence. He had taken everything away without a second thought, her hand went to her mouth where his lips had just been, feeling the ghost of his touch. The taste of him still lingered on her tongue.