Lost on the Way

They were friends—just friends. Now they're something else entirely…

Jason
I remember everything about the day I met her. I might have asked for her number, but I had bigger things to think about that day than trying to score a date.
I remember everything about the second time we crossed paths. By then, she had a boyfriend. Of course, she did. A girl like Maggie Gray Thompson wouldn't stay single long.
It's hard to believe freshman year passed ten years ago. Now Maggie's my best friend, my family. A friendship like ours, it's irreplaceable. When we buried Adam, I stood by her. When my cancer returned, she stood by me.
Then, in one night, I throw that friendship away.
I want her with everything I am, everything I have, but she can't be mine. She deserves someone with better odds than the doctors gave me.
Now, if I can't figure out how to go back to the way things were, I'll lose the most important relationship I have. The only one that truly matters.

Maggie
Last night was the best—and worst—night of my life.
He made it clear he only wants a friendship. Then last night happened.
And now he knows how I feel.
Some part of me knows he'll always see me as his best friend's girl. He can't look at me without seeing Adam.
Jason is my best friend. I love him with everything I have—mind, body, and soul.
The problem? His love for me isn't that kind of love. And that's okay. I can live with that.
I can't lose him. If he wants to stay in the friend zone, I'll need to somehow accept that and move on. Find someone else to love. I know it's true.
But convincing my heart…well, that's another story entirely.