I Saw Our Remaining Meetings Dropped From 31441 To 9 Chapter 01

I Saw Our Remaining Meetings Dropped From 31441 To 9 Chapter 01

I can see exactly how many times I’ll meet someone.

For most people, it’s just one.

My childhood friend Carter Vance? He had 31,441.

So from the time we were kids, I treated him like my future husband.

I drilled the Boyfriend Code into him—my own set of rules for how he should act—and micromanaged every part of his life.

Carter got sick of it fast and kept trying to pawn me off on other guys.

“Stop lying about seeing some magic number, little shadow.”

His mouth smiled, but his words bit.

“My roommate’s not bad-looking. Try hanging out with someone else for a change.”

He pulled out his phone to show me pictures. A shot of him with some girl popped up before he swiped over to his roommate’s photo.

“He’s just kind of quiet. Good guy, though. You’ve been glued to me so hard lately…”

I stared at the long number floating over the guy in the picture and said yes for the very first time.

“Then give me his contact.”

I held out my phone.

Carter’s face went absolutely white.

The number above his head had dropped to 9.

***

The second I stretched my phone toward him, Carter slammed his screen dark.

I looked up.

“Phone’s dead. Next time.”

The color drained from his face. The number above him flickered down in my vision until it froze on a 9.

My chest tightened, but I didn’t tell him.

When he saw me staring, the tension left his face. His mouth curled into a smirk. He grabbed an umbrella. “Come on. Let’s go home.”

It was a Friday. A thin, gray drizzle kept kicking up ripples on the pavement.

“That girl on your phone—was she Jenna Wright?”

My voice came out quiet. The guy beside me tensed for a second, then sighed.

“From that club thing. Forgot to delete it.”

“We’re not even together, and you’re still micromanaging every little thing…”

He sounded exasperated. I swallowed. That familiar ache was still there, but the number above his head made it ease up.

“Just asking…”

I wasn’t planning on policing him anymore.

It was just the first time I realized how long this walk home could feel.

That’s why I’d said anything at all.

I knew now, for sure—Carter and I were done.

So obviously, I had zero right to control him.

But hearing that, Carter’s face darkened.

“You know damn well you weren’t just asking. Since we were kids, I’ve had no female friends because of you.”

He’d always let me. He’d only started pushing back lately.

“Then go make some. I’m done.”

My voice was soft. Carter’s breathing turned rough. His knuckles bulged white around the umbrella handle.

Before he could fire back, his phone rang. Jenna Wright flashed on the screen. Carter didn’t pick up. He just held it stiff, his eyes fixed on me, dark and heavy.

Before, I would’ve thrown a fit. I’d have made him recite the Boyfriend Code and then snatched his phone to hang up.

Now, I just watched for a few seconds and looked away.

The call died. Jenna’s message popped up: [Carter, do you have an umbrella? I’m stuck outside my dorm. Could you come get me if it’s not a hassle?]

“So you’re really not managing me anymore, huh?”

Carter’s jaw was wired tight.

“So should I just go?”

I nodded, pulled out my own umbrella, and opened it.

I didn’t let my eyes drop until his silhouette disappeared.

Fate was playing one hell of a joke on me.