It was summer time and Miles was a free man. Unlike his siblings, he had neither classes or a job to stand in between him and his shenanigans. On one end he had his best friend who was more than ready to join him today at the beach. On the other end, he was waiting for a call from Zoë because he was sure that they were going to hang out. Yup, any day now. The call would come. She was probably just busy with…

Tristan. He didn't expect to see them both at the beach that day too. His former boyfriend recently dyed his hair black and it looked so good. Dark, edgy, sexy. It made his skin look even more amazing, and the tank top he was wearing showed off his arms wonderfully. Had he been working out? Seeing him was all the more of a reminder that Tristan must be painting the town red with who knows how many eligible bachelors while he was still stuck without anyone.

You are a terrible person. You use and abuse people and one day you're going to wake up and realize that you have nobody. And I am so happy that I won't be there for that sad, sad day.

The prediction terrified him. Because being free also meant being alone and he needed to change that. Miles thought that he and Zoë had something going on before the semester was over. They hit it off well enough during community service. So of course dating had to be inevitable. Who ever heard of a guy and a girl just being friends? There's no point in fighting nature. He brought her to the concert as promised. They didn't kiss, but when he took her hand she didn't pull away. And when he was raving about the Hollingsworth Annual Post-Exam Extravaganza, he saw the panic wash over her face and that made him quickly scale the invite list down to six, which she greatly appreciated. They had a good time until Hunter turned into the ultimate party pooper. Arlene quickly excused herself after that embarrassing display and Zoë took that as her cue to leave as well before promising Miles that she would call him.

Then why wasn't she eating out of the palm of his hand? This was definitely a jarring difference compared to dating Tristan who never was shy about showing his affection while they were together. His ex didn't believe in playing mind games and he always adored the simple things in life. Like that time Tristan challenged them to go on dates where neither one of them were allowed to spend a nickel. When it was Miles' turn, he bought him to a quiet part of the park and sat on a tree stump to serenade Tristan with his guitar. He took great pleasure at watching the boy melt with every bar he sang. It had actually been a while since he played, but being with Tristan brought out all kinds of sides out of him that he either buried over time or simply didn't know existed. When the performance was over, Tristan gracefully rose from where he was sitting and gently took the guitar to carefully place it on the ground. He then sat on Miles' lap, wrapped his arms around his neck and slowly kissed every inch of his boyfriend's face to show his appreciation.

Miles forced himself out of that memory. He didn't want to be anyone's boyfriend. Despite some shining moments, at the end of the day he royally sucked at it. But once again, he didn't want to be alone so that's why he needed Zoë to call him some time this summer and soon. After what happened to her this year he was willing to bet that she wouldn't be interested in an all-in intense relationship either. Friends with benefits on the other hand could be fun. He needed to keep it casual and this time he'll be bracing himself for it to crumble like they always do. He did not have the best track record so maybe if he didn't throw himself too deeply it wouldn't hurt as much when it would be over. It was just going to be a rebound, right?

Because even though he couldn't predict the future, one way or another he'll always manage to be the one to drive everyone away.