Time Heals All Wounds By Oliver Thomas 23 Summary
After deciding to end the relationship, the narrator experiences the immediate aftermath when Tanner blocks her. While deleting their shared pictures, she accidentally answers a video call from Ayla, revealing Tanner and his friends at a lively sports bar near campus. The group discusses the breakup, with Tanner confidently asserting that she won’t leave him and will come back eventually.
Tanner boasts about the narrator’s sacrifices, including turning down a scholarship to Oxford and changing her major just to be with him. Ayla teases Tanner for being a heartbreaker, while the others speculate that someone else might soon pursue the narrator now that they are all on campus. Tanner, however, remains unfazed and suggests that seeing other options might make her behave better.
The conversation turns critical of the narrator, with Tanner’s friends calling her “extra” and Ayla pretending to sympathize with Tanner’s frustration over the narrator’s emotional reactions. Tanner describes how she cried frequently during training camp, implying she is immature and overreacts. Despite the teasing, Tanner insists that the narrator is his girlfriend and Ayla is just a friend, emphasizing that it’s not a competition between them.
Feeling hurt and overwhelmed by their harsh words and Tanner’s dismissive attitude, the narrator ends the call without responding, signaling her emotional exhaustion and the deep conflict that has emerged between them.
Continue Regular Chapter Reading Below
Chapter 1
After I decided to call things off, the first thing Tanner did was block me.
I was still in the middle of deleting all our pictures when Ayla’s video call suddenly popped up on my screen.
My thumb moved too quickly—before I could think, I had accidentally answered.
The screen revealed a lively group crammed into a booth, probably at some noisy sports bar near campus.
One guy laughed loudly. “Bro, you seriously blocked her? You think she’s actually going to come crawling back this time?”
Tanner took a long gulp of his beer.
“Chill out. Addie’s not going anywhere,” he said confidently.
Her parents had lined up a full scholarship to Oxford for her, but she chose to follow me here instead. She even ended up majoring in Ancient Greek—yes, literally Ancient Greek—just to be at the same school as me.
“She can’t go three days without me. She always folds eventually.”
Ayla, dressed in a crop top and high-waisted jeans, leaned on Tanner’s shoulder with a sly grin.
“Ooooh, Tanner Miller—the heartbreaker!” she teased.
Tyler snorted into his drink, shaking his head.
“I’m just saying, man, she’s cute. Now that we’re all on campus, some business major with a fat trust fund is definitely gonna slide into her DMs.”
Tanner didn’t even flinch.
“Maybe it’ll do her some good. Let her see what else is out there. Might finally get her to act right.”
Another guy, Luke, chimed in: “Damn, if I had a girl like that, I wouldn’t be blocking her. I’d be scared she’d upgrade.”
Tanner rolled his eyes.
“She cried four out of six days at training camp. Four days. Just because I brought Gatorade to Ayla when she wasn’t feeling well.”
“Some people just need to grow up.”
Ayla put on a mock-sympathetic tone.
“I told him, I don’t want to cause drama. If she’s that insecure, I’ll stay out of your way.”
The guys ate it up.
“Addie’s kinda extra, not gonna lie.”
“Sounds like a ‘her’ problem. Ayla’s chill. And let’s be real—cute only gets you so far.”
Tanner finally frowned.
“Hey. Don’t talk about her like that. She’s my girlfriend. Ayla’s my friend. It’s not a competition.”
“I just want her to stop overreacting to everything.”
“All the crying. It’s exhausting.”
I’d heard enough.
Without a word, I tapped End Call.
Conclusion
The chapter closes on a poignant note, capturing the raw emotions that come with the end of a relationship. Addie’s silent decision to end the call reflects her internal struggle and the pain of feeling misunderstood and judged by those closest to Tanner. The contrasting perspectives between Tanner and his friends highlight the complexities of love, insecurity, and the difficulty of moving on when feelings still linger beneath the surface.
This moment underscores the themes of vulnerability and the challenge of finding closure amidst conflicting emotions. Addie’s quiet strength in choosing to disconnect speaks to her desire for self-respect and healing, even as the echoes of their shared past continue to resonate. The chapter leaves us with a bittersweet sense of longing and the hope that time, indeed, may heal all wounds.
What to Expect in Next Chapter?
Next chapter promises to delve deeper into the tangled emotions simmering beneath the surface of Tanner and Addie’s fractured relationship. As the echoes of that tense video call linger, expect to see Addie grappling with the raw sting of rejection and the sharp edges of insecurity. The dynamics between Tanner, Ayla, and the others hint at shifting alliances and unspoken tensions that could complicate matters even further, stirring up feelings of jealousy, frustration, and vulnerability.
The emotional landscape is set to become even more complex as Addie confronts not only Tanner’s cold distance but also her own doubts and desires. Will she find the strength to stand her ground, or will the pressure from Tanner’s circle and her own heart pull her in unexpected directions? The next chapter will explore how wounds begin to heal—or deepen—when pride, love, and friendship collide in the crucible of young adulthood.
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
