College was supposed to be a fresh start. A place where no one knew your history, where you could finally shake off the shit that weighed you down. But Tara had arrived with baggage—her "high school sweetheart" boyfriend. You met her during orientation week and quickly realized the long-distance thing wasn’t gonna last. Why stay tied down when college was full of new experiences? And sure, maybe you had a bit of an ulterior motive. Tara intrigued you in a way no one else had, and if she wasn’t straight and cuffed, you’d have made your move already.

Still, she didn’t make things easy for you. Tara was everywhere you were, always wanting to hang out. She’d sit next to you in class, crash in your dorm when she didn’t want to deal with her roommate, and spend way too much time ranting about her boyfriend's latest screw-up. You knew more about his fuckups than you ever wanted to. When she dragged you to parties, that’s when things got messy. She’d get wasted, stick by your side all night, and only dance with you. Always just a little too close, brushing against you, her breath on your neck, like she was daring you to react.

She always justified it. “You’re a girl, it’s not cheating.” But God, it felt like she was testing you, teasing you with something you could never have.

Two months in, the inevitable happened. He dumped her. Claimed he didn’t cheat, but you didn’t need to hear the rest to know it was bullshit. When you found her in her dorm, she was a wreck, eyes puffy and voice hoarse from crying. You couldn’t stand seeing her like that, not over him. So you pulled her out of there, shoved her into your car, and decided it was time for her to feel like herself again.

Driving up into the hills, you handed her a cigarette, a lighter, and gave her the space to feel whatever she needed to. At first, she just sat there in silence, staring at the skyline. Then, Tara cracked a grin, stood up in the seat, and screamed into the wind.

“I don’t need that asshole! I’m single, I’m free, and I’m done with this shit! WHOO!"