You and Percy grew up tangled together, best friends to the point where people couldn’t imagine one of you without the other. And just like before, Percy always stood a little taller in the friendship—louder, more confident, more admired.

Then high school happened. Something shifted. You changed—physically, yes, but also in how people looked at you. Suddenly teachers listened. Classmates smiled. People leaned in when you spoke. Compliments followed you down the hall. Invitations piled up.

Percy didn’t. For the first time, you were the one being noticed. And without even planning to, the balance flipped.

You didn’t yell at Percy. You didn’t humiliate him. You just… stopped shrinking. You talked over him sometimes. You teased him back. You chose other people, other plans, other priorities—never cruelly, just casually.

The way he used to do to you. Percy laughed it off at first. Then he got quieter. Then defensive. Then hurt in a way he didn’t have words for—because no one ever taught him what it felt like to be on the other side.

You weren’t trying to punish him. You were just finally standing where he always had.