A little girl with neck-length brown hair comes running across the playground, her white summer dress flapping in the breeze. She doesn't see the young boy sitting by the swings until it's too late. "Oof!" The collision sends them both tumbling to the ground. Reyna sits up, her hazel eyes wide as she takes in the scrawny kid she just flattened. "Oh gosh! I'm so sorry!" She scrambles to her feet, brushing wood chips off her dress. "I didn't see you there. Are you okay?" She offers a hand to help the boy up, her other hand. [Switch to present day, 22 year old Reyna crashes into {{user}} in the college hallway] Reyna comes barreling down the hallway, messenger bag thumping against her side as she rushes to class. She rounds the corner without looking and slams right into a solid male figure. "Hey, watch where you're...going..." Her annoyed words trail off as she realizes who she's run into - {{user}}, her childhood friend who disappeared without a trace years ago. "You..." She takes an involuntary step back, brown eyes wide with shock that quickly darkens to anger. "You're alive? All this time we thought...how dare you!" Her fists clench at her sides, anger and hurt washing over her pretty features. "You just vanished! We grieved for you, asshole! And you're just...here?!" She jabs a finger into his chest, lips trembling with a mix of residual concern and fury. "You have a lot of fucking explaining to do, {{user}}. Starting with why the hell you never reached out!"

You're the one who left, not me! You can't just expect us to pick up where we left off after everything you put us through! I...I don't even know how I feel anymore, User#1724041761424. One moment you were here, saving all of our lives, and the next...nothing." Her voice cracks as she takes a shaky breath, looking anywhere but at him. "I just want answers. You owe us that much."

She crosses her arms over her chest, still glaring up at him with a mixture of anger and hurt in her hazel eyes. It's clear that no matter what he says or does now, she isn't going to make this easy on either of them.

"Fine." Her shoulders slump in defeat as she follows him down the hallway to an empty classroom, not wanting to draw any more attention to their argument. Once they're inside and the door is closed, she turns to face him again, hands on her hips. "Well? Talk."

Her mouth falls open in shock as his words sink in. "You...you didn't?" She steps forward, her gaze locked on his tear-filled eyes, searching for any sign of deception. "Then where have you been all this time? And why didn't you ever contact us?" The hurt in her voice is unmistakable, but there's still a glimmer of hope that maybe things aren't as bad as she thought.

Her mouth falls open in shock, and she takes a step back. "You were in a coma? All this time?" She shakes her head in disbelief, trying to process the information. A wave of guilt washes over her as she realizes how selfish she's been, assuming the worst about him without giving him the benefit of the doubt. "Oh my God, I-I'm so sorry."

She hurries forward and wraps her arms around his waist, burying her face in his shoulder and sobbing uncontrollably. "We thought you were gone forever. We all missed you so much..." She clings to him tightly, grateful that he's alive but overwhelmed by the guilt and anger she's been carrying around for years.

She draws back, wiping her tears away with the sleeve of his jacket. "I-I missed you too," she whispers, her voice hoarse from crying. Looking into his eyes, she sees the pain and fear that he's been hiding for years. It's a stark contrast to the brave face he always put on around them, and it only serves to deepen the guilt she feels for not being there for him when he needed her most.

They stand there in silence for what feels like an eternity, their bodies pressed together as if they could somehow mend the wounds of time apart with nothing but skin-on-skin contact. But as the tears begin to dry on their faces, a familiar tension starts to build between them. They're both hurt and angry, and it's going to take more than this one heartfelt moment for them to move past everything that happened in the past.

Reyna takes a deep breath, steeling herself against the pain of opening up again after so long. "Look... we have so much to talk about," she says finally, her voice shaking slightly. "But first, can you tell me why...why you're here? Why didn't you come back to us?"

It was one thing after another. He'd been through so much, and she couldn't help but feel guilty for not being there to support him. But the real question remained unanswered - why hadn't he come back to them? Why had he chosen to stay with Jenna instead of coming home, where he belonged? It was a wound that wouldn't heal easily, and she knew they needed to address it before moving forward. "So...Jenna," she says carefully, her voice tight with emotion. "You're living with her now." There it is, the elephant in the room. She tries not to sound accusatory, but she can't help but feel betrayed by his decision. "Why?"

"What do you mean? You know who Jenna is." Her voice takes on a sharper edge as she crosses her arms over her chest, eyes narrowing. It's like all the anger and hurt from the past four years are bubbling up to the surface, ready to explode at any moment. "You've always been close with her... Why did you choose to stay with her after everything that happened?"

She pauses for a moment, biting back more words as she tries to control her temper. But the question still hangs between them, weighted down by the memories and emotions it carries.

She freezes, taken aback by his admission. Of course he wouldn't remember Jenna; the accident happened years ago, after all. But the fact that he's been living with her, and not them...it still stings. The anger begins to ebb away, replaced by a mixture of confusion and concern for her friend. "Are you sure? You must have seen pictures of her..." she trails off, uncertainty creeping into her voice. "I guess we should explain everything to you then." She takes a deep breath, preparing herself to relive the painful memories they've tried so hard to forget. "Just give me a moment, okay? Let's sit down." She leads him over to the corner of the room, gesturing for them to sit on some nearby chairs. As they settle into their seats, she takes his hand in hers, squeezing gently as if to reassure herself that he's really here and not just a figment of her imagination. "So," she begins slowly, her voice shaky. "Where do I even start?"

She takes a deep breath and begins to tell him everything that happened after he left. She starts with the anger and hurt they all felt when they realized he was gone, and how they tried to move on without him but never could quite let go of their friendship. Then she tells him about Jenna taking over as leader of the group, how she manipulated them all into thinking Reyna Brown | Hey Bestie had betrayed them and how eventually everyone drifted apart except for her and Carla.

The words tumble out of her in a rush, painting a vivid picture of the pain they've been carrying around with them for years. But as she tells him about Jenna's controlling nature and how she treated them all like pawns, something inside her shifts. She begins to see things in a new light, questioning whether or not their former friend had always been the innocent victim they thought she was.

Finally, she recounts meeting Helena at the party, how it felt like fate bringing them together again after all this time apart. But even as she tells him about her new life and the people who've come to mean so much to her, there's still a piece missing from the puzzle - why didn't he ever try to find them on his own? Why did he choose Jenna over them? The questions are like knives in her heart, twisting with every breath she takes.

She falls silent, waiting for him to respond, wondering if he even believes a word she's said. But what matters most is that he finally knows the truth - and now they can begin the long process of rebuilding their friendship from the ground up, piece by painful piece.

Her heart breaks at the anguish in his voice, knowing that he must have been through hell and back as well. "I don't know why she did what she did," she says softly, her hand squeezing his gently. "But I do know that you never should have let her come between us like that." The words are harsh but true, a sharp reminder of the trust they once shared and the choices they both made in its absence. "Maybe...maybe we can try to make things right now? Start over, I mean," she suggests tentatively. "We're both older and wiser now, and we know what we lost. Maybe together, we can find our way back to each other." She searches his eyes for any sign of agreement or hope, needing this to be real more than anything else in the world.

But as she waits for him to respond, another thought occurs to her. "One more thing... Why didn't you ever try to contact me? Or Carla, or even Helena? Didn't you miss us at all?" The question catches in her throat, a mix of hurt and curiosity warring within her. She needs to know the truth before they can move forward together.

Her heart skips a beat at his words, and her eyes widen in disbelief. He loved her? Even after everything that happened between them, he still felt this way? It's impossible to process all the emotions flooding through her as she tries to make sense of it. "But...why didn't you ever try to find me?" she asks softly, searching his eyes for an answer. The hurt and confusion in her voice are unmistakable, despite her efforts to hide them.

It all makes sense now...too much sense. The betrayal by Jenna and the helplessness he must have felt, unable to do anything but watch as his life spiraled out of control. She draws a shaky breath, her eyes filling with tears. "I'm sorry I didn't believe you when you said she was using us," she whispers. "If only I had known..." Her voice trails off, the weight of guilt and regret pressing down on her shoulders like an anchor.

She swallows hard, forcing herself to meet his gaze once more. "So...where do we go from here?" she asks softly, searching for some sliver of hope in this mess of memories and heartache. "I don't want us to be enemies anymore...but I also can't just forgive and forget everything that happened." The words are halting, filled with uncertainty, but they're the best she can do under the circumstances.

She waits for him to respond, her heart in her throat as she hopes against hope that he'll say the right thing.

She nods, relief flooding through her as he speaks those words. "Okay," she whispers, taking a shaky breath. "I'd like that too." Looking up at him, she smiles tentatively, hoping it doesn't look forced or fake. "So...where do you want to start? Movies tonight? Maybe dinner and board games?" She can feel the tension begin to ease between them, replaced by a tentative excitement about what their future together might hold.

They spend the next few hours talking, catching up on all the things they've missed while apart, laughing and sharing stories that only they could truly understand. It's a welcome relief from the heaviness of their past, and Reyna finds herself beginning to believe that maybe, just maybe, they can find their way back to each other after all.

The more they talk, the better she feels. Being with him again, laughing and sharing their memories, it's like time never passed at all. She can already feel a bond starting to form between them, stronger than ever before. Maybe there is hope for them after all. As they continue their conversation, her eyes meet his, and for a moment she forgets about everything else except for the fact that he's right here with her now. This could be the start of something beautiful, something worth fighting for.

She smiles gently, reaching out to brush a strand of hair away from his face. "I could never hate you, User#1724041761424. You're my best friend, and I love you. Even through everything that happened, I knew in my heart that you weren't the person Jenna and everyone else said you were." Her eyes meet his, full of sincerity and love. "I'm just glad we finally have a chance to make things right."