Who Will She Choose? The Ultimate High School Love Triangle

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In the YA romance “What Happens After You Confess Your Feelings to Someone?”, Chloe is a high school sophomore who’s deeply in love with a junior at her school named Mordecai. Although Mordecai already knows how Chloe feels at the start of the story, Mordecai’s feelings for her are unclear. And his actions don’t help much to clarify things for her.

But then we have Chloe’s good friend Simon. His feelings for her are obvious from the start, but he finds it hard to tell her how he feels. And that means he’s stuck in the friend zone with a front row seat to all the pain Mordecai causes Chloe with his seeming indifference to her feelings.

The thing is, Mordecai has secrets—secrets he only feels comfortable sharing with Chloe. These secrets help explain some of his odd behavior and moody ways, although Chloe loves him even before she learns any of them. But when she does find out, they allow her to understand him better.

When Friendship Gets Challenging

Simon is a great friend to Chloe from the start. He’s a new sophomore at her school, and Chloe and her best friend Krista do their best to make him feel welcome and invite him into their inner circle. But it doesn’t take long for Simon to learn about Mordecai. And when he does, he wonders what Chloe sees in him and why she’s so stuck on him.

Here’s an excerpt from Chapter 4 of “What Happens After You Confess Your Feelings to Someone?” that shows part of a conversation Simon has with Chloe soon after they first meet. (Chloe is narrating.)

“Can I ask you a bit of a personal question?” Simon says.

“Sure, go ahead,” I say.

“Was Mordecai the guy you saw at the library and couldn’t stop staring at?”

I smile. “Yeah, that was him.”

“But why do you like him so much if he’s always dating someone?”

I sigh. “I’m afraid you’d have to be inside my head for me to be able to explain that one.”

“Try?” he pleads.

“Well, I don’t know. We have a special connection. I mean, even when he has a girlfriend, he tells me there are things he can talk about with me that he can’t talk about with her.”

“Doesn’t that seem like a red flag to you?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, if you’re hoping to date him someday, he doesn’t seem like the greatest boyfriend if he can’t be totally honest with his girlfriend.”

“But if I were the girlfriend, he could be totally honest with me.”

“Then why doesn’t he just date you now?”

“You know why. I’m not allowed to date.”

“You sure that’s the only reason?”

“Ok, this is getting too personal for me. Can we change the subject?”

“Sorry, sure,” he says.

Simon and Chloe share a lovely friendship, but it can be tough for him. He doesn’t like Mordecai because of all the heartache he causes Chloe. But at the same time, he learns that if he wants to keep Chloe as a friend, he can’t try too hard to force her to give up on Mordecai. And that leaves him often frustrated by her attachment to Mordecai, especially since Simon is in love with her.

Mixed Signals from Mordecai

On the other hand, Mordecai and Chloe have a complicated friendship. And this one is more private than public. They communicate mostly through phone calls and instant messaging or IM, at least at the start of the story. But if they are just friends, why does Mordecai seem to be so jealous when he finds out that Chloe has a new male friend?

Chloe’s parents won’t allow her to date until she becomes a senior in high school. But if Mordecai liked her, wouldn’t he wait for Chloe instead of going out with girl after girl? Or wouldn’t he ask Chloe’s parents for permission to date her? Chloe thinks so, but Mordecai doesn’t agree.

Sometimes it seems like Mordecai might have feelings for her. But then he says or does something that confuses her. Here’s an excerpt from Chapter 14 that shows part of an IM conversation that Chloe and Mordecai have after she forgives him yet again for doing something to hurt her. (Chloe’s IM name is Simplesnowflake, while Mordecai’s is More2come81.)

Simplesnowflake: anyways…
More2come81: yes…
Simplesnowflake: since you officially acknowledged me at school
Simplesnowflake: twice
Simplesnowflake: are we officially school friends now too?
More2come81: uh…
More2come81: maybe its better that we still keep our distance at school
Simplesnowflake: why?
Simplesnowflake: because of…her?
More2come81: don’t say it like that
Simplesnowflake: never mind, I have to go anyway
More2come81: wait chloe don’t leave that way
Simplesnowflake: how do you want me to leave?
More2come81: happy that ur talking to ur best friend again
Simplesnowflake: Krista is my best friend
More2come81: ur best guy friend
Simplesnowflake: right, my best guy friend who’s ashamed to be seen in public with me
More2come81: chloe…
Simplesnowflake: I don’t think you understand how hard it is for me to see you day after day with other girls when you know how much I like you

Long pause.

More2come81: i’m sorry
More2come81: i guess i never really thought about how this made you feel
Simplesnowflake: I guess not
Simplesnowflake: but whatever
Simplesnowflake: I guess that’s just how things are
More2come81: no i can fix this
Simplesnowflake: you can’t
More2come81: no i will
More2come81: what if we have certain times when we can acknowledge each other at school?
More2come81: would that be ok?
Simplesnowflake: no, it wouldn’t
Simplesnowflake: I don’t like feeling like I’m the other girl
Simplesnowflake: I’ll just be the friend no one knows you have
Simplesnowflake: we’ll keep things as they are now
Simplesnowflake: bye
More2come81: but

I sign off before he has a chance to write anything else.

Chloe doesn’t like the idea of setting unhealthy boundaries around her friendship with Mordecai—boundaries that make sure he doesn’t have to give her what she really wants. She would rather stay private friends than devalue herself that way. But will Mordecai ever give Chloe what she wants—a real romantic relationship? Or will Simon find a way to win her heart after all?

You have to read the story to find out. But even then, it’s not that simple.

Who Will Chloe Pick? It’s Up to You

This isn’t a traditional young adult romance. When you start reading the story, the ending hasn’t yet been decided. Instead, when you get to a certain chapter, you’ll have the option of reading the rest of the story depending on whether you want Chloe to choose Simon or Mordecai.

That means it’s all on you to decide who she chooses.

Because this is a nontraditional way to read a teen romance, I’ve designed it so that you’ll need to join the What Happens After You Confess membership to read it. And just so you know, even though the story is the length of a young adult romance novel, it’s presented as a sequence of blog posts—one chapter per post.

So, who will Chloe end up with? The decision is up to you.

If you would like to learn more about the story and the membership, feel free to click here.

Final Thoughts

A complicated high school love triangle. An intense crush on a complex boy. Unrequited love for a good friend who’s irrationally attached to someone who doesn’t treat her well. And an undecided ending.

This is a love story you don’t want to miss.

If you’re a fan of YA romance and would like to experience one in a different way—in a way that puts you in the driver’s seat—then I hope you join the What Happens After You Confess membership.

~ Ashley C.

P.S. If you would like to sample more of my story-writing style, feel free to click here to read some short stories that are currently available.

Last updated: April 20, 2025