Pride didn't arrive loudly.
It arrived disguised as composure.
Aira told herself she was handling things well.
She didn't cry.
She didn't rant to Sia.
She didn't replay every word out loud.
She just… stayed quiet.
Too quiet.
At school the next day, she moved through the hallways like nothing was wrong.
Answered questions.
Smiled politely.
Focused on work.
And avoided Reyhan completely.
Not deliberately.
Just enough.
Reyhan noticed.
Of course he did.
She didn't look for him anymore.
Didn't wait near the gate.
Didn't slow her steps when he was nearby.
She wasn't angry.
She was guarded.
That hurt worse.
At lunch, Sia slammed her tray down dramatically.
"Okay. I'm calling it. You're doing the thing."
Aira frowned. "What thing?"
"The 'I'm fine so I don't have to be vulnerable' thing."
Aira stiffened. "I'm not avoiding him."
"You're avoiding feeling," Sia corrected.
"And he's doing the same."
Across the cafeteria, Reyhan sat with his friends.
Laughing.
Talking.
Looking normal.
Too normal.
Aira hated that it bothered her.
I'm not going to chase, she told herself.
I said what I needed to say.
Reyhan told himself something similar.
If she wants space, I'll respect it.
I won't push.
So neither of them did.
And the distance grew.
Not because of anger.
Because of pride pretending to be maturity.
---
After school, they crossed paths near the staircase.
Too close to ignore.
Too far to touch.
"Aira," Reyhan said.
She stopped—but didn't turn fully.
"Yes?"
He hesitated.
That hesitation said everything.
"I was going to ask if you wanted to talk," he said carefully.
Aira folded her arms—not defensive, just steady.
"I thought we agreed to pause."
"We agreed to not hurt each other," he replied.
"Not to disappear."
That stung.
"I didn't disappear," she said quietly.
"I just stopped forcing things."
Reyhan's jaw tightened.
"And I stopped asking," he said.
"Because I didn't want to look like I was begging."
There it was.
Pride.
Ugly.
Unnecessary.
Human.
Aira exhaled slowly.
"Neither of us is wrong," she said.
"But we're both letting ego talk instead of fear."
Reyhan looked away.
"I don't want to be the one who always reaches first," he admitted.
"And I don't want to be the one who always explains herself," Aira replied.
Silence again.
Different this time.
Heavier.
Reyhan finally said,
"If this ends because we were both too proud to be soft… I'll hate myself for it."
Aira's throat tightened.
"Then don't let it," she said.
He looked at her.
Really looked.
"Are you asking me to reach?" he asked.
Aira shook her head.
"I'm asking you to stop protecting your pride more than this," she said.
"And I'll do the same."
That mattered.
They didn't fix anything that day.
But they cracked the wall pride was building.
And sometimes… that was enough to keep things alive.
RULE #54: Don't let pride ruin everything.
Because losing first is better than
losing each other.