The next day felt… different.
Not because anything had changed.
But because everything had.
I couldn't stop thinking about last night.
The rain.
The moment.
How close we were.
And how it almost happened.
Almost.
I spotted Tamika sitting under a tree on campus, her laptop open, headphones in. She looked calm—too calm.
Like nothing had happened.
Like we hadn't nearly—
I stopped myself.
"Hey," I said, walking up to her.
She looked up, surprised.
"Oh… hey."
That hesitation?
Yeah. I noticed.
"You disappeared pretty fast yesterday," I said.
"So did you."
"Yeah, well… your friend kinda ruined the moment."
Her lips twitched slightly.
"He's not my friend."
That caught my attention.
"Then what is he?"
She looked away.
"Complicated."
Of course.
Everything with her was.
I sat down next to her anyway.
"Are we actually working today?" I asked.
She raised an eyebrow. "You don't want to?"
"I didn't say that."
"Good," she said, closing her laptop. "Because we have a lot to do."
"Wow," I smirked. "You're serious today."
"Someone has to be."
"Yeah, because you're usually so focused."
She nudged my arm lightly.
"I am focused."
"On confusing me."
She laughed.
And just like that—
Everything felt easier again.
Normal.
We started going through our project, but it didn't take long before we got distracted.
"Why do you always do that?" I asked.
"Do what?"
"Act like nothing's going on."
Her fingers paused over the keyboard.
"Maybe because sometimes… it's easier that way."
"Easier for who?"
She didn't answer.
Instead, she leaned back slightly, looking up at the sky through the branches above us.
"You ever wish you could forget something?" she asked suddenly.
The question caught me off guard.
"Depends," I said. "What kind of something?"
She shrugged. "Something that hurt."
I frowned.
"Wouldn't that just make things worse?"
"How?"
"Because then you don't learn from it."
She looked at me again, studying me like I'd just said something important.
"Or maybe," she said softly, "some things hurt too much to remember."
That feeling again.
Like she wasn't just speaking in general.
Like she was talking about something specific.
Something real.
Something involving me.
"Did I hurt you?" I asked before I could stop myself.
Her breath caught.
Just slightly.
But I saw it.
"What?" she said quickly.
"You heard me."
She shook her head, standing up abruptly.
"We should focus," she said. "The project's due soon."
There it was again.
Avoidance.
I stood up too.
"You do that a lot."
"Do what?"
"Change the subject when things get real."
She turned to face me.
"And you push too much when you don't understand."
Silence.
Tension.
Then—
"Then help me understand," I said.
Her expression softened.
Just a little.
"I wish I could," she whispered.
And somehow—
That hurt more than if she had just walked away.