Ben had thought distance would make things easier. Fewer chances to mess up, fewer chances to say the wrong thing. But the truth was, space only made the silence louder. Lizzy's laugh still echoed in his mind, her kindness shadowing his every thought.
He'd watched her from afar for weeks now not in the way he once did, timid and afraid but with the cautious eyes of someone trying to understand. She seemed brighter lately, more confident, and Funmi had mentioned she'd joined a campus club. He should've been happy for her, and he was. But every time he saw her surrounded by new people, a knot pulled tighter in his chest.
Ben wasn't the same boy from last semester either. The one who only hid behind Funmi's friendship, pretending it was Lizzy he didn't care about. His part-time job had forced him to speak up, and his grades had improved after long nights of studying alone. But the courage to talk to Lizzy still danced just out of reach.
Today, though, was different.
Funmi had invited him to study at the library. He'd agreed not because of the textbooks, but because Lizzy might be there. And when he walked in, there she was, leaning over her notebook, her hair falling in soft waves.
For a moment, he just stood there, unsure whether to approach or retreat. Then Lizzy looked up and smiled not the polite kind, but the kind that reached her eyes.
Something in Ben's chest shifted. Maybe it was time to stop hiding.