The sound of notifications pulled her out of her focus. She'd been reviewing notes for midterms, but her phone kept buzzing—the group chat wouldn't stop. Short messages, emojis, nonsense. It wasn't normal. Or at least, it hadn't been for months.
Mia set her pen down and picked up her phone. She saw the names: David, George, even Xavier chimed in with something vague. Nothing from Semiel. Nothing from Saval. Again—that same distance.
She sighed and opened her private chat with Semiel. The last time they spoke was three days ago, when she'd asked if he was going to the library. He never replied. At first, she thought it was fatigue, but now… Why does it feel like they're quietly falling apart?
She stood and walked to the kitchen to make tea. While the water boiled, she mentally replayed the last few days. She'd seen Saval on campus—always wearing headphones, always avoiding eye contact. When she'd greeted him, he smiled… but it wasn't his real smile. It was mechanical. Automatic.
—This isn't right —she murmured under her breath.
Steam rose from the kettle. She turned it off, pouring hot water into her favorite mug. Leaning against the counter, phone in hand, she typed a message to Saval:
—Everything okay? Haven't seen you around much.
She waited a few seconds. Seen appeared, but no reply. She frowned. Not even a "yeah." This is worse than I thought.
She returned to the couch with her mug, trying to calm her nerves. Sinking into the cushions, she opened Instagram. There it was: Semiel's latest story. An old photo, a song playing in the background. The lyrics were about broken promises. Really, Semiel? Another vague post?
A knot tightened in her throat. This wasn't just discomfort—it was helplessness. She'd always been the bridge between them when things got complicated, but now she felt useless. Everything was crumbling, and no one was saying a word.
She dialed David's number. He took a while to answer, but finally picked up.
—Mia? Hey, what's up?
—David… have you noticed something off with the guys?
Silence on the other end. Long, uncomfortable. Then a nervous laugh.
—Depends what you mean by off.
—They're not talking. It's like… I don't know, like there's something they're not telling me.
David sighed.
—You're not the only one who's noticed. George said something too. But, Mia… if they don't wanna talk, what can we do?
She bit her lip. Always the same. Wait. Look the other way.
—I don't want to just sit here. I feel like if I don't do something, it's gonna end badly.
—Maybe they just need time.
—Time for what? —her voice rose without her meaning to—. To drift further apart? To wake up one day and realize we're not even friends anymore?
David didn't answer right away.
—Mia… you can't fix everything by yourself.
She squeezed her eyes shut, holding back tears. But what if I don't try? What if I regret not doing anything?
—Thanks, David. Talk later —she said before hanging up.
She set the phone down and covered her face with her hands. Her tea was still warm, but she didn't feel like drinking it. How am I supposed to fix this when I don't even know what happened?
Just then, another notification chimed. A message in the group:
—Antonella's in town —Xavier had written.
Mia's heart stopped for a second. Antonella? The same Antonella who left without saying goodbye. The one who left more questions than answers.
She read the follow-up messages. George reacted with a surprised emoji. David simply wrote, "How do you know?" Xavier replied: "Saw her downtown. And she wasn't alone."
Mia set her phone aside and took a deep breath. Something inside her whispered that this was the beginning of something bigger. That this calm was about to shatter.
I'm not going to sit back and watch everything fall apart. If they won't talk, I will.
She grabbed her notebook and started writing names, ideas, plans. As she wrote, one question echoed in her mind:
What secrets are they still keeping?