(Alexis's POV)
I was too busy preparing for the workshop that I forgot that we had a mock test next week.
After facing off my parents, I had no plan of doing anything else,except studying for this mock test, so that I can take my mind off things.
In short,
The plan was simple: study all weekend, finish the mock test preparation , drink disgusting amounts of black coffee, and pretend that everything was fine. That was the plan.
Then Amelia kicked open the door to our dorm room with a sunhat three sizes too big on her head and sunglasses that made her look like a chaotic celebrity avoiding paparazzi.
"We're going out," she declared. "And you're not allowed to argue."
I looked up from my laptop. "I'm studying."
"You're rotting," she corrected. "There's a difference."
Before I could protest, Jhonathan showed up behind her, calm and smiling, holding what looked like a map of the amusement park and a literal picnic basket. Who even owned one of those?
And Ethan? He was already downstairs, honking a bike horn he found somewhere and shouting, "TOUCH GRASS, ALEXIS. THE WORLD AWAITS."
So that's how I ended up shoved into a car with my best friend, a pookie psychologist, and a menace in human form, heading to the most chaotic, unhinged amusement park in a 40-mile radius.
The air smelled like cotton candy and broken dreams.
The first ride was a rollercoaster Ethan practically begged us to try. I'm not saying I cried—but I definitely screamed so loud I might have dislodged a few internal organs.
We laughed so hard coming off that ride I nearly tripped over Amelia's Crocs.
We played carnival games next. Ethan somehow had the hand-eye coordination of a Marvel character and won me a stuffed animal so ugly it was almost cute. It looked like a lopsided raccoon that had seen things. I named him Harold.
Jhonathan bought us all lemonades. Amelia drank half of mine and then said it was too sweet. I didn't care. The sun was warm. My friends were louder than my thoughts. For the first time in a long time, I didn't feel like I was performing sanity. I just was.
We screamed on spinning rides. Got motion sick. Ate pizza slices bigger than our faces. Amelia nearly threw up after a haunted house but then insisted on doing bumper cars twice.
The ride that changed everything, though? The Ferris wheel.
It was just starting to get dusky, the sky painted in strokes of lavender and gold. We paired off, Ethan with me, Amelia with Jhonathan. I watched as they got into their seats—Jhonathan offered his hand instinctively, and Amelia took it like it was the most natural thing in the world.
From down below, I watched their silhouettes rise into the sky.
And I swear—they didn't let go. Not even once.
Later, Amelia teased him about his clammy hands, and Jhonathan just smiled and said, "Guess we were both nervous."
Amelia didn't deny it. And she didn't stop holding his hand even when we got ice cream afterward.
Time blurred. In the best way.
"Last stop," Jhonathan said, pulling out the map again. "The beach. Sunset. Trust me."
So we drove. Music blasting. All the windows down.
When we got there, it was quiet. Golden. Like the world had hit pause.
We kicked off our shoes and ran. Amelia shrieked when the water hit her ankles. Ethan tried to skip rocks and hit his own foot. Jhonathan laughed—really laughed, head thrown back, soft and rare.
I just stood there.
Taking in this moment and the beauty of the setting sun.
Feet in the surf. Wind in my hair. Salt on my lips. My chest was full of something I hadn't felt in months.
Peace.
Just that.
We sat on the sand, legs tangled, clothes damp, skin sticky from sunscreen and sea breeze.
Amelia flopped beside me. "You've laughed more today than the entire semester."
I shrugged, eyes on the horizon. "I forgot what it felt like."
Ethan leaned back, arms behind his head. "You don't always need a reason to feel joy. It's not an achievement. It's a right."
Jhonathan added, voice like honey, "You're not betraying your pain by smiling."
My eyes stung. Not from salt. Not from sadness. Just...being too full.
I looked at them—my messes, my miracles. I had wanted to disappear for so long. But now?
Now I just wanted to stay.
Before we left, Ethan snapped a photo.
Amelia was in the middle of kissing jhonathan on the cheek, Jhonathan's arm was around her shoulders, their fingers still linked and slight surprise on the face from the sudden kiss from Amelia. I had sand in my hair and a dumb plushie named Harold in my lap. Ethan by my side with his hand around my shoulder and looking down at me, smiling. I looked... happy, just like everyone around me.
When I got home, I printed the photo. Taped it in my notebook.
Underneath, I wrote:
Today I didn't check my reflection to see if I looked okay.
Today I didn't flinch at my own laughter.
Today, the sadness took a nap.
And I lived.
That was enough.