The day hadn't been complicated.
Coffee. A study table in the corner of a busy café. A few hours of conversation that wandered between school, movies, music, and quiet moments where words weren't even necessary.
But somehow, Alexander couldn't stop thinking about it.
Even now, lying on his bed with the late evening light spilling through the dorm window, he caught himself staring at the ceiling and replaying her laugh. The way she rolled her eyes at him, mock-annoyed, when he teased her about being a coffee snob. The small crease near her lips when she was thinking hard about something.
It wasn't a big deal.That's what he told himself.
But he didn't look at anyone else like this.
Mateo wasn't back yet, so the dorm was quiet. That suited Alexander fine. He sat up, elbows resting on his knees, fingers loosely laced as he stared at the scuffed floor.
You're overthinking, he told himself.It was just coffee.
But it wasn't.
Not when he noticed how natural it felt. Not when she leaned just a little closer to hear him over the noise of the café, and he felt that electric hum between them. Not when he realized he didn't want the day to end.
He grabbed his phone, scrolling through their texts. The last message was from earlier that afternoon—something simple, a half-joking thanks for helping her with a particularly confusing set of notes. He typed something. Deleted it. Typed again.
He wasn't good at this—this thing where you try to figure out how to let someone know they're on your mind without sounding desperate.
He'd never cared enough to try before.
But Elena wasn't like anyone else.
The phone buzzed in his hand. A message from her.
Elena:Hey. Are you doing anything this weekend?
Alexander's brows furrowed.
Alexander:Not really. Why?
Her typing bubble flickered for a moment, disappeared, came back again.
Elena:There's this festival just outside town—like, live music, food trucks, all that. Thought it could be fun. Want to come with me?
Alexander stared at the screen.Something in his chest tightened, then loosened, like a weight he didn't realize he'd been carrying.
He wasn't used to people asking him.Most of the time, he kept himself just out of reach—not intentionally, but because it was easier.Safer.
But she wasn't reaching in a way that felt suffocating.It felt... like an invitation to breathe.
Alexander:Yeah. I'd like that.
He set the phone down, leaning back against the wall with a quiet exhale.
Maybe this was nothing more than two friends hanging out.
But deep down, he knew better.Something was shifting.And for once—he wasn't afraid to see where it went.