For the next few days, Nadia began disappearing again.
Not completely.
She still came to class. Still answered when Stephen spoke to her. Still smiled sometimes.
But she left faster now.
She no longer waited outside his class.
No longer walked beside him unless he asked first.
And when he looked at her, she looked away.
At first, Stephen told himself he was imagining it.
Then one afternoon, he saw her leave the library without even saying goodbye.
That was when he knew.
Something had changed.
By evening, the sky was grey.
A soft rain had started to fall across campus, quiet and steady.
Stephen stood outside Nadia's hostel building with his hands in his pockets, waiting.
When she finally appeared beneath the small roof outside the entrance, she stopped in surprise.
"Stephen?"
He looked up at her.
"We need to talk."
Nadia's heart immediately began to beat too fast.
"About what?"
"You."
She looked down quickly.
"There is nothing to talk about."
Then she stepped past him.
Stephen caught her wrist gently.
"Why do you keep running from me now?"
The words made her stop.
For a second, she said nothing.
Then she laughed softly, but it sounded sad.
"Because before, you were the one running from me."
Stephen let go of her wrist immediately.
The truth of it hit him harder than he expected.
Rain fell quietly around them.
"I know," he said after a moment. "And I am sorry."
Nadia shook her head.
"You do not have to do this."
"Do what?"
"Feel guilty."
Stephen frowned.
"I do not feel guilty."
She looked at him then.
Really looked at him.
"Then why are you here?"
He was quiet for a second.
Because the truth was, he did not know how to explain it.
How to explain that for the past week, he had started noticing everything.
The empty seat beside him when she was not there.
The way he looked for her face first in every room.
The way every small thing somehow made him think of her.
"I keep looking for you," he said quietly.
Nadia's breath caught.
"When something happens, you are the first person I want to tell."
He stepped closer.
"And when you leave…" He swallowed. "I miss you."
The rain seemed louder suddenly.
Nadia stared at him.
"You do?"
Stephen nodded slowly.
"I am not avoiding you anymore."
Something in her expression broke.
Because this was not pity.
Pity did not sound like this.
Pity did not look at her the way he was looking at her now.
"You make me nervous," she whispered.
For the first time in days, Stephen smiled.
"You make me nervous too."
And somehow, that made her laugh.
A real laugh.
Soft and surprised.
Then Stephen reached for her hand.
This time, Nadia held on.