The first morning of being Liam's girlfriend felt… quiet. Layla woke up and didn't immediately roll over to check her phone for a cryptic, late-night text from the house next door. Instead, she looked at the wildflowers on her nightstand. They were starting to wilt at the edges, but they were physical proof of a choice made.
She messaged Liam a simple "Good morning :)" and watched the bubbles appear instantly. It was a strange sensation, to not have to wait, to not have to wonder if she was being ignored, to not have to decode a single thing. Liam was open-source code. He was easy to read and impossible to crash. For the first time in months, Layla felt like she was breathing air that wasn't heavy with smoke and secrets.
As she got ready for school, she caught herself avoiding the window, not out of longing, but out of a desire to keep her new peace intact. She didn't want to see if Jade's car was in the driveway. She had called "bullshit" on his apology, and she meant it. The "Jade era" was a glitch she had finally patched.
At school, the secrecy added a layer of thrill that Layla hadn't expected. Because they had agreed to keep it private for now, every interaction with Liam felt like a hidden transmission. They met in the back of the library, tucked away in the stacks where the light was dim and the air smelled of old paper.
"I feel like I'm in a movie," Liam whispered, leaning against a shelf as Layla sat at a small wooden table. He reached out and tangled his fingers with hers. "The secret agent and the girl who finally said yes."
Layla laughed, and the heaviness that had lived in her chest for weeks finally started to lift. "I just want it to be ours for a while, Liam. No drama, no opinions from Sarah, no… noise."
"I get it," he said, his eyes softening. "But just so you know, it's really hard not to walk into the middle of the Agora and tell everyone you're mine."
He leaned in and kissed her. It was a soft, lingering kiss that tasted like peppermint and promise. Layla leaned into it, closing her eyes and letting herself feel the steady, uncomplicated heat of him. There was no ghost in the room, no static in her mind. For the first time, she wasn't wondering where someone else was or what someone else was thinking. She was just here, with a boy who actually showed up.
The "private" part of their relationship was tested the moment she stepped out of the library. She was walking to her next lecture when she saw him.
Jade was leaning against a concrete pillar, surrounded by his usual crew. He looked exactly the way he had before everything started, bored, untouchable, and dangerously handsome. But as Layla approached, his eyes snapped to hers.
She didn't look away. She kept her pace steady, her expression the same icy mask she'd worn in the driveway. She saw the moment he noticed the change in her. It wasn't in her clothes or her hair; it was in the way she didn't stumble. She didn't falter. She walked past him as if he were just another piece of architecture in the building.
"Hey, Layla," Kianna called out, her voice friendly as ever from where she stood near Jade.
Layla stopped, giving a small, polite nod. "Hey, Kianna."
Jade didn't say a word. He didn't even acknowledge her with a nod. But Layla felt his gaze burning into the side of her face, a silent, heavy pressure. She didn't let it affect her. She had won. She had moved on. She walked away, her heart hammering a rhythm of pure defiance
The shift at Tim Hortons was a blur of caffeine and routine. She stayed late, helping the manager close up, feeling a strange sense of accomplishment. She was working, she was studying, and she had a boyfriend who treated her like a priority. The system was finally running the way it was supposed to.
She was taking out the trash through the back door when the cool Montreal air hit her. She shivered, pulling her uniform jacket tighter.
"Hey," a voice called out.
She looked up to see Liam's car idling near the curb, the headlights cutting through the dark parking lot. He hopped out, walking toward her with a lopsided grin and two hot chocolates in his hands.
"I know you said you wanted to keep it private," he said, stepping into the light. "But I didn't want you waiting for the bus this late. I'm a 'boyfriend' now, remember? I have duties. No more public transit for my girl."
The phrase my girl hit her with a fresh wave of reality. It felt solid. It felt right. She walked over to him, letting him wrap an arm around her shoulder as he guided her toward the passenger side.
"You're a dork," she whispered, leaning her head against his shoulder.
"Yeah, but I'm your dork," he countered, kissing the top of her head.
As he drove her home, Layla looked out the window at the passing streetlights. She felt a sense of finality as they pulled into her driveway. Liam waited until she was safely inside her front door before waving and driving off.
She walked upstairs, but she didn't go to the window. She didn't check the dark house next door. She just turned off her light and went to sleep, the scent of Liam's peppermint gum still lingering in her mind. The ghost was still in the machine, but Layla had finally found the "delete" key.