The Distance between us
649 Words
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Chapter 13: The Distance Between Us
Aisha didn’t answer his call.
She stared at her phone as it rang.
Once.
Twice.
Then it stopped.
Her chest tightened immediately after.
She wasn’t angry.
She wasn’t confused.
She was scared.
Vanessa’s words kept replaying in her mind.
Remove yourself.
Maybe that was the only way to stop the damage.
Maybe loving someone powerful meant becoming a target.
And she was tired of being the battlefield.
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The next morning on campus felt different.
Not because people were whispering.
But because she chose to walk the longer route to class.
The one that avoided the courtyard.
The one that avoided him.
When she saw him standing near the main steps, searching the crowd—
She turned the other way.
Her heart beat painfully.
But she kept walking.
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Zayn saw her.
He noticed immediately.
The shift.
The hesitation.
The way she looked away.
He didn’t chase her.
Not yet.
He watched.
Trying to understand.
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By afternoon, he found her in the library.
She was pretending to read.
He stood across from her table.
“You’re avoiding me.”
She didn’t look up.
“I’m studying.”
“Aisha.”
Her name in his voice made her fingers tighten around the page.
“You didn’t answer my call.”
She finally looked up.
Calm.
Too calm.
“We shouldn’t be seen together right now.”
The words felt like ice.
“Why?” he asked quietly.
“You know why.”
He did.
But he wanted to hear her say it.
“This war is getting bigger,” she continued softly. “And it started because of us.”
“It started because of them,” he corrected.
She shook her head slightly.
“It doesn’t matter who started it. I can’t afford it.”
There it was.
Not pride.
Not ego.
Reality.
“My scholarship is suspended. Your father is angry. Vanessa is waiting.”
She swallowed.
“And I’m the easiest piece to remove.”
He stepped closer.
“You’re not a piece.”
“But I’m the one bleeding.”
Silence fell between them.
Heavy.
Painful.
“I don’t regret standing up,” he said quietly.
“I know.”
“But I regret that you’re hurting.”
She gave a small, sad smile.
“That’s why we need space.”
The word felt final.
Space.
Distance.
Safety.
“I don’t want you to fight for me,” she whispered. “I want you safe.”
“And I don’t want you alone.”
Her eyes softened.
“That’s exactly why this is hard.”
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For the next few days, they became strangers in public.
No sitting together.
No walking side by side.
No eye contact longer than a second.
The campus noticed.
“See? It was just drama.”
“I knew it wouldn’t last.”
“She used him.”
“He got bored.”
The rumors shifted again.
But this time—
They didn’t defend themselves.
They let it happen.
Because silence was safer.
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Vanessa observed everything carefully.
And for the first time—
She felt unsettled.
This wasn’t the explosive fight she expected.
This was controlled sacrifice.
And somehow…
That was more dangerous.
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That evening, Zayn sat alone in his car outside Aisha’s street.
He didn’t go inside.
He didn’t call.
He just sat there.
Respecting the distance she asked for.
But hating every second of it.
Inside her room, Aisha stared at the ceiling.
Her phone in her hand.
His name at the top of her messages.
She typed:
Are you okay?
Then deleted it.
Distance meant discipline.
And discipline meant survival.
But why did survival feel like heartbreak?
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The war had quieted.
But the silence between them was louder than anything before.
They were trying to protect each other.
But in doing so—
They were slowly breaking.
- Writer
