Summer in July

In an exam center,a large hall filled with students quietly arranged on their sit (rows and columns) waiting for the exam to start, everywhere was as silent as graveyard, Among the student was Evelyn ,holding her pen tightly and whispering to herself that she will make it through, her heart was beating fast and she was filled with anxiety and determination. The exam was going to be a life changing exam for her so it meant everything. She looked everywhere in the hall to calm herself down. The exam began, Evelyn felt more anxious and tried to focus, but then she thought of the promise she made to her mother and determined to do her best. An hour later, the invigilator announced the end of the exam, Evelyn sigh out of relief, knowing she was done, she packed her things then she realized she had dropped her ID card, she searched for it and found it under her chair. Just as she bent to pick it up, a hand helped her with it. Is this yours? He asked. She looked up to see him, holding her ID card. She gazed at him, looking at this calm and relaxed young man,his features caught her attention even more- his kind eyes, dark curly hair, curving lips and his approaching calm expression. “Uh, yes, thank you,” Evelyn answered, taking the card from him. He smiled at her….. Gazing into her eyes, He got attracted by her beauty, and decides to strike up a conversation” “Hope you did well in the exam” he asked, holding his bag on his shoulders. Evelyn blinked, determined. “Yes,maybe” He looked at her again and smiled, “You had that determined look. Like someone who knows what they’re doing”. She laughed, and shake her head. “If only you knew how nervous I was”. “Really? Wow it’s not obvious. I’m Liam, by the way. “Evelyn,” she replied. As they walked out of the exam center, they conversed effortlessly. They talked about a lot of things, where they both came from and all, discovering shared goals and slightly enjoying each other’s company. By the time they reached the gate. Liam became more attracted towards her, So he asked himself in his thought (Do I have feelings for Evelyn?) he flashed off his thought quickly and came back to reality. Just then Evelyn was about to leave with her school friends, then he called her back and asked for her number, Evelyn reluctantly gave him and then they both ended the conversation by biding each other goodbyes” Liam had an elder brother, and his brother had a car. So he came to pick him up. While driving, Liam glanced up and noticed Evelyn walking with her friends along the roadside, so he asked his brother to stop the car so he could offer Evelyn a ride. His brother slowed down and rolled down the window as they pulled up beside Evelyn. "Need a ride?" Liam called out to her, his voice warm and inviting. Evelyn paused, surprised by the offer. She glanced at her friends, who shrugged and smiled, encouraging her to take it. After all, it had been a long day, and the walk home didn't seem appealing. "Sure, thank you," Evelyn said with a smile, stepping closer to the car. Liam's brother greeted them politely, and they all climbed in. The ride was light-hearted, filled with small talk and laughter. Liam dropped Evelyn and her friends off at their destination, and they exchanged a few parting words. Evelyn was surprised by how easy it felt to talk to him, considering the brief exchange they'd had earlier. Later that evening, as Evelyn settled in at home, her phone buzzed. It was a message from an unknown number. "Hey, it's Liam from earlier today! I just wanted to make sure you got home okay." Evelyn smiled, her fingers quickly typing a response. "Hey, Liam! Thanks for the ride. I'm home safe. Hope you're doing well." They exchanged greetings and reintroduced themselves, both realizing they hadn't shared their names properly earlier. The conversation flowed easily as they began to talk more, getting to know each other beyond the brief encounter in the exam hall. As the days passed, Evelyn and Liam's connection deepened. Their daily texts turned into longer phone calls, and soon, they found themselves spending more time together. However, Evelyn began to notice something strange in Liam's behavior. He was attentive, yes, but at times, it seemed like his attentiveness bordered on something else-something possessive. It started with small things. Whenever Evelyn mentioned a male friend or someone she was spending time, Liam's responses become's cold and his tone changes somehow... He would start asking questions like, Where were you? Who were you with? Evelyn brushed it off at first, thinking it was just a little insecurity. After all, they were still getting to know each other, and it was normal to feel protective early on. But soon, it became clear that this wasn't just normal behavior-it was something much deeper. One evening, Evelyn was hanging out with a group of friends, Liam sent her a message and asked if he could FaceTime, Evelyn replied and said okay; "Who was that guy you were talking to? You seemed pretty close." This made Evelyn's stomach tighten. She had talked to a friend-just a friend. Nothing more. She ended the call and quickly typed back, trying to clear his misconceptions. "He's just a friend from college. Nothing to worry about." But Liam didn't let it go. "You looked like you were having a great time. Don't forget who you're with now, Evelyn. I don't want you getting too close to anyone else." Evelyn's heart dropped. She stared at the screen, unsure of how to respond. There was a possessiveness in his words that she hadn't noticed before. It was subtle at first, but now it was getting unbearable. Everything was going smooth, but there was something off with Liam, He's a jealous type, anytime Evelyn mentioned a male friend or someone she's with, Liam responses become cold, his tones changes somehow...... Evelyn brushed this behavior off because she was thinking it's a little insecurity and he was being protective of her. After all they are just getting to know each other so bring protective would be a normal thing. But with time Evelyn couldn't see as something normal anymore, she noticed it was getting deeper and unbearable..... The next day, they met up, but liam seemed off. He was quiet and moody. Evelyn asked "what happened? You're not like this, is there something wrong somewhere, but his jealousy was over their conversation. "Liam what's going on" she finally asked, saying in a soft but firm voice. "Why are you acting like this? It's just a friend. Trust me you have nothing to worry about." Liam looked her and frowned his face even harder, he was filled with so much frustration. "It's not just that guy, Evelyn. It's all of them. I don't like seeing you with other people. You belong to me only, it drives me nut when I see you giving attention to someone else." Evelyn’s breath caught in her throat. The words felt stupid and suffocating. She had never experienced this kind of love nor did she expect that type of behavior from Liam. She always thought Liam was confident and mature, but things didn't happen as she thought. “You can’t control me, Liam,” Evelyn said, her voice shaking but determined. “I’m not yours to claim. You don’t own me.” Liam looked taken aback by her words, but the jealousy in his eyes remained. “I just… I just don’t want to lose you...... Evelyn stood up, her heart beating fast. She knew she had to make a choice. She couldn’t let this jealousy define their relationship—not when it made her feel trapped. “I can’t be with someone who doesn’t trust me, Liam,” she said firmly. “I need someone who respects me, not someone who tries to control me.” With that, Evelyn wanted to walk away, but Liam held her back, he realized what he did and apologized, but unknown to Evelyn, Liam was full of insecurities because of his past relationship, Liam begged Evelyn to stay, guess Evelyn was not aware of Liam past, Liam opened up to her about his past and eveything.... He told her about his EX, he caught his EX cheating with her EX, he heard rumors, his friends warned him but he didn't listen, he was so in love with his EX he couldn't pay attention to what others said about her, but Liam is the type of guy that travels a lot so this give his EX more chance to do whatever she wants, So one day Liam decided to go on a particular trip but it took him a while before he came back to town. Liam arrived in town, and he decided to surprise his girlfriend, he got her flowers, he was so excited he's going to see his girlfriend after several weeks of being apart, so he went to her house, on getting there he saw his girlfriend and her EX kissing each other, he was so disappointed he left without giving her a notice, he blocked her everywhere,he deleted his socials, he became depressed and couldn't focus on anything.