Chapter Five — Loud Silence
551 Words
Sarah's Point of View
Music filled Sarah's room, loud enough to shake the posters on her walls.
Normally, dancing helped.
It was the one place where she didn't have to think. Every beat drowned out the noise in her head, every step gave her something else to focus on.
Tonight...
it wasn't enough.
She stopped in the middle of a turn, breathing hard. The room suddenly felt too quiet.
With a dramatic sigh, she let herself fall backward onto her bed, staring at the ceiling.
Why was she thinking about him again?
Ace.
She groaned and buried her face in a pillow.
"This is so embarrassing."
Her phone buzzed somewhere beneath the blanket.
She ignored it.
Instead, her thoughts wandered back to Dunkin'.
To Joane's teasing.
To Marie's knowing smile.
To the way Ace had looked at her across the table.
Not staring.
Just... looking.
As if he actually listened whenever she spoke.
As if she mattered.
That thought made her chest tighten.
Sarah had spent most of her life pretending she was okay.
If she laughed first, nobody noticed when she wanted to cry.
If she joked enough, people stopped asking difficult questions.
It was easier that way.
Safer.
Love wasn't something she'd ever learned to trust.
People left.
People changed.
Promises disappeared.
She'd seen enough of that growing up.
So why did Ace make her wonder if maybe...
just maybe...
not everyone walked away?
She sat up and hugged her knees to her chest.
Her room was covered with polaroids of friends, handwritten quotes, and posters from her favorite artists.
Everyone talked about love like it was exciting.
To Sarah...
it felt terrifying.
Not because she didn't want it.
Because she wasn't sure she knew how to keep it.
She reached for her phone.
Maybe she could send Ace a meme.
Or ask a random question about homework.
Anything that didn't sound like I miss talking to you.
Before she could unlock the screen, another notification appeared.
Will:
You disappeared fast after Dunkin'. Everything okay?
Sarah smiled.
Typical Will.
She typed a reply.
Yeah. Just tired.
Three dots appeared.
Then another message.
Good. Ace was wondering if you got home safe.
Her thumb froze above the screen.
She read the message again.
Then a third time.
A small smile escaped before she could stop it.
Without replying, she placed the phone beside her and reached for the novel Ace had lent her a week earlier.
A worn sticky note slipped from between the pages.
She picked it up carefully.
"This character reminds me of you.
She gets scared...
...but she keeps moving forward anyway."
—Ace
Sarah stared at the note.
Something warm settled quietly in her chest.
It wasn't a grand confession.
It wasn't a promise.
It was simply...
kind.
She folded the sticky note carefully and placed it inside her journal instead of back in the book.
Maybe that was enough for now.
Maybe she didn't have to figure everything out tonight.
Outside, the wind rustled the trees beyond her window.
Sarah turned off the music and lay back against her pillow.
For the first time in a long while, the silence didn't feel lonely.
It felt peaceful.
And somewhere between fear and hope...
she realized she was beginning to look forward to seeing Ace again tomorrow.
- Writer
