Starting Over
560 Words
The crisp air carried the scent of fallen leaves as Emilia stepped into the art studio. Her fingers were wrapped tightly around her sketchpad, heart pounding more than it should. Across the room, Liam was already waiting, seated at a paint-splattered table with his notebook open, a quiet smile tugging at his lips.
She hesitated at the doorway, part of her tempted to turn around and walk away. But she didn’t. Not this time.
“You’re early,” she said softly as she approached.
“I didn’t want to miss this,” he replied, voice low and sincere.
It had been days since they’d spoken—real conversation, not the awkward nods or silent passes in the hallway. This class project was the first time fate had decided to tether them again, and neither could ignore the pull.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, flipping through ideas for the art history assignment. The tension between them was still there, unspoken and fragile. But it wasn’t angry anymore. It was hesitant. Cautious. Human.
“I’ve been working on something,” Emilia said finally. She opened her sketchpad and turned it to a page filled with movement—two figures in charcoal, separated by a stormy sky, reaching for each other but not quite touching.
Liam leaned closer. “This… This is us, isn’t it?”
She didn’t deny it.
His voice dropped. “I hate that I hurt you. I hate that I ever said yes to that dare. But if you give me the chance… I want to rewrite this. Not for some challenge. For you.”
Emilia looked down, her thumb brushing a smudge on the paper. “Words are easy, Liam. Trust isn’t.”
“I know,” he said. “I don’t expect you to forget. I just hope someday, you’ll let me prove it wasn’t all fake. That somewhere in the mess, something real started.”
She glanced at him. The boy who once smirked at her silence now looked at her like she held the only truth he’d ever needed. And a small part of her believed he meant it.
For the next hour, they worked side by side, talking little but sharing space. The tension thinned, replaced by a delicate rhythm—familiar, but new.
As they wrapped up for the day, Liam turned to her again.
“Can I walk you back to your dorm?”
Emilia paused. “You can walk me halfway.”
He smiled, not pushing. “Halfway sounds perfect.”
They stepped into the early evening, the sidewalk damp from an earlier drizzle. The air was quiet between them, but this time, it was comfortable.
Emilia glanced sideways. “What made you stop… being that guy?”
Liam looked up at the pink-streaked sky. “You. When I saw how much I hurt you, I realized how little I liked the version of me who did that. I want to be someone you can trust. Even if it takes time.”
She didn’t respond right away, but when they reached the corner near the library, she stopped.
“This is my halfway.”
Liam nodded. “Thanks for letting me walk it.”
And as he turned to go, she called out softly, “Liam?”
He turned.
“I liked that version of you today.”
- Writer
