In between sundays

Unfolding

I didn’t plan any of it. Honestly, I only messaged Philemon because courage pushed me from behind like a stubborn friend. I wanted to learn coding, something techy, something to keep my mind busy. And maybe — just maybe — through him I could get close to Peter. That was my harmless little motivation.

But things have a way of shifting quietly.

Before I knew it, we couldn’t go a day without talking. Not even half a day. Sometimes it felt like the conversation just lived between us on its own, waiting for either of us to wake up and continue it.

We talked about everything — life, school, dreams, fears we didn’t even admit to other people. One particular day, we were joking and teasing each other as usual when he said he would come to my school. I didn’t think he meant it at first, but the way he kept asking questions about the gate, the ID card, how the security worked… it felt real.

So I played along, replying him with those short “Yes” and “Okay” messages he likes to complain about.

Then he dropped:

“So you will take me on tour right?”

And like it was nothing, I said:

“Anywhere you want.”

He replied instantly:

“Bills on you.”

“You will spoil me oo.”

I rolled my eyes but typed:

“Alrighty.”

Then he said something that entered my chest like a warm breeze:

“Okay bby.”

That one shook me small.

A few days later, I went to see him on his way to work. I told myself it was nothing serious , just a hug, a small walk, and a goodbye at the bus stop. But the hug stayed with me the whole day. The way he held me felt familiar and new at the same time. It did something to me I wasn’t prepared for.

And slowly, without noise, I started falling for him.

Not the butterfly-scatter type.

The calm, steady kind that feels like exhaling after a long day.

My crush on his brother? It just faded like mist. No struggle. No drama. I couldn’t hold onto a shadow when the real person was right in front of me every day, talking to me, teasing me, checking on me, letting me into his thoughts.

Maybe the person who said, “If you like someone and you fall for another, you never really liked the first,” was right.

Or maybe life just has its own way of surprising me.

All I know is: I never expected him.

But somehow, he became the part of my day I didn’t want to skip.