Episode 5: The Things We Don't Say
1441 Words
The hardest part about keeping a secret wasn't the secret itself.
It was pretending everything was normal.
For Chloe, every morning since Friday night had felt like she was walking through a room full of glass.
One wrong step.
One wrong word.
And everything would shatter.
Especially when that person was Bianca.
Her best friend.
The girl who trusted her with everything.
The girl who had spent the past few weeks smiling at her phone because of Skylar.
Chloe sat across from Bianca in the cafeteria, barely touching her breakfast.
Bianca, however, looked completely different from the girl everyone had seen weeks ago.
The girl who used to smile every time her phone buzzed.
The girl who would secretly read Skylar's messages and pretend she wasn't excited.
That girl was gone.
"You're quiet today," Bailey noticed.
Chloe immediately looked up.
"I'm always quiet."
"No."
Bailey shook her head.
"You're Chloe quiet."
The difference was obvious.
Chloe forced a small smile.
"I'm just tired."
Bianca looked down at her coffee.
Nobody believed that anymore.
---
The truth was becoming unbearable.
Every time Chloe looked at Bianca, she thought about telling her.
Maybe today.
Maybe after class.
Maybe when they were alone.
She rehearsed the words constantly.
Bianca, there's something I need to tell you.
I'm sorry.
It happened before I realised what I was doing.
But every time she imagined Bianca's face after hearing those words...
She couldn't do it.
Not yet.
---
That afternoon, Bianca finally said what everyone had been thinking.
"He ended things."
The room went silent.
The four girls were sitting inside Willow House, surrounded by textbooks and unfinished assignments.
Bailey looked up immediately.
"What?"
Bianca stared at her phone.
"Skylar."
Nobody spoke.
"He asked to meet me after class."
Her voice cracked slightly.
"And he said he doesn't think this is working."
Stella frowned.
"After everything?"
Bianca nodded.
"He said I'm amazing."
She laughed sadly.
"You know when someone says that, it's never a good sign."
Bailey moved closer.
"Bianca..."
"He said he doesn't want to hurt me."
A tear slipped down her cheek.
"But he already did."
Chloe felt like she couldn't breathe.
Every word hurt.
Every tear felt like it belonged to her.
Because part of it did.
---
Later that evening, Chloe found herself standing outside Bianca's bedroom door.
Her hand hovered over the handle.
This was it.
She was going to tell her.
She had to.
Bianca deserved the truth.
She opened the door slightly.
"Bianca?"
Her friend looked up from her bed.
Her eyes were red.
"Hey."
Chloe swallowed.
"I need to tell you something."
Bianca gave a small smile.
"Is this about Skylar?"
Chloe froze.
"No."
The lie came out before she could stop it.
Bianca looked away.
"I don't think I can handle more bad news today."
And that was the moment Chloe knew.
Not today.
Not when Bianca was already broken.
She quietly closed the door.
And the secret stayed.
---
While one friendship was struggling under the weight of a secret...
Another was quietly becoming something neither person expected.
---
Bailey walked out of her Mathematics tutorial carrying three books, a coffee and a look of complete exhaustion.
"You look like you lost a fight."
She stopped.
Cedric stood beside the staircase.
"I did."
"With who?"
"Statistics."
He nodded seriously.
"Understandable. Statistics has a history of violence."
She laughed.
"You are ridiculous."
"And yet..."
He pointed at her.
"You smiled."
"I always smile."
"Not when you see your textbook."
"Don't bring my textbook into this."
Cedric grinned.
"I knew it was your weakness."
They walked across campus together.
Neither of them had planned it.
It just happened.
Somehow, Cedric had become part of Bailey's routine.
Someone she looked for between classes.
Someone she knew would make her laugh when university felt overwhelming.
"So," Cedric said.
"What?"
"I've noticed something."
Bailey looked suspicious.
"That sounds dangerous."
"You complain a lot."
"I do not."
"You complained about your lecturer."
"Valid complaint."
"You complained about the cafeteria food."
"Also valid."
"You complained about the weather."
"It was raining."
"Exactly."
Bailey rolled her eyes.
"And what does this observation mean?"
He shrugged.
"Nothing."
"Nothing?"
"No."
He paused.
"I just find it entertaining."
She smiled.
"You enjoy annoying me."
"Maybe."
"Definitely."
"Okay, definitely."
---
On Friday afternoon, Cedric found Bailey sitting outside the library.
She looked up.
"You again?"
"Nice to see you too."
"I didn't mean it like that."
"You absolutely did."
She laughed.
He sat beside her.
"I have a proposal."
Bailey immediately became suspicious.
"That sounds illegal."
"It's not."
"Are you sure?"
"Mostly."
She laughed.
"Okay. What's the proposal?"
"We take a break."
"From studying?"
"Yes."
"Doing what?"
He looked offended.
"Bailey."
"What?"
"You wound me."
"What?"
"You think I only have academic activities planned?"
She raised an eyebrow.
"Do you?"
"...No."
She laughed.
Cedric smiled.
"There's a coffee place near campus."
"And?"
"And I think you should come with me."
Bailey stared.
"Is this you asking me out?"
"No."
"No?"
"No."
He nodded seriously.
"This is me strategically requesting your presence at a location where coffee exists."
"That sounds exactly like asking someone out."
"I disagree."
"Why?"
"Because I haven't panicked yet."
She laughed.
"You're strange."
"And you're coming."
She smiled.
"Fine."
"Excellent."
"Was that your plan all along?"
"Obviously."
"You didn't have a plan."
"I had confidence."
"You had luck."
"Same thing."
---
Meanwhile, Stella was fighting a completely different battle.
Her Law workload was slowly taking over her life.
Case studies.
Readings.
Assignments.
Group discussions.
She sat at her desk surrounded by papers.
"I think my textbooks are multiplying."
Chloe looked over from her bed.
"They're not."
"They are."
"They're just everywhere."
"Exactly."
Bianca smiled weakly.
"Maybe sleep?"
Stella looked offended.
"Sleep doesn't get me my degree."
"Neither does exhaustion."
"Debatable."
Despite everything happening, Stella remained the same person.
Strong.
Confident.
Always ready to defend everyone else.
Even when she was struggling herself.
---
A few days later, Chloe found herself sitting alone outside the Humanities building.
She hadn't noticed someone approaching until a shadow covered her notebook.
"You always sit alone?"
She looked up.
Maverick.
Her breath caught slightly.
The same guy from the Welcome Party.
The one she had noticed before she even knew his name.
"Sometimes."
He nodded.
"Mind if I sit?"
She shook her head.
"No."
For a few minutes, they sat quietly.
Maverick wasn't someone who forced conversations.
And Chloe appreciated that.
"You look like you're thinking too much."
She looked at him.
"Is that obvious?"
"Kind of."
She smiled slightly.
"You're observant."
"I could say the same about you."
That made her pause.
"How?"
"You notice everything."
She looked away.
"Sometimes I wish I didn't."
Maverick studied her expression.
"Something happened?"
She hesitated.
Normally...
She would say no.
She would change the subject.
She would pretend everything was fine.
But somehow...
Talking to him felt easier.
Maybe because he wasn't part of the situation.
Maybe because he didn't know Bianca.
Maybe because he didn't expect anything from her.
"I made a mistake."
Maverick didn't interrupt.
"I hurt someone."
"Did you mean to?"
"No."
"Does that change it?"
Chloe looked down.
"No."
He nodded.
"Then what matters is what you do next."
She looked at him.
"That's it?"
"What else can you do?"
"I can hate myself."
"That won't fix anything."
She was quiet.
Maverick continued.
"You seem like someone who carries everything alone."
She didn't answer.
Because he was right.
"You don't have to tell me what happened."
His voice softened.
"But you also don't have to carry it by yourself."
For the first time in days...
Chloe felt like she could breathe.
---
That evening, Chloe walked back to Willow House feeling slightly lighter.
She still had a secret.
She still had guilt.
She still had a decision to make.
But now...
Someone understood.
Someone who wasn't asking her to choose sides.
Someone who wasn't judging her.
And maybe that was exactly what she needed.
---
Meanwhile, Bailey sat at the coffee shop across from Cedric.
"You realise you're smiling?"
She immediately stopped.
"I am not."
"You are."
"No."
"Yes."
"You're annoying."
"And yet you came."
She tried not to smile.
Failed.
Cedric leaned back.
"You know..."
"What?"
"I think we're becoming friends."
Bailey looked at him.
"That's your big announcement?"
"Yes."
"Very dramatic."
"I like to make moments memorable."
She laughed.
And for a moment...
Everything felt easy.
No secrets.
No heartbreak.
No pressure.
Just coffee.
Conversation.
And two people who had unexpectedly found comfort in each other's company.
---
But across campus...
Chloe knew one thing.
Secrets didn't disappear.
They waited.
And eventually...
They demanded to be heard.
- Writer
