Episode 7: Almost, But Not Quite
1408 Words
The weeks passed quietly.
Not because life had become easier.
Because everyone had become used to the chaos.
Assignments no longer surprised them.
Late-night study sessions had become routine.
Coffee had practically become a food group.
And somehow...
Westbridge University was beginning to feel like home.
---
Bailey was halfway through organising her colour-coded notes when someone sat opposite her in the library.
She didn't even look up.
"You're late."
Cedric blinked.
"You knew it was me?"
"You always drop your bag on the chair before you sit."
"I do?"
"You do."
Cedric looked mildly impressed.
"I didn't realise I had habits."
"You have plenty."
"Name another."
Bailey finally looked up.
"You tap your pen whenever you're thinking."
Cedric immediately stopped tapping the pen in his hand.
"...That's unsettling."
She smiled triumphantly.
"I notice things."
"I thought Chloe was the observant one."
"I'm learning."
"Oh no."
"What?"
"I'm creating another version of myself."
"Thankfully not."
He pretended to look offended.
"That hurt."
"You'll recover."
"I don't know."
"I might need emotional support."
Bailey rolled her eyes.
"I'll buy you a coffee."
Cedric grinned.
"I knew guilt would work."
---
Their friendship had settled into something comfortable.
Neither of them had spoken about the coffee shop again.
Neither had called it a date.
But every few days...
One of them would casually ask the other to grab lunch.
Or walk to class together.
Or study in the library.
It was never planned.
It simply...
Happened.
And every time it did, both of them secretly hoped the other would say yes.
---
Later that afternoon, they walked across campus carrying takeaway coffees.
Cedric glanced sideways.
"I have a question."
"Should I be worried?"
"Probably."
Bailey laughed.
"Go on."
"If someone..."
He cleared his throat dramatically.
"...hypothetically enjoyed spending time with another person..."
She looked at him.
"Hypothetically?"
"Hypothetically."
"...would that person ask them out?"
Bailey pretended to think.
"I suppose they would."
Cedric nodded seriously.
"Makes sense."
Silence.
Bailey nudged him gently.
"Do you know someone in that situation?"
"No."
"Really?"
"No."
"You seem oddly invested."
"I'm simply conducting research."
She smiled.
"You're terrible at hiding things."
He looked at her.
"So are you."
For just a moment...
Neither of them joked.
Neither of them looked away.
Then Bailey laughed first.
"Good thing we're only speaking hypothetically."
Cedric smiled.
"...Exactly."
Neither of them noticed how disappointed they both sounded.
---
Across campus...
Chloe closed her Psychology notebook.
"You've been waiting long?"
She smiled.
Maverick was sitting on the low brick wall outside her lecture building.
"Five minutes."
"You could've texted."
"I knew you'd come out eventually."
She sat beside him.
"So..."
"What are we doing today?"
He shrugged.
"Walking."
"That's the plan?"
"That's the whole plan."
She laughed.
"I like simple plans."
"I know."
"You do?"
"You always look happiest when nothing complicated is happening."
She paused.
"That's oddly specific."
"I pay attention."
The two of them wandered through the quieter parts of campus.
Past the botanical gardens.
Past the old clock tower.
Past students rushing between lectures.
They spoke about childhood memories.
Favourite books.
Music.
The future.
With Maverick...
Conversations never felt forced.
There was no pressure to fill every silence.
Sometimes they simply walked.
And somehow...
That was enough.
---
"You've smiled more this week."
Maverick said quietly.
Chloe looked ahead.
"Have I?"
"I think so."
She smiled again.
"Maybe that's your fault."
"I'll accept the blame."
She laughed.
"You know..."
He continued.
"...you don't always have to carry the whole world by yourself."
Her smile faded slightly.
"I know."
"But it's difficult."
"I figured."
She looked at him.
"You never ask what happened."
"If you want to tell me..."
He shrugged.
"...you will."
"And if I don't?"
"I'll still be here."
Those four words settled somewhere deep inside her.
I'll still be here.
She hadn't realised how much she needed to hear them.
---
Meanwhile...
Bianca was healing.
Slowly.
It wasn't dramatic.
There wasn't one magical day where everything suddenly felt okay.
Instead...
She found herself smiling a little more each morning.
Laughing a little louder.
Thinking about Skylar a little less.
One afternoon, Stella noticed.
"You're humming."
Bianca blinked.
"I am?"
"You've been humming while making noodles for five minutes."
Bailey smiled.
"That's progress."
Bianca looked down at the pot.
"...Maybe."
"I think I'm finally accepting it."
Bailey wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"You deserve someone who chooses you."
Bianca smiled softly.
"I know."
"And one day..."
"...someone will."
---
Unfortunately...
Skylar wasn't moving on.
If anything...
He was becoming worse.
Chloe's phone buzzed during her lecture.
Skylar:
Can we talk?
She ignored it.
Five minutes later...
Another message.
Please.
She locked her phone.
When class ended...
There were three more.
I can't stop thinking about you.
Please don't ignore me.
Just reply once.
Her stomach dropped.
---
The messages continued.
Every day.
Morning.
Afternoon.
Night.
Sometimes they were apologies.
Sometimes they were questions.
Sometimes...
They were simply,
Are you okay?
Chloe never replied.
---
Thursday evening...
She knocked gently on Bailey's bedroom door.
"Come in."
Bailey looked up from her laptop.
One look at Chloe's face and she immediately closed it.
"What happened?"
Without speaking...
Chloe handed her phone over.
Bailey scrolled.
And scrolled.
And scrolled.
Dozens of unread messages.
Her expression darkened.
"He's still texting?"
Chloe nodded.
"He won't stop."
Bailey sighed heavily.
"This is getting out of hand."
"I know."
"What if he tells Bianca?"
"I know."
"What if he gets tired of waiting and tells her everything himself?"
Chloe covered her face with her hands.
"I know."
Bailey reached over and gently lowered her hands.
"Then you have to tell her first."
"I'm scared."
"I know."
"But every day you wait..."
"...you lose control of the story."
Chloe felt tears sting her eyes.
"I don't want to lose Bianca."
"You might."
The honesty hurt.
"But..."
Bailey squeezed her hand.
"...you'll definitely lose her if she finds out from Skylar."
Silence filled the room.
Deep down...
Chloe knew Bailey was right.
---
Friday finally arrived.
Stella slammed another law textbook onto her desk.
"If I read one more case..."
She sighed dramatically.
"...I'm suing somebody."
Bailey laughed.
"You can't sue your lecturers."
"Watch me."
Bianca smiled.
"You've been saying that all week."
"I've meant it all week."
Bailey stretched.
"We're going out tonight."
Stella looked up.
"We are?"
"Yes."
"No studying."
"No assignments."
"No talking about lecturers."
Bianca frowned.
"What are we doing?"
Bailey smiled.
"We're going to the cinema."
---
That evening...
The four girls walked through the shopping centre laughing like they had during orientation week.
For the first time in weeks...
Everything felt lighter.
They argued over popcorn sizes.
Stella insisted on buying the biggest bucket.
Bailey claimed she'd only eat "a little."
Within ten minutes...
She'd eaten nearly half.
"I knew it."
Stella laughed.
"You said you weren't hungry."
"I wasn't."
"So who ate my popcorn?"
"...Magic?"
"Bailey."
"Fine."
"It was me."
Bianca laughed so hard she nearly dropped her drink.
"There she is."
Bailey smiled.
"Who?"
"The Bianca we've missed."
Bianca looked around at her three best friends.
The sadness hadn't disappeared completely.
But tonight...
It didn't feel so heavy.
"Thank you."
She whispered.
"For not letting me be alone."
Stella immediately wrapped an arm around her.
"You'll never be alone."
"Ever."
Chloe felt her heart tighten.
She looked at Bianca's smile.
At Bailey.
Who quietly met her eyes from across the row.
Bailey didn't say a word.
She didn't have to.
The look alone said everything.
Tell her.
The film began.
Everyone's attention turned towards the screen.
Everyone except Chloe.
Her phone vibrated inside her bag.
She already knew who it was.
She didn't need to look.
She ignored it.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Outside the cinema, somewhere in the same city...
Skylar stared at his own phone.
Still no reply.
His thumb hovered over the keyboard once more.
He typed.
Deleted.
Typed again.
Finally...
He pressed send.
Skylar:
If you won't talk to me... I'll have to tell Bianca everything.
The message appeared on Chloe's screen just as the closing credits began to roll.
Her smile disappeared instantly.
Her hands began to shake.
Bailey noticed.
"What happened?"
Chloe silently handed her the phone.
Bailey read the message.
The colour drained from her face.
She looked at Chloe.
Neither of them spoke.
Because they both understood the same thing.
The secret they had been trying so desperately to protect...
Had finally run out of time.
- Writer
