Maybe in the next life

*"Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"* --- *Chapter 1: The First Time I Saw Her* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > I didn’t know her name. > I didn’t know anything about her. > > But the room shifted. > The air got quiet. > > She walked in, and something in me moved. > Like I’d been waiting my whole life > and didn’t know what for > until I saw her. > > I didn’t speak to her that day. > I just watched. > And I thought: > _I want to know her._ --- *Chapter 2: Where I Met Her* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > It wasn’t planned. > It was ordinary. > > But when our eyes met, > it stopped being ordinary. > > She laughed at something. > I don’t even remember what. > But I remember the sound. > > I remember thinking: > _I could listen to that forever._ > > That’s where I met her. > That’s where "us" started. > Before we even knew it was "us." --- *Chapter 3: The Funeral* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > She lost someone. > Someone important. > > I wasn’t there. > I missed it. > And I hated myself for that. > > But at 10pm that night, > my phone lit up. > Her name. > > Voice shaking. > Words breaking. > > I didn’t have answers. > I didn’t have the right things to say. > > So I just stayed. > On the line. > Breathing with her. > > That night I learned: > I don’t have to fix it. > I just have to be here. > And that was enough. --- *Chapter 4: Five Hugs* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > She couldn’t talk. > Couldn’t even look at me. > > She was shaking. > Like the world had taken too much from her. > > So I didn’t ask questions. > I just opened my arms. > > Once. > She leaned in. > > Twice. > She held tighter. > > Three. Four. > Still shaking. > > Five. > She finally exhaled. > > No words. > Just five hugs that said: > _I’m not going anywhere._ --- *Chapter 5: The Goals* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > One night we stopped talking about the past. > And started talking about the future. > > "What do you want?" I asked. > "What scares you? What excites you?" > > She told me. > I told her. > > We weren’t just flirting anymore. > We were building. > > Dreaming out loud. > Laying bricks for something. > > It felt easy. > It felt like home. > Like we’d always fit. --- *Chapter 6: Boyfriend / Girlfriend* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > The words came up in between jokes. > In between silences. > > "So... are we...?" > She didn’t finish. > I didn’t either. > > But we both felt it. > That question hanging there. > Heavy. > Hopeful. > > We weren’t ready to name it yet. > But we were already living it. --- *Chapter 7: The Almost-Kiss* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > It was late. > We were close. > Too close. > > I could feel her breath. > She could feel mine. > > Time slowed. > My heart was loud. > > And then... > We pulled back. > > We didn’t kiss. > But we both knew. > We wanted to. --- *Chapter 8: Silence* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > Then nothing. > Days. > > No calls. > No texts. > No "good morning". > > My chest felt hollow. > I kept replaying everything. > Did I do something? > Did we ruin it? > > I thought we lost us. > In the quiet. --- *Chapter 9: Tiramisu* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > Her birthday. > I was sick. > Fever. > Body aching. > > But I remembered. > I remembered she loved tiramisu. > > So I got up. > I went. > > When she saw me, > she smiled. > Not a polite smile. > The real one. > The one that reaches her eyes. > > "You came," she said. > "Even sick." > > I’d do it sick every time. --- *Chapter 10: Her Aunt* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > She came to me with heavy eyes. > > *"I told my aunt about us."* > She paused. > *"She doesn’t approve of you."* > > My chest dropped. > After everything. > After the birthday. > After the goals. > > But then she said the next part. > The part that mattered. > > *"So now... it’s my decision."* > > And she chose me. > Even with the disapproval. > She chose me. --- *Chapter 11: "I Love You"* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > A year. > A whole year of waiting. > Of almosts. > Of hoping. > > And it arrived at the worst time. > With aunt saying no. > With everything complicated. > > But she said it anyway. > Looked me in the eyes and said it. > > *"Finally, Alex... I love you."* > > My heart skipped. > Every piece of me lit up. > > In that moment I knew: > There’s no end to this. > Only forward. --- *Chapter 12: "It Doesn't Matter, But I Respect It"* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > I held her hands. > > *_"Your aunt’s approval doesn’t matter... > but I respect it."__ > > Because I respect her. > Where she comes from. > Who raised her. > > Then we talked. > For hours. > About how far we’ve come. > From 10pm calls > to five hugs > to tiramisu > to this. > > About how comfortable we are. > Like we don’t have to pretend. > Like home. --- *Chapter 13: University* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > We didn’t want it to end. > Neither of us. > > So we made plans. > Real ones. > > *"I’ll come visit you at university."* > *"We’ll shower together."* > > Simple things. > But they meant everything. > Because they meant _future_. --- *Chapter 14: Her Mom* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > She took it further. > To the person she loves most. > > *"Yesterday I called my Mom."* > *"I told her about us."* > > And Mom said: > *"Focus on your goals. Focus on uni."* > > Not a no. > But a "not now." > And that hurt. > Because it came from love. --- *Chapter 15: 6 Months* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"_ > *"We agreed,"* she said. > Voice soft. > > *"No talking."* > *"No texting."* > *"No seeing each other."* > *"For 6 months."* > *"To make my decision."* > > It felt like the air got sucked out. > After "I love you." > After the plans. > > But she didn’t ghost me. > She didn’t choose in secret. > She told me. > To my face. > > And I respected it. > Because that’s what love does. --- *Chapter 16: Tomorrow* _From "Talking To You Is My Favorite Place"* > Tomorrow she tells me > what we should do. > > I don’t know what she’ll say. > I’m scared. > I’m hopeful. > > But I know my answer. > > *"Whatever you decide,* > *I still love you.* > *I still want an us."* > > After a year of waiting. > After everything. > My answer doesn’t change. --- *To be continued..