CHAPTER TEN
717 Words
Aurora's pov
MONDAY. 7:30 AM. KITCHEN
Valedictorian speech. Draft 6.
Trash can full of crumpled paper.
"Future. Change. Animal Science. Davis."
None of it sounded right. Ethan walked in. Sweats. Hair damp. He didn't look at me. Poured coffee. Left. No "morning". No "Milla". Nothing.
Luca came in behind him. "You okay?"
"Yeah," I lied. "Just the speech."
Luca studied me. Then glanced at Ethan's retreating back.
"Right," he said. "Speech."
The house felt different.
Like after a storm.
TUESDAY. 3:00 PM. DRESS FITTING
Blush pink. Long. Slit up the side.
Mom cried. Elena cried. I almost cried.
"Valedictorian Aurora Romano," the tailor said. "You're going to break hearts."
I forced a smile. "Just trying not to trip."
My phone buzzed.
CORY
'Proud of you Rory. You're gonna kill it ❤️'
'Still friends?'
Me: 'Always ❤️ Thank you'
Another buzz.
ETHAN
'Luca said fitting went well.'
'Don't stay out late.'
That was it.
No "you look pretty". No "I'm proud of you".
Just... logistics.
I stared at the dress in the mirror.
Maybe he didn't see me at all.
WEDNESDAY. 11:00 PM. MY ROOM
Speech. Draft 9.
'...and to the people who taught me how to be brave...' Delete.
'...and to my family, who...'
Delete.
I couldn't write it.
Every word felt like goodbye.
There was a knock.
Luca. "Can I come in?"
"Yeah."
He sat on my bed. "You're quiet."
"Just nervous and trying to finish the speech."
"About graduation?"
"About everything," I admitted. "Davis. Leaving. Him."
Luca went still. "Ethan?"
I nodded. "He's avoiding me."
"Ro-"
"He was in the living room Saturday," I said quietly. "Wasn't he?"
Luca sighed. "Yeah."
"Did he... did anything happen?"
Luca looked at me for a long time. "You fell asleep on him. He carried you to bed."
My face went hot. "Oh."
"That's all," Luca said. "But Ro. He hasn't been the same since the date."
"Because of Cory?"
"Because of 'maybe I don't know yet'," Luca said.
I covered my face. "I shouldn't have said that."
"Maybe," Luca said. "Or maybe you should've said more."
THURSDAY. GRADUATION REHEARSAL
Cap and gown. Hot. 200 people.
Ethan was there. In the audience. Reed Group polo. He clapped when my name was called. Professional. Distant. Like I was anyone. After, Mom hugged me. Dad took photos. Ethan stood by the bleachers. Phone in hand.
I walked over.
"Hey."
"Hey," he said. "Good job."
"Thanks."
Silence.
"You coming to the party tomorrow?" I asked.
"I have a Work commitment " he said. "But I'll be there for the ceremony."
"Right."
I nodded. "Okay."
He looked at me. Really looked.
For one second I saw it. The jaw tick. The green eyes dark.
Then it was gone.
"See you tomorrow, Milla," he said.
And walked away.
FRIDAY. 2:00 PM. GRADUATION
Blush pink dress. Hair down. Cap in hand.
My speech was in 10 minutes.
Backstage. Breathing.
'Draft 10. Final.'
The curtain opened.
200 faces. Cameras. Mom crying already.
I scanned the crowd. Dad. Mom. Luca. Elena.
And Ethan.
Front row. Arms crossed. Eyes on me. My heart did something stupid.
'Good evening, Class of 2026.'
'Four years ago, we walked in here as kids.'
'Today, we're walking out as people who have to figure it out.'
'That's terrifying.'
'I'm supposed to stand here and tell you about the future.'
'About changing the world.'
'And I will.'
'But first, I want to talk about the people who got us here.'
'To the teachers who stayed late.'
'To the parents who drove us to 6am practices.'
'To the siblings who drove us to everything else.'
'To the people who taught us how to be brave when we didn't feel brave.'
'Who let us fall, and then taught us how to get up.'
'We're leaving. Some of us across the country.'
'Some of us just across town.'
'But no matter where we go, we take them with us.'
'So thank you.'
'For the rides. For the lunches. For the second chances.'
'For believing in us before we believed in ourselves.'
'Class of 2026. Let's go be brave!'
The crowd stood up.
Applause. Cameras flashing.
My eyes found his.
Ethan.
Still frozen.
Jaw ticking.
But his eyes... they didn't look away.
Luca was clapping next to him. Looking between us. I walked off stage.
- Writer
