Chapter 5: Old Sparks, New Flames
354 Words
Olivia couldn't stop replaying the kiss with Noah in her head. It had been everything she had imagined and more—warm, electric, and filled with years of what-ifs finally given an answer. But now that it had happened, what did it mean?
Natalie, of course, had an opinion. "So? Spill. Was it everything you dreamed of? Or did you totally embarrass yourself?"
Olivia, sprawled on her bed with her phone on speaker, sighed. "It was… incredible. But now I don’t know what comes next."
"You cross his name off the list and move on to the next one, duh."
Olivia hesitated. "What if I don’t want to?"
Natalie gasped dramatically. "Oh my God. Are you catching *feelings*?"
"I don’t know! Maybe? I mean, it’s Noah. And we never really got closure. What if there’s still something there?"
Natalie clicked her tongue. "This was supposed to be fun, Liv. A nostalgic little adventure. You’re not supposed to fall for someone."
"But what if this is what I was meant to find out? That I never stopped liking him?"
Natalie groaned. "Ugh. Fine. So what’s your next move?"
Olivia chewed on her lip. "I think I need to see him again."
---
Meanwhile, Noah was having a conversation of his own.
"You kissed *Olivia Parker*?" his best friend, Ryan, asked incredulously as they lifted weights at the gym.
Noah wiped sweat off his forehead. "Yeah."
Ryan shook his head. "Dude, you don’t just *kiss* Olivia Parker. You’ve been hung up on her for years."
Noah sighed. "I know. But now I don’t know what’s next."
"Well, do you *want* there to be a next?"
Noah thought about it. The way Olivia had looked at him before the kiss. The way his heart had pounded. "Yeah. I think I do."
Ryan grinned. "Then stop overthinking and do something about it."
---
That evening, Olivia was just settling onto her couch when her phone buzzed.
**Noah:** *Dinner tomorrow? Just us?*
Her heart skipped. She grinned and typed back.
**Olivia:** *Sounds like a date.*
And just like that, the list was about to take a very unexpected turn.
- Writer
