Something Changed
396 Words
Chapter Three —
The next few weeks changed everything.
Ryan and I became close.
We talked almost every day.
Sometimes about serious things.
Sometimes about things that made absolutely no sense.
He knew when I was upset even when I said I was fine.
One day, I walked into school looking tired.
Ryan noticed immediately.
“You didn't sleep.”
I dropped my bag on the chair.
“How did you know?”
“Your face.”
I laughed.
“Thanks.”
“You're welcome.”
I rolled my eyes.
He smiled.
“What's wrong?”
“Nothing.”
“Amelia.”
I looked at him.
He wasn't joking anymore.
“I'm just stressed.”
“About what?”
“Everything.”
He stayed quiet for a moment.
Then he said something I didn't expect.
“You don't always have to pretend you're okay.”
I looked at him.
Nobody had said that to me before.
I looked away quickly.
“I'm okay.”
“I know.”
He smiled softly.
“But if you're not, you can talk to me.”
I didn't answer.
I just smiled.
That was the moment something inside me changed.
I realized that Ryan wasn't just another friend.
He had become someone I looked for whenever I entered the classroom.
Someone whose messages I waited for.
Someone whose smile could make a bad day feel better.
And that scared me.
Because I knew what happened when people started caring too much.
They got hurt.
So I decided to keep my feelings to myself.
I thought I could.
Until one Friday afternoon, Ryan stopped me before I left school.
“Amelia.”
I turned.
“Yes?”
He looked nervous.
“What?”
He took a breath.
“I need to tell you something.”
My heart started beating faster.
“What is it?”
He looked into my eyes.
“I think…”
He stopped.
Then smiled nervously.
“I think you're becoming really important to me.”
I didn't know what to say.
For once, I had no joke.
No answer.
Nothing.
I just stood there looking at him.
And for the first time, I wondered if maybe I wasn't the only one feeling something.
Maybe Ryan felt it too.
And maybe...
just maybe...
the boy I never planned for was becoming the person I never wanted to lose.
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