LINES WE PRETEND NOT TO SEE
486 Words
Episode 5:
I tried to tell myself it was nothing.
Just a message.
Just a name lighting up my screen.
Just a guy asking if I wanted to hang out.
But my chest knew better.
I was lying on my bed when Daniel’s text came in again.
Daniel: Are you free tomorrow evening? I’d really like to take you out.
I stared at the words longer than necessary. Not because I didn’t know the answer—but because every answer felt like a betrayal of something I couldn’t even explain.
I hadn’t replied when my phone vibrated.
Unknown.
My heart reacted before my mind did.
Unknown: You’re thinking too hard.
I sat up slowly.
Me: You don’t know that.
Unknown: You press your thumb against the screen when you’re conflicted.
I looked down.
I was doing exactly that.
A quiet shiver ran through me—not fear, not excitement. Something deeper. Intimacy without permission.
Me: You shouldn’t know things like that.
Unknown: I shouldn’t want to.
The honesty in that line hit harder than any threat could have.
I swung my legs off the bed, pacing my room. The walls felt smaller lately, like they were closing in on the space he already occupied inside my head.
Me: Daniel asked me out.
The reply didn’t come immediately.
Seconds stretched. I imagined his jaw tightening, the way it had under the rain. The restraint he carried like a wound.
Unknown: And?
Me: I haven’t answered.
Another pause.
Unknown: Do you want to go?
I opened my mouth, then closed it. The truth sat heavy on my tongue.
“I don’t know,” I whispered, even though he couldn’t hear me.
Me: I want things to be simple.
Unknown: And I’m not simple.
There it was. No denial. No apology.
Me: You’re hiding from me.
Unknown: I’m protecting you.
Me: From what?
This time, when he replied, the words felt stripped bare.
Unknown: From choosing me for the wrong reasons.
My breath caught.
Me: What if I’m already choosing you?
The dots appeared instantly. Then vanished.
When the message came, it was slower. Heavier.
Unknown: Then I’m already failing you.
I stopped pacing. Sat back down on the bed. My heart felt bruised, like it had been pressed too hard for too long.
Me: You don’t get to decide that alone.
Silence.
Minutes passed. Long enough for doubt to creep in. Long enough for my screen to dim.
Then:
Unknown: Meet me.
My pulse spiked.
Me: Where?
Unknown: The old library. Back entrance. Ten minutes.
Fear and anticipation tangled together in my chest. Every sensible thought told me not to go.
I grabbed my jacket anyway.
As I stepped into the night, one truth echoed louder than the rest:
Whatever line I was about to cross, I already knew I wouldn’t be able to step back the same.
And somewhere in the dark, the faceless lover was waiting.
- Writer
