Between Two Hearts

34

Spencer POV

The gym smelled faintly of rubber mats and cleaning supplies as I finished stacking the chairs from today’s parent orientation. The hum of voices had faded, leaving behind a silence I welcomed.

But my mind wasn’t silent. It was loud with thoughts of Shelly.

When I’d seen her standing there in the school hallway, her hair pulled back, her eyes guarded yet soft, it had hit me like a freight train. I hadn’t expected her to be here. I hadn’t expected to feel so much just from the sight of her.

“Earth to Spencer!”

I blinked and turned to see Liz, the school’s volunteer coordinator, smirking at me. Her curly hair was tied in a messy bun, and she held a clipboard against her chest.

“You were zoning out,” she said, tilting her head. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, just tired,” I replied, though the lie tasted bitter.

Liz didn’t look convinced, but she didn’t push. “Thanks for helping out today. We could use more people like you around here.”

“No problem,” I said with a half-smile.

As Liz walked away, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out, my heart jumping when I saw Shelly’s name on the screen.

Shelly: Can we meet tomorrow? Just to talk.

My thumb hovered over the keyboard. A part of me wanted to say no—to force her to confront whatever she was running from right now. But I knew her well enough to understand that pushing her too hard would only make her retreat further.

Me: Name the time and place.

Her reply came quickly: Shelly: Coffee shop on Main Street. 10 AM.

I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding. Maybe this was a step forward.

The next morning, I arrived at the coffee shop a few minutes early. It was a cozy spot with mismatched chairs and the scent of freshly baked pastries wafting through the air. I picked a table near the window, where the light streamed in, warming the wooden surfaces.

When Shelly walked in, she hesitated at the door, her eyes scanning the room until they landed on me. She wore a simple sweater and jeans, but she looked beautiful, like she always did.

“Hey,” I said as she approached the table.

“Hi,” she replied, sitting across from me. Her hands wrapped around the strap of her purse, her knuckles white.

“Do you want coffee or—”

“No, I’m fine,” she interrupted, then took a deep breath. “I just… I need to get this out.”

I leaned back, giving her the space she clearly needed.

“Last night, I couldn’t stop thinking about what you said,” she began, her voice trembling slightly. “About how you want me.”

I opened my mouth to respond, but she held up a hand, stopping me.

“Let me finish,” she said. “I like you, Spencer. I do. But liking you doesn’t erase everything else. It doesn’t change the fact that my life is… complicated.”

“I know that,” I said gently.

“No, you don’t,” she snapped, her frustration breaking through. “You don’t know what it’s like to be constantly looking over your shoulder, to feel like you’re failing as a parent, to—”

She stopped, her breath hitching, and I realized she was holding back tears.

“Shelly,” I said, leaning forward. “I’m not asking you to have everything figured out. I’m not asking you to be perfect. I’m just asking you to let me in.”

She shook her head, her eyes glistening. “What if letting you in makes things worse? What if it hurts Shaina? I can’t risk that.”

I reached across the table, placing my hand over hers. She flinched but didn’t pull away.

“You don’t have to do this alone,” I said softly. “You’ve been carrying everything by yourself for so long, but you don’t have to. Not with me.”

Her gaze dropped to our hands, and for a moment, I thought she might pull away. But then she let out a shaky breath and whispered, “I’m scared.”

“So am I,” I admitted. “But sometimes the things we’re scared of are the ones worth fighting for.”

She looked up at me, her expression torn. Then, slowly, she nodded.

“Okay,” she said, her voice barely audible. “But I need time. And I need to take things slow.”

“As slow as you need,” I promised, a weight lifting from my chest.

For the first time, she smiled—small and tentative, but real.

And for the first time, I felt like we had a chance.

Back at my apartment later that evening, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something had shifted between us. It wasn’t a clean slate, but it was a start.

As I stared out the window at the city lights, I thought about what Shelly had said—about her fear of letting me in.

What she didn’t know was that I was just as afraid of losing her.

Shelly POV

When I got home, I found Shaina sitting on the living room floor, surrounded by crayons and a half-finished drawing.

“Hey, sweetheart,” I said, setting my purse down. “What are you working on?”

“It’s us,” she said, holding up the paper.

I knelt beside her to get a better look. The drawing showed the two of us holding hands under a bright yellow sun. Beside us was another figure—taller, with dark hair.

“Who’s that?” I asked, my heart skipping a beat.

“That’s Spencer,” she said matter-of-factly. “He’s nice. I think he should be our friend.”

I swallowed hard, unsure of how to respond.

“Do you think so, too?” she asked, looking up at me with wide, innocent eyes.

I hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah, sweetheart. I think he could be a good friend.”

But deep down, I knew Spencer wasn’t just a friend. He was something more. And that scared me more than anything.