Always You ♥️

Chapter 2

FIRST WORDS

Two weeks passed before Finn saw her again.

In those two weeks, the house next door fully came alive. The lawn was trimmed, curtains were changed, and the faint sounds of a new routine filled the quiet gaps the neighborhood had gotten used to.

Finn still didn’t know why he kept noticing it.

Or rather—why he kept noticing her absence inside it.

School had started again after the short break, and life quickly returned to its usual rhythm. Nathan complained every morning about waking up early, Marcus acted like he was too old for family conversations, and Finn drifted through it all with the same quiet routine he had always known.

But sometimes, in the middle of doing nothing at all, his thoughts would drift back to that first day.

The girl at the window.

He hadn’t seen her since.

Until Tuesday.

It happened in the most ordinary way.

Finn was walking home from school when Nathan suddenly slowed down beside him.

“Hey,” Nathan said, nudging his arm. “That’s her.”

Finn frowned. “Who?”

Nathan pointed ahead.

At the edge of the sidewalk, a girl stood waiting slightly behind a taller boy. She wore a school uniform that looked new, her posture straight but quiet, like she wasn’t fully comfortable taking up space in the world around her.

Finn didn’t need to ask twice.

He already knew.

The same quiet girl.

The one from the window.

His steps slowed without permission.

Nathan smirked. “That’s Lydia Reed. The new girl next door. The guy with her is her brother—he’s in my class.”

Finn didn’t respond immediately.

Lydia.

So that was her name.

She wasn’t looking at him. She was adjusting the strap of her school bag, eyes lowered slightly, like she was listening to everything but choosing not to engage with it.

Then, as if sensing something, she looked up.

Their eyes met.

Just for a second.

It wasn’t dramatic. Nothing in the world changed. No music, no sudden silence.

But Finn felt it anyway.

A strange pause in his chest.

Like his body had briefly forgotten what it was doing.

Lydia looked away first.

And just like that, the moment ended.

“Finn, let’s go,” Nathan said, already walking ahead.

But Finn didn’t move immediately.

His eyes stayed on her.

On Lydia Reed.

Until she turned the corner and disappeared from view.

The next day at school, Finn didn’t expect anything different.

He wasn’t the type to think too deeply about strangers.

But then Nathan walked up to him during lunch, dragging someone behind him.

“Finn,” Nathan said, sounding way too excited for someone his age, “meet Lydia. She’s in my class.”

Finn looked up slowly.

And there she was again.

Closer this time.

No window. No distance. No hesitation.

Just real.

Lydia stood there quietly, her hands holding the straps of her bag. Her eyes flicked briefly to Finn before returning to Nathan.

“This is my brother,” Nathan continued proudly, as if introducing him to royalty. “He’s annoying but he’s fine.”

Finn gave Nathan a flat look. “You’re eight. Stop talking like that.”

Nathan ignored him. “Lydia, this is Finn.”

For a moment, no one spoke.

Finn wasn’t sure why it felt heavier than it should have.

Lydia finally nodded slightly. “Hi.”

One word.

Soft. Controlled. Careful.

Finn cleared his throat. “Hey.”

Another pause.

Nathan looked between them like he was watching something interesting unfold. “Okay, now be friends or whatever. I’m going to eat.”

And just like that, he ran off.

Finn sighed under his breath. “Your brother is weird.”

Lydia’s lips twitched slightly—almost a smile, but not fully formed. “He is… energetic.”

Finn almost smiled at that.

Almost.

There was another silence.

Not uncomfortable. Just unfamiliar.

Then Lydia spoke again.

“I think I saw you before,” she said quietly.

Finn frowned slightly. “You did?”

She nodded once. “When we moved in. You were standing at the window.”

Finn’s ears warmed slightly. “Oh.”

He didn’t know what else to say.

So he added, “Yeah. I saw you too.”

That made her look at him properly this time.

Not quickly. Not accidentally.

Properly.

Her eyes were calm. Observing. Like she was trying to understand something without asking questions.

Finn suddenly felt aware of his hands. His posture. His face. Everything.

Then she spoke again.

“I was sick that day,” she said. “I had flu. I stayed inside.”

Finn nodded slowly. “That’s why I didn’t see you after.”

Lydia tilted her head slightly. “You were looking for me?”

The question came softly.

Not teasing. Not accusing.

Just curious.

Finn paused.

That was a dangerous question.

“I… no,” he said quickly. Then corrected himself, “I mean—I just noticed the house.”

Lydia watched him for a second longer than necessary.

Then she nodded again.

“Okay,” she said.

But her expression suggested she didn’t fully believe him.

The bell rang shortly after.

Students began moving in every direction, noise filling the hallways again.

Lydia adjusted her bag strap. “I should go.”

Finn nodded. “Yeah.”

But neither of them moved immediately.

There was another one of those pauses.

The kind that didn’t have a name yet.

Then Lydia turned slightly.

“Finn,” she said.

He looked at her.

“Yes?”

A small silence followed.

Then she said, “I remember you.”

And she walked away.

Finn stood there for a moment longer than necessary.

People brushed past him. Voices filled the hallway. Life continued normally around him.

But his mind didn’t.

Because somehow, in the middle of everything ordinary…

Something had started.

And he didn’t even know it yet.