Always

Chapter Fifteen

Liam

The waiting is the worst part.

It’s been two weeks since Mia’s interview, and every time her phone buzzes, we both freeze. She tries to act normal about it—burying herself in homework, pretending she’s not checking her email ten times an hour—but I see it.

The anticipation.

The fear.

Tonight we’re in her room, textbooks open but ignored. She’s sitting cross-legged on her bed, laptop glowing in front of her. I’m in her desk chair, spinning slightly because sitting still feels impossible.

“You’re going to make yourself dizzy,” she mutters.

“I’m already dizzy.”

She gives me a look. “You’re not the one waiting on a life-changing decision.”

“Feels like I am.”

That slips out before I can filter it.

Her expression softens. “Liam…”

“I know,” I say quickly. “It’s your thing. Your future. I’m not trying to make it about me.”

She closes the laptop halfway. “It affects you too.”

Yeah. It does.

If she gets in, she could be three states away by next fall. Different campus. New people. New life. I’d still be here, finishing senior year, trying to figure out my own next step.

The idea of distance scares me more than I’ve admitted.

Her phone buzzes.

We both stare at it on the bed between us.

For a second, neither of us moves.

“Check it,” I say quietly.

She swallows, picking it up with slightly shaking hands. Her eyes scan the screen—and then go wide.

“Well?” My heart is pounding so loud I can hear it in my ears.

She covers her mouth with one hand.

“Mia.”

Tears fill her eyes instantly.

“I got in,” she whispers.

Something in my chest explodes—not pain, not fear.

Pride.

“You got in?” I repeat, just to hear it again.

She nods, laughing and crying at the same time. “I got in.”

I’m on my feet before I even realize it, pulling her into my arms. She crashes into me, gripping my shirt like she did in the ocean that night.

“I knew it,” I murmur into her hair. “I knew you would.”

She pulls back slightly, searching my face like she’s bracing for something.

I don’t let her find it.

Because the truth is, yeah—I’m scared.

But I’m also in awe.

“You did it,” I say, brushing a tear from her cheek. “Future doctor.”

She lets out a shaky breath. “It’s really happening.”

“Yeah,” I reply.

It is.

Her dream just moved from someday to real.

And standing here, holding the girl who’s about to chase something bigger than both of us, I make a quiet decision.

If she’s brave enough to step into her future—

Then I need to be brave enough to build one of my own.