That night, everything felt off. Too quiet. Too slow.
Liam sat at his desk, notebook open in front of him.
A pen rested in his hand—but it hadn't moved in minutes.
He tried reading. He tried writing. He even tried scrolling through his phone.
Nothing worked. Because his mind kept going back.
The rain. The umbrella. Mandy… walking with someone else.
"…Why do I care so much?" he muttered.
He leaned back in his chair, staring at the ceiling. The faint sound of rain still echoed outside.
They weren't close. They weren't anything.
So why did it feel like something slipped away from him?
Something that was never even his to begin with?
Liam closed his eyes.
"Mandy…" Her name felt different now. "…Do I like her?"
The question lingered in the quiet room. He thought about her smile.
Her voice. The way she said his name. The way she thanked him. His chest tightened again.
"…Yeah." There was no point denying it anymore. "I do."
And somehow—
That realization didn't make things easier. It made everything harder.