Angela didn't go near Block C for a week.
No Bible study group. No library runs. She avoided anywhere he might be. It wasn't punishment. It was survival.
Because she could still feel him. On her skin. In her sleep. In the mirror.
His hands.
His breath.
Her own fingers, shaking after what almost happened.
She fasted again. This time not for forgiveness — but for clarity.
"God," she whispered one night, face pressed to her pillow, "help me want You more than I want him."
But silence answered.
And silence wasn't enough.
---
Peter didn't text. Didn't call.
But he watched.
From across the campus lawn. From the other side of lecture halls.
He saw her laughing with her friend Tamara again, saw her trying to glow like nothing was wrong.
But he knew the look on her face.
That tight smile. That extra lip gloss. The way her eyes flicked to the door whenever someone entered — like she was hoping it would be him.
He hated how right she was.
They needed space.
But every second apart felt like burning slow from the inside.
It was a Tuesday when they finally bumped into each other. Rain had just started to fall — that light, cold drizzle Benin was famous for.
Angela was walking fast under a grey hoodie. Peter stepped out of ULT just as she passed.
They locked eyes.
Stopped.
He opened his mouth, but she beat him to it.
"Don't."
"I wasn't going to say anything."
"But you wanted to."
Peter sighed. "Angela, I—"
"I miss you," she blurted.
Just like that. No filter. No shield.
He stepped closer, like the rain meant nothing. "I miss you too. Every day."
They stood there. Letting the rain touch their faces. Letting the ache talk louder than their pride.
"But we're doing the right thing, right?" she asked softly.
Peter nodded. "Right doesn't always feel good."
Angela smiled faintly. "Then why does wrong feel like home?"
Peter looked down. "Because home is familiar. Not always safe."
She exhaled. "So what now?"
"Nothing. We keep breathing. We give each other space. But we don't lie to ourselves."
Angela nodded. "Okay."
"Okay."
They walked away.
No hug. No kiss.
Just the kind of distance that only love can make feel so heavy.