Tessa woke up earlier than usual.
Not because she had to
But because she couldn't stay still.
She stared at the ceiling for a moment, a small smile slowly forming on her face.
Then she turned onto her side, pulling her blanket slightly closer.
Yesterday kept replaying in her head.
The way he looked at her.
The way he said her name.
The way everything felt… different.
Her heart did that annoying thing again.
Fast. Unsteady.
"What am I even supposed to say today?" she muttered softly to herself.
She sat up, running a hand through her hair.
Should she say hi first?
Or wait for him to?
What if he acted like nothing happened?
No.
He wouldn't.
Right?
—
The halls felt louder than usual.
Or maybe she was just more aware of everything.
Tessa adjusted the strap of her bag as she walked in, her eyes scanning without meaning to.
Looking for him.
And then
She saw him.
Across the hallway.
With his friends.
Adrian.
Her steps slowed slightly.
He was laughing.
Talking like normal.
Like yesterday hadn't happened.
For a second, she waited.
For him to look at her.
He did.
Their eyes met
Just for a moment.
Then
He looked away.
No smile.
No pause.
Nothing.
Tessa blinked.
Her grip tightened slightly around her bag.
"Okay…" she whispered under her breath.
Maybe he just
Didn't want to make it obvious.
Yeah.
That had to be it.
—
By the time she got to her locker, the feeling hadn't gone away.
Something felt… off.
At first, she couldn't tell what it was.
Then she noticed it.
The looks.
Quick glances.
Whispers that stopped the second she turned.
"Is that her?"
Tessa frowned slightly, reaching for her locker.
"Yeah…"
A quiet laugh.
She paused.
"Oh my God…"
More laughter.
Her fingers stilled on the lock.
"What?" she muttered quietly, mostly to herself.
No one answered.
They just… looked away.
Like she wasn't supposed to notice.
Her chest tightened slightly.
She opened her locker, trying to ignore it.
Trying to act like everything was normal.
But it wasn't.
It kept happening.
The whispers.
The looks.
The quiet laughter.
And she didn't understand why.
"Tessa."
She turned.
Lily stood there.
And immediately
Something felt wrong.
She wasn't smiling.
"What's going on?" Tessa asked quickly.
Lily hesitated.
That hesitation was enough to make her stomach drop.
"What?" Tessa pressed.
Lily glanced around, then stepped a little closer.
Lowering her voice.
"There's something you need to know."
Tessa shook her head slightly. "No.....what is everyone talking about?"
Lily didn't answer right away.
"…It's about Adrian."
The name alone made her heart react.
"No," Tessa said immediately.
Too quickly.
"It's not like that."
Lily didn't argue.
And somehow
That made it worse.
"Tessa..."
"I said it's not like that," she repeated, more firmly this time.
Because it couldn't be.
It didn't feel like that.
Yesterday didn't feel like that.
Lily exhaled quietly.
"Just… be careful, okay?"
That wasn't what Tessa wanted to hear.
Not even close.
"I have class," she said quickly, shutting her locker.
Before Lily could say anything else
She walked away.
—
She didn't go to class.
Not immediately.
Instead, she turned down the hallway toward the bathrooms.
She needed a minute.
Just a minute to think.
To breathe.
Inside, it was quiet.
Too quiet.
Tessa stepped into one of the cubicles, closing the door behind her.
She leaned back slightly, exhaling.
"This is stupid," she whispered to herself.
It was just gossip.
People talked.
That didn't mean anything.
Right?
The door opened.
Voices filled the room.
Laughter.
Tessa stilled.
She didn't mean to listen.
But she couldn't not.
"I still can't believe it," one of the girls said.
Silence.
Tessa's fingers tightened slightly.
"Like… it was literally a dare."
Her breath caught.
No.
Another voice
"The way she looks at him? Yeah… she's not playing."
Laughter echoed.
Her heart started racing now.
Too fast.
Too loud.
They're not talking about me.
"They said he's already done with it."
Everything went quiet.
Not around her
Inside her.
Adrian.
Yesterday.
The way he acted this morning.
The whispers.
It all connected.
All at once.
No…
Her grip tightened against the edge of the door.
That's not
That's not what that was…
But the thought didn't hold.
Because deep down
She knew.
The laughter outside faded as the girls left.
But Tessa didn't move.
She couldn't.
Because if she did
It would become real.
—
When she finally stepped out, her face was calm.
Too calm.
Like nothing had happened.
Like everything was fine.
Lily was outside.
Waiting.
The second she saw her
She knew.
"Tessa..."
Tessa didn't stop.
Didn't say anything.
Didn't look at her.
She just walked past.
Because if she said it out loud
If she even tried to
She might break.
And she wasn't ready for that.