The dinner rush had just started when the door opened.
Talia barely looked up at first — too focused on balancing two plates and remembering Table 6's order — but something about the energy shifted.
Familiar.
Uncomfortable.
She turned.
And froze.
Maya.
Standing right there in the doorway.
Same eyes. Same posture. Same everything.
Just… different.
Colder.
Talia's grip tightened on the tray.
For a second, neither of them moved.
Then Maya walked in like she owned the place.
"Didn't expect to see you here," she said casually, sliding into a booth.
Talia swallowed, forcing herself to move, to breathe, to act normal.
"Yeah, well… people move on," she replied, grabbing her notepad.
"Clearly," Maya said, her tone sharp but controlled.
Silence stretched between them.
Heavy.
Complicated.
Talia took her order like it was just another table.
Like her heart wasn't racing.
Like this wasn't the girl who used to know everything about her.
A few minutes later, Talia came back with her drink.
Maya didn't touch it.
She just watched her.
Studied her.
"I need your help."
That caught Talia off guard.
"What?"
Maya leaned forward slightly, lowering her voice.
"My mom… she's missing."
Everything inside Talia stilled.
"Missing how?"
"Gone. Not answering calls. Not at work. Nothing," Maya said. "And the last time I saw her, she was… scared."
Talia frowned.
"Why are you telling me this?"
Maya hesitated.
Just for a second.
"Because I think it has something to do with your mom."
That hit.
Hard.
Talia laughed once — short, dry.
"That's funny. My mom's not exactly around either."
Maya's expression didn't change.
"Exactly."
Silence.
Again.
But this time, it wasn't just tension.
It was something else.
Something deeper.
"My mom works in research," Maya continued quietly. "She mentioned a colleague once… said she disappeared. Said it wasn't normal."
Talia's chest tightened.
"What colleague?"
Maya shook her head.
"She never said the name. But she was scared. Like really scared."
What Talia didn't know—
What Maya didn't know—
Was that their mothers already knew each other.
Worked together.
Shared something bigger than both of them could imagine.
"So what, you came here to play nice now?" Talia asked, crossing her arms.
"After everything?"
Maya looked away.
And for the first time—
She didn't look angry.
She looked… tired.
"You think I wanted any of that?" she said quietly.
Talia frowned.
"Then why did you do it?"
Maya's jaw tightened.
Her fingers curled slightly on the table.
"Because I had to."
That wasn't the answer Talia expected.
"My mom told me to stay away from you," Maya continued. "To push you away. To make it messy."
Talia blinked.
"That doesn't make sense."
"I didn't ask questions," Maya snapped softly. "I just… did it."
A pause.
Then, quieter—
"Because when I don't listen… she hurts herself."
Talia's breath caught.
"What?"
Maya looked down at her hands.
"She says it's my fault. That I make things worse. That if I don't do what she says, something bad will happen."
Silence filled the space between them.
Thick.
Painful.
Real.
"I didn't hate you," Maya whispered. "I was trying to keep things from getting worse."
Talia didn't know what to say.
Didn't know what to feel.
Anger.
Confusion.
Guilt.
All tangled together.
"So now what?" Talia asked.
Maya finally looked at her again.
And this time—
There was no attitude.
No mask.
Just fear.
"Now… I need your help."
Across the room, Marco called out:
"Talia! Table 3!"
Reality snapped back.
But nothing felt the same anymore.
Because this wasn't just about high school drama.
Or broken relationships.
Or rumors.
This was something else.
Something bigger.
And somehow
They were both already in it.