VOICEOVER
There are two types of people in this world. Those who get embarrassed when their friends tease them about a girl. And those who pretend not to be embarrassed while secretly loving every second of it. Aaron was the second type. He'd never admit it. But when his boys started singing "byeee Arie" in falsetto voices, something warm flickered in his chest. That's the thing about friendship. It's annoying as fuck. And you'd die without it.
THE DORM – MORNING
Aaron was trying to study.
The brachial plexus diagram was spread across his bed. Highlighters. Sticky notes. A cup of cold tea that he'd forgotten about an hour ago.
Charlie was doing pushups in the middle of the floor, counting under his breath. Wesley was on his bed, scrolling through his phone, his face expressionless. Oliver was still asleep; he'd been sleeping a lot lately. When he was awake, he was irritable. When he was asleep, at least he was quiet.
The door opened.
Mandy poked her head in. "Jon's looking for you, Arie."
The room went silent.
Aaron looked up. "What?"
"Jon. Your anime buddy. He's in the common room. Said something about the new episode dropping." She smiled; that same curious smile from the hallway. "Don't keep him waiting, Arie."
She left.
The door closed.
Charlie stopped mid-pushup. "Did she just call you Arie?"
"No."
"She definitely called you Arie."
"I think she said Aaron. With a lisp."
Wesley looked up from his phone. "She said Arie."
"Ouuuuu," Charlie said, pushing himself off the floor. "Byeee Arie."
"Shut up."
"Byeee Arie," Wesley said, deadpan.
"Not you too."
Oliver's voice came from the top bunk, muffled by a pillow. "Byeee Arie. Have fun with your boyfriend Jon."
Aaron threw a highlighter at him. It bounced off the bunk and landed on the floor.
Charlie was grinning now. "Who's Arie though? Like is that your secret twin? Your alter ego? The name you use when you're at a hotel?"
"It's short for Aaron, you dumb fuck."
"Ohhhh. So she gave you a nickname. A cute little nickname. And she came to find you. In your dorm. In the morning." Charlie wiggled his eyebrows. "Interesting."
"She's Jon's girlfriend."
"That's never stopped anyone."
"Charlie."
"I'm just saying."
Aaron stood up, grabbed his phone, and walked to the door. Charlie called after him: "Byeee Arie! Say hi to your boyfriend for me!"
The hallway echoed with their laughter.
Aaron didn't turn around.
But he was smiling.
THE GIRLS' DORM – AFTERNOON
Vicky's room was a war zone of gossip.
She sat on her bed, legs crossed, scrolling through Nelly's Instagram. Zuru was on the floor, painting her nails a deep purple. Zizi was lying on the bottom bunk, staring at the ceiling. Ese sat in the corner, reading a book she wasn't actually reading.
"Look at this," Vicky said, turning her phone around. "Nelly posted a photo with Oliver. Caption says 'my king.'"
Zuru snorted. "Her king cheated on her with Zizi."
"Shut up," Zizi said, not looking at anyone.
"I'm just saying."
"You're always just saying."
Vicky put down her phone. "The real problem is Rose. She's been hanging out with Nelly lately. And Kelly. And Mandy."
"That's a squad," Zuru said. "A whole fucking squad of bitches."
"They're not bitches. They're just... annoying."
"They're bitches."
Ese turned a page. She didn't look up.
Zizi sat up. "Why do we care what they do? Let them have their little group. We have ours."
"Do we?" Vicky looked around the room. "Zuru wants to fuck my boyfriend. Zizi is sleeping with Oliver behind Nelly's back. Ese doesn't talk. And I'm..." She stopped. "I don't know what I am anymore."
The room went quiet.
Zuru stopped painting her nails. "I don't want to fuck Aaron anymore."
"Since when?"
"Since I realized he's not worth it." She looked at Vicky. "You can have him. I'm done."
Vicky stared at her. "You're lying."
"I'm not. I'm tired. I'm tired of wanting someone who looks through me like I'm made of glass." Zuru blew on her nails. "Find new enemies. I'm retiring."
Zizi laughed; a sharp, bitter sound. "Retiring? You're twenty. You can't retire from being a bitch."
"Watch me."
Ese turned another page.
Vicky looked at her phone. Nelly's photo. Oliver's face. His smile. His eyes.
My king.
She wondered if Aaron would ever post a photo of her with a caption like that.
She knew the answer.
She didn't want to admit it.
THE COMMON ROOM – AFTERNOON
Jon had the laptop set up. The new episode of JJK was loading.
Aaron sat beside him, trying to focus. But his mind was elsewhere.
"Everything okay?" Jon asked.
"Yeah. Just tired."
"Med school?"
"Med school. Friends. Girlfriend. The usual."
Jon nodded. "Mandy and I had a fight last night."
Aaron's stomach tightened. "About what?"
"She's been distant. I don't know. Maybe I'm imagining it." Jon paused. "Do you ever feel like you're losing someone and you don't know why?"
Aaron thought about Vicky. About the way she clung to him. About the way he felt nothing when she said "I love you."
"All the time," he said.
The episode started. Gojo's face filled the screen.
They watched in silence.
Aaron's phone buzzed.
Mandy (3:15 PM): Thanks for not telling Jon I called you Arie. He gets jealous.
He stared at the screen. Then he put the phone face down on the armrest.
Don't reply, he told himself. Don't fucking reply.
Mandy (3:16 PM): You there?
His thumb hovered over the keyboard.
Aaron (3:16 PM): Yeah. Watching anime with Jon.
Mandy (3:16 PM): Lucky him.
He put the phone away.
His hands were shaking.
THE PARKING LOT – EVENING
Peculiar had found Oliver again.
He was sitting on the hood of his car, staring at the sky. The sun was setting; orange and pink bleeding into the horizon.
"You look like a sad music video," she said, hopping up beside him.
"I'm not sad."
"You're sitting alone in a parking lot watching the sunset. That's sad."
"It's peaceful."
"It's sad."
He didn't answer.
Peculiar swung her legs. "Wesley says you're a mess."
"Wesley talks too much."
"He's my brother. He's supposed to talk too much." She leaned back on her hands. "I think you're interesting."
"I'm not interesting. I'm tired."
"Same thing."
Oliver looked at her. Purple tips. Young eyes. A smile that said "I don't know enough to be scared yet."
"You should stay away from me," he said.
"Why?"
"Because I ruin things."
She tilted her head. "Maybe I like ruined things."
"Then you're stupid."
"And you're mean." She wasn't offended. If anything, she looked more interested. "Wesley said you'd say that."
"Wesley should mind his business."
"He cares about you. We all do. Even when you're being a dick."
Oliver looked back at the sky. The orange was fading. Purple was creeping in.
"I need to go," he said.
"Bye, Oliver."
He didn't say goodbye.
He just walked away.
Peculiar watched him go.
She was still smiling.
AARON'S DORM – NIGHT
Vicky was in his bed again.
She'd shown up after dinner, no text, no warning. Just her, in his hoodie, her hair wet from the shower.
"I missed you," she said.
"I saw you this morning."
"That was hours ago."
She pulled him down beside her. Kissed his neck. His jaw. His lips.
He let her.
But his mind was elsewhere.
Mandy (8:30 PM): Jon is asleep. What are you doing?
He hadn't replied. He wasn't going to reply. He was going to be a good boyfriend. A good friend. A good person.
Mandy (8:32 PM): Arie.
He put the phone under his pillow.
Vicky pulled back. "Who's texting you?"
"No one."
"You keep looking at your phone."
"It's Charlie. He's drunk again."
She stared at him for a long moment. Then she kissed him again, harder this time, like she was trying to remind him of something.
He kissed her back.
But his phone buzzed again.
Under the pillow.
He could feel it vibrating against his skull.
VOICEOVER
That's the thing about secrets. They start small. A text you don't delete. A glance that lasts too long. A nickname that no one else is allowed to use. You tell yourself it's nothing. You tell yourself you're in control. And then one day, you're not. And by the time you realize it, the only question left is: how much are you willing to lose?