Things were not the same anymore.
Or maybe… they were the same.
And I was the one changing.
I had started to understand my feelings more clearly now.
This wasn't just a crush.
It wasn't something temporary.
It was real.
And that was the problem.
Because reality didn't change.
She still had someone.
And I was still… no one.
Days passed, and our assignment was finally over.
Which meant…
We had no real reason to talk anymore.
That small connection we had…
Started fading away.
Slowly.
Quietly.
Just like everything else.
We went back to being strangers.
Not completely…
But enough to feel the distance again.
Sometimes, our eyes would meet.
For a second.
Then both of us would look away…
Like nothing happened.
And maybe, for her… nothing really did.
But for me…
Every small moment still mattered.
One day, after school, I stayed back for a while.
I don't even know why.
Maybe I just didn't feel like going home.
The classroom was almost empty.
The silence felt different.
Calm… but heavy at the same time.
I was about to leave when I saw her.
She was standing near the window.
Alone.
For the first time in a long time…
She was alone.
My heart started beating faster.
This was it.
A moment I had imagined so many times.
No friends.
No noise.
Just me… and her.
I took a step forward.
Then another.
My mind was telling me something.
"Say it."
"At least talk."
"Don't miss this chance."
But my feet stopped.
Just a few steps away from her.
I stood there, frozen.
My heart was loud.
My thoughts were messy.
There were so many things I wanted to say.
So many questions.
So many feelings.
But none of them came out.
I looked at her.
She was looking outside the window, lost in her own world.
Peaceful.
Unaware.
And in that moment…
I realized something.
Maybe my feelings were never meant to reach her.
Maybe they were meant to stay with me.
Silent.
Unnoticed.
I took a deep breath.
And stepped back.
Slowly.
Quietly.
Without making a sound.
Without saying a word.
I turned around and walked away.
Just like that.
I left the moment behind.
And maybe…
That was my last chance.
While walking home, my mind kept replaying everything.
"Why didn't I say anything?"
I asked myself again and again.
But I already knew the answer.
I was afraid.
Not of rejection…
But of changing something that was never mine to begin with.
That night, I couldn't sleep properly.
My thoughts were louder than ever.
That one moment…
It stayed in my mind.
Like a question without an answer.
Maybe I could have said something.
Maybe I could have changed something.
Or maybe…
Nothing would have changed at all.
But now, I would never know.
Because I chose silence.
And sometimes…
Silence becomes the biggest regret.