Chapter 3 The Unspoken

Ella's POV

The buzz of the coffee shop faded into the background as I sat across from Abby Hawthorn my high school nightmare, my unexpected college reality. Her platinum hair was pulled into a loose braid today, framing her sharp cheekbones and those sea-glass eyes that never seemed to blink. I hated how easily she drew attention, even in a hoodie and jeans. She stirred her drink like she was thinking about something important. Or maybe just trying to buy time. "I meant it," she finally said. "About the apology." I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms. "And I meant it when I said I don't know if I can forgive you." Abby flinched. Barely. But I caught it. She let out a slow breath. "You ever do something stupid because you were scared?" I hesitated, unsure where this was going. "Plenty of times." "Okay, well..." She leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. "High school me? She was scared all the time." I blinked. "Scared? You were the queen of that place." She laughed short, bitter. "Yeah, and queens wear masks. Mine just came with a little extra bitch." Her honesty knocked the wind out of me. I expected defensiveness, sarcasm anything but this vulnerability. It didn't make everything okay, but it cracked something open inside me. A door I thought was sealed. "So, what are you scared of now?" I asked, genuinely curious. She looked up. "That it's too late to change how you see me." I didn't answer right away. Because I wasn't sure. She was still Abby, but she wasn't the same girl who used to throw insults like knives in the hallway. This version seemed... real. Nervous. Maybe even sincere. "I saw you at the party," I said suddenly. "You kissed that guy. And then you left like the room was on fire." Her eyes flicked to the side, avoiding mine. "It felt like it was." "Why?" Another pause. Her hands curled around her cup like she needed the warmth. "Because I didn't want it to be him," she admitted. Silence stretched between us, but it wasn't uncomfortable this time. It was heavy. Weighted with all the words we hadn't said for years. "Then who did you want it to be?" I asked, my voice low. She looked up. Right into my eyes. "You." Abby's POV I'd never said it out loud before. Not even to myself, not really. But the second it left my lips, I felt something lift off my chest, like releasing a breath I'd been holding for years. Ella didn't say anything. Her face went blank not angry, not confused. Just... frozen. I kept going before I lost the nerve. "In high school, I didn't understand it. You were just this... bright light. And I was drawn to it, but I didn't know why. So,I made it easier on myself by making you the enemy. I told myself you were annoying, fake, whatever helped me ignore what I really felt." She blinked at me. Still no words. "And then I saw you here. On campus. With that same stupid light, only now it's brighter, and I just" I stopped. My throat was tight. "I couldn't be mean to you anymore. But I didn't know how to be anything else." Ella's hand twitched on the table, fingers curling like she wanted to say something but didn't know how. Finally, she whispered, "I hated you." I nodded. "You should have." "But I also thought about you more than I should've." Her voice dropped even lower. "Even when I didn't want to." That surprised me. Enough to make me sit back and take her in really take her in. The slight pink in her cheeks. The nervous bite on her lower lip. "So, what now?" I asked. She looked at me, really looked at me. "Now... I think we stop pretending we don't care." The air shifted. Something unspoken passed between us, heavier than any insult we'd ever exchanged. We didn't touch. We didn't lean across the table for some dramatic kiss. We just sat there. Watching each other. Breathing the same breath. The tension between us wasn't gone. It had changed. Grown into something we couldn't name yet but it was real. And neither of us was ready to walk away from it.