Chapter 4 The movie night

The sun had just dipped below the edge of the quad when Brianna arrived.

Rows of folding chairs lined the grassy lawn, a projector already casting flickering black-and-white images on a makeshift screen. Students were gathered in small clusters, most laughing and chatting over snacks.

Brianna hovered at the edge, clutching a bottle of water and scanning the crowd. She hadn't told Lydia she was coming. She hadn't told herself, either-not until she found her shoes on, jacket zipped, and body already halfway out the dorm door.

She didn't see Malvin at first.

She didn't know if she was relieved or disappointed.

A tap on her shoulder made her jump.

Lydia.

"There you are! I knew you'd show," she said with a grin. "I saved you a seat. C'mon."

Brianna followed her, weaving through groups of students, past couples curled together under blankets and friends tossing popcorn at each other. Lydia's seat was near the middle, two chairs open beside her.

And in the one farthest from Lydia-

Malvin.

Leaning back, arms crossed, expression unreadable.

He looked up as Brianna approached, and for a second, their eyes locked. He didn't smile. She didn't either. But something passed between them-a quiet recognition, like two people who didn't fit but somehow understood the edges of each other.

She sat beside Lydia, leaving one seat between her and Malvin.

The film started.

She didn't remember the title.

She didn't really watch the screen.

She was too aware of how close he was. Of the rhythm of his breathing. Of the way he occasionally shifted in his chair like he wasn't as unaffected as he looked.

Halfway through the movie, Lydia leaned in and whispered, "I'm heading to the snack table. Want anything?"

Brianna shook her head.

Lydia left.

Now, just one empty seat between them.

And silence.

Then, Malvin spoke.

"Didn't think you were the kind of person who came to movie nights."

She turned her head slowly toward him. "I didn't think you were the kind of person who talked to strangers."

His lips twitched. Almost a smile.

"You don't feel like a stranger."

That caught her off guard.

"What do I feel like?" she asked before she could stop herself.

He looked at her then. Fully. No distractions, no half-glances.

"Like someone who's hiding," he said.

The words weren't cruel. Just... true.

She didn't answer. Couldn't.

So she looked away.

But her heart was louder now.

Not because she was falling.

Not yet.

But because for the first time in a long time, someone had seen through her silence-and didn't try to fix it. Just noticed it. And named it.

And that was almost worse.

They didn't speak again for the rest of the film.

When Lydia returned with popcorn and two cans of soda, Brianna pretended to be focused on the screen. Malvin said nothing. He didn't lean closer. Didn't try to continue the conversation.

But she felt him.

Even with a seat between them, she felt the gravity of him-the kind that pulled without asking permission.

When the credits rolled and people began stretching, laughing, collecting their things, Brianna stood slowly. Malvin did too.

Their eyes met once more.

And for the briefest second, she thought he was going to say something.

But he didn't.

He just gave her that same unreadable look... then turned and walked away.

And Brianna stood there in the soft glow of the screen's fading light, heart steady on the outside, chaotic on the inside.

Whatever this was-

It wasn't over.

Not yet.