Why would she reach out anyway, when her messages were left on delivered?
It was for the best, Seth told himself.
The sooner they forget each other, the sooner they can move on with their lives. University assignments were dawning on him, and took up much of his time, so it wasn’t a lie after all. Outside of his assignments, he had no time, anyway, with his internship.
So that’s how he occupied his time. He’d work on his assignment, then he’d work on his internship. And if he got even a slither of free time, he’d game with Jae until Jae called it quits.
Gratefully, Jae didn’t ask about Nina very much. Maybe he sensed the shift in Seth’s mood, that they’d reached an unspeakable agreement that Seth handled these things better when it was on mute.
Seth could tell that Jae didn’t want him to be silent on it. But what was there to do? Seth only knew how to combat with silence.
It was on the Thursday night, after he’d logged off from his internship for the day, that he called for a well-deserved time out.
He rolled his chair away from his desk, and slumped himself against the bed. He reached for his phone, and started scrolling on social media. It was the same old feed. Updates from former classmates. Pop-culture news that sparked his interest for just a second, until he scrolled past. There was a meme about readers that caught Seth’s attention.
His stomach clenched, and his fingers itched to send the post to her. He didn’t, and scrolled past.
Yet, the photo underneath it, seized him even more. It was a recent carousel post from Nina. He turned over, his gaze surveying the photo.
The first picture was one of her at a craft restaurant, beaming at the camera, her eyes squinted close. Nina was wearing a red spaghetti strapped top, and his eyes lingered on the exposed soft skin of her shoulders, her collarbone, before tugging his gaze back toward her smile.
Against his will, Seth’s heart began to bloom. He swiped on the photos. Nina had caught up with Veronica and Celine, it seems. His fingers hovered above the like button, and pressed it, before placing his phone against the bed.
Now, her smile was imprinted in his mind.Nina.
He wondered if she’d thought of him, over the past two weeks they hadn’t spoken. She must hate him now.
Must hate himall overagain.
Ah, so history repeats itself.
How disappointed must she be, to realise that the dear friend she was making of an old crush, turned out to be the same asshole from high-school?
Shoving himself from his bed, Seth decided that a run around the neighbourhood would do him better than scrolling mindlessly on his phone.
The fresh air would clear his head.
His dad was in the living room, sleeping, while his mum was still at work. Carefully, he snuck out through the front door after slipping into his running shoes.
The afternoon was dipping into the evening, unveiling thick flares of reds, oranges and pinks across the dimming sky.
Seth loved this time of day most. The stillness. A momentary pause.
Against the dimming sky, and the blazing sun that dipped below the horizon in one last hurrah for the day, Seth could believe that all would be okay.
The sun would rise again, eventually.
He began his jog, starting at a steady pace, before quickening it once the footpath led him onto a grassed field just five minutes from his house. There were others out as well - little kids walking alongside their parents, dogs running off leash across the wide field. Seth anchored his pace into a fast-walk.
He gave himself the privilege of admiring the vermillion hues of the sunset, and inhaled the freshly chill night breeze. Soon, his chest constricted tightly, and took it as his sign to take a break.
Thankfully, there was a free park bench beside the field. Seth plopped himself atop the surface, leaning back. He swallowed air in large bouts, his chest rising. He closed his eyes for a moment, just to rest his eyes.
“Seth?”
He inhaled sharply, the sound of her voice setting off a wave of fireworks. He opened his eyes.
There she was.
