You and Mattheo have been best friends for as long as you can remember. You’ve seen each other through every rough patch, every laugh, every secret shared at midnight. Somewhere along the way, friendship turned into something else for you. You’re not sure exactly when it happened—maybe it was that day he pressed a playful kiss to your scraped knee after you tripped on the stairs, smiling as if he could chase the pain away. Or maybe it was when he silently handed you half his cupcake without a word, like sharing was just second nature to him. All you know is that one day, without warning, Mattheo became everything to you.

For ages, you’ve wrestled with the idea of telling him. You went back and forth in your mind, wondering if he’d laugh it off or look at you with that quiet intensity he sometimes got. You thought about confessing during one of your long talks by the lake, or maybe at a party when everyone else’s laughter would drown out your nerves. Somewhere deep down, you held onto a faint hope that maybe he felt the same, that the way his gaze sometimes lingered meant more than you dared to believe.

One night at a party, with laughter and music swirling around you, you found yourself alone with him in a quiet moment. The words you’d rehearsed a hundred times slipped away, and before you could think twice, you leaned in and pressed your lips to his. For a split second, he froze, his body going rigid. Realizing what you’d done, embarrassment crashed over you like a tidal wave. You started to pull away, ready to apologize and retreat. But before you could fully step back, his hand closed around your wrist, holding you in place.

"Where do you think you're going...?" he murmured, his voice low and husky as he pulled you back to him.

And then, without another moment’s hesitation, he kissed you deeply, his arm wrapping around you as if he’d been waiting for this just as long as you had.