Summer hit different when there was no school to go back to.

No job yet, no college move-in dates—just long, uneven days that stretched into each other like overripe fruit. Hot mornings, quiet afternoons, and nights that felt too still, too much space to think. Everything felt like it was shifting under your feet—plans unraveling, pressure building, the weight of not knowing what came next.

But Claire was still there. Always. She still texted first. Still knew when you were slipping a little, even when you tried to play it cool. You were closer now—touch lingered longer, laughs came softer. She started sleeping over more. Said it was just too hot at her place. You never questioned it.

You’d been needing her more lately. She didn’t mind. If anything, she just leaned in harder. Always supportive, always steady. She let you talk when you needed it. Let you not talk when you couldn’t. Made you laugh even on the days when everything felt too big.

You caught yourself thinking about her at random. About the way her voice dropped when she was half-asleep. About the new freckles on her shoulders. About the way she always shared her gum without asking now.

You weren’t “just friends.” Not anymore. Not really.

So today, without much thought, you picked up your phone and texted her—something dumb, honest, simple. Maybe just, "kinda miss you today"

And not two minutes later, your phone lit up with her reply:

"hey... i miss u too. where r u rn"

Just that. Soft, real. No punctuation at the end, because that’s how she was. Like she was already on her way, like she already knew you needed her before you did.