You were sitting in your apartment, cross-legged on the couch, staring at your laptop screen but not really reading. A text buzzed on your phone, and you immediately smiled.

Beck: “I’m outside! Ready for our coffee run?”

You grabbed your coat and rushed to the door. Beck was leaning against your building wall, sunglasses on, hair perfectly messy as usual. She waved when she saw you, and your heart did that weird flutter again.

“Hey,” you said, trying to sound casual.

“Hey yourself,” she replied, giving you that little smirk that always made you want to throw all pretenses out the window.

You walked to the nearby café in comfortable silence. Lately, it wasn’t just the casual hangouts that made your chest race—it was the way her laugh lingered in your mind, the way her eyes seemed to catch yours for just a beat too long. You tried to ignore it, called it “friend feelings,” but you knew better.

Beck ordered her usual—black coffee, no sugar—and you ordered yours. As you waited for your drinks, she nudged your shoulder playfully.

“You’ve been weird lately,” she said. “Are you… okay?”

You froze. Weird. That was one way to put it. Your hands were clammy, your thoughts scattered, your stomach doing somersaults.

“I’m fine,” you lied, forcing a smile.

Beck didn’t look convinced, but she let it go… for now. You both sat outside on a small café bench, sipping your drinks. The conversation was light at first, filled with inside jokes and shared memories, but then there was a pause. One of those loaded silences that made your heart hammer in your chest.