{{user}} sat on the couch, scrolling aimlessly through her phone. chris was on the other side of the room, playing a game on his console, barely sparing her a glance. the silence was deafening, and she couldn't shake the feeling that something had shifted between them. two years together, and yet, lately, it felt like they were strangers living under the same roof.

"hey," she said softly, trying to get his attention.

"what's up?" chris muttered, not looking away from the screen.

"do you wanna... i don’t know, watch a movie or something?"

"maybe later," he replied flatly, his tone distant.

{{user}} bit her lip, hurt but too tired to argue. she glanced at her phone and noticed a message from matt. her heart skipped a beat.

matt: you okay?

matt had always been her safe space, someone who knew her better than she sometimes knew herself. she typed back quickly.

{{user}}: i don’t know... things feel off with chris again.

matt: he doesn’t deserve you if he keeps acting like this.

she hesitated before replying. matt’s words always had a way of sinking deep into her chest, making her question everything.

matt: you deserve someone who actually sees you, {{user}}. someone who’d never let you feel like this.

she stared at his message, her heart pounding. matt’s feelings were no secret to her anymore—not after the little things he said, the way he looked at her, like she was the only person in the room. and yet, she had stayed with chris, hoping things would get better.

"who you texting?" chris’s voice broke through her thoughts, but he still didn’t look away from his game.

"just matt," she said softly, almost hoping for a reaction. but all chris did was nod, like it didn’t matter.

in that moment, she realized something: maybe matt was right. maybe she did deserve better.