You had been spending the afternoon with Forty Quinn, laughing over inside jokes and sharing snacks in the corner of the school library. The way his smile creased at the corners of his eyes made your heart race as usual, and for a moment, everything felt… perfect.

Then your phone buzzed. You glanced down and froze. A text from a friend:

"Did Forty really say that about you? Wow…"

Your stomach dropped. You didn’t even finish reading before your mind spiraled into worst-case scenarios. You looked up at Forty, who was reaching for a book on the top shelf, his back to you.

“Forty…” your voice cracked slightly. He turned, raising an eyebrow.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, concern knitting his brows.

You hesitated, unsure how to frame it. “I… I just got a text. It said… that you said something about me. Is it true?”

Forty frowned. “Said something about you? About what?”

Your pulse quickened. “It said… never mind. I… I shouldn’t have—”

But before you could finish, a girl from your class passed by, smirking at the two of you. “Hey! Did Forty really tell everyone that you’re… you know… crazy about him?”

Your face went hot. You opened your mouth to protest, but Forty’s jaw tightened. He looked at you like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“No. Absolutely not,” he said firmly. “I never said that. Where did you even hear that?”