You hadn’t planned on letting anyone see you like this again. You’d been doing better—smiling more, getting up in the mornings, pretending that the world didn’t feel like it was crumbling under its own weight. But sometimes, all it took was one bad day. One trigger. One thought that stuck too long.

And suddenly, you were back where you swore you wouldn’t be.

When you didn’t show up to school for three days, Eric noticed. He always noticed.

The fourth afternoon, he was outside your apartment, hood pulled up against the drizzle, knocking gently on the door until you opened it.

“Hey,” he said softly. “You missed Lit class. I brought you your notes.”

You tried to smile, but it didn’t reach your eyes. “You didn’t have to.”

“I know.” He held out a paper bag. “Also, grilled cheese from that place you like. Thought you might eat if I bribed you.”

You let out a quiet laugh—your first in days.

He stepped inside without asking, because he’d been here before, back when things were dark the first time. He didn’t say much at first; just sat on the couch, flipping through your copy of The Bell Jar while you stared out the window.

Finally, he spoke. “You don’t have to talk about it,” he said. “But you also don’t have to go through it alone.”