I told myself that today was about beginnings.
New city.
New campus.
New version of me.
I repeated that lie as I stood at the entrance of Westbridge University, my suitcase beside me, my heart beating too fast for someone who was supposed to be starting over. The air smelled like rain and fresh paint—like something unfinished, like me.
You're fine, Aria, I thought.
This is your fresh start.
Students passed by in clusters, laughing, bumping shoulders, talking about classes and dorm parties and futures that still felt kind. I watched them like an outsider, someone peeking through a window into a life she wasn't sure she deserved yet.
Two years ago, I would have been laughing like that too.
Two years ago, I still believed love stayed.
I adjusted the strap of my bag and took a step forward.
Then I heard his voice.
Low. Familiar.
A voice that once said my name like it meant something.
"—you sure the admin office is this way?"
My body reacted before my mind could stop it.
My chest tightened.
My fingers went numb.
The world narrowed into a single, terrible sound.
No.
Not here.
Not him.
I turned slowly, already knowing what I would see.
Liam Hale stood a few feet away.
He looked… older. Broader shoulders. Sharper jaw. His dark hair was slightly longer now, falling into his eyes the way it used to when he studied too hard or pretended not to care. He was wearing a black hoodie, sleeves pushed up, hands in his pockets like he didn't belong anywhere.
Like he never stayed long enough to.
For a moment—just one cruel, hopeful moment—our eyes met.
The campus disappeared.
I was seventeen again, sitting on the hood of his car under a sky full of stars. I was laughing, breathless, while he looked at me like I was the only thing holding him together. I could almost hear him say it again.
"It's you, Aria. It's always been you."
Then his expression changed.
The recognition was there. I saw it. A flicker of surprise, something unreadable—something that looked a lot like pain.
And then he looked away.
Just like that.
No pause.
No hesitation.
No acknowledgment that he had ever loved me.
He turned his body slightly, continuing his conversation as if I were just another stranger passing by. As if my heart hadn't once lived in his hands.
The pain hit late—but hard.
It felt like falling all over again, except this time there was no one to catch me.
I swallowed, forcing my legs to move. I walked past him, every step heavier than the last, my ears ringing. I waited for him to say my name.
Aria.
He didn't.
I kept walking.
The admin office was too bright. Too clean. Too normal for how broken I felt inside.
I signed forms with shaking hands, nodded when spoken to, smiled when required. I wondered if the girl behind the desk could see the crack running straight through my chest.
"Dorm C, third floor," she said cheerfully. "Welcome to Westbridge."
Welcome.
I almost laughed.
By the time I reached my dorm room, my strength was gone. I dropped my bag and slid down the door, hugging my knees to my chest like I used to when things hurt too much to explain.
So it was real.
Liam was here.
Of all the universities.
Of all the cities.
Of all the lives we could've chosen.
Fate had a twisted sense of humor.
Two years ago, he left without a goodbye.
One day he was there—holding my face, promising forever—and the next, he was gone. No calls. No messages. Just silence so loud it nearly destroyed me.
I remembered the night I waited for him in the rain.
I remembered how I told myself he'd come.
He never did.
I closed my eyes.
I promised myself I wouldn't cry over you again, I thought.
I promised.
A knock sounded on the door.
I wiped my face quickly and stood, opening it to find a girl with curly hair and an oversized smile.
"Hi! You must be my roommate. I'm Jess."
I forced a smile. "Aria."
She talked a lot—about classes, about boys, about how exciting everything was. I nodded and laughed in the right places, grateful for the distraction.
Until she said, "Oh! Did you see that guy outside earlier? Tall, dark hair, looks like he hates everyone?"
My heart skipped painfully.
"No," I said too fast. "I didn't."
She shrugged. "Shame. He's hot in a mysterious, emotionally unavailable way."
I turned away before she could see my expression.
You have no idea, I thought.
That night, sleep refused to come.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw him. The way he looked away. The way he erased me without a word.
Why are you here, Liam?
Why now?
My phone buzzed suddenly.
Unknown number.
I stared at the screen, heart pounding, already knowing. I shouldn't have opened it.
But I did.
Unknown:
I didn't expect to see you today.
The room felt too small. Too tight.
My fingers hovered over the screen.
A thousand things I wanted to say.
A thousand things I swore I wouldn't.
I typed one sentence.
Me:
Neither did I.
Three dots appeared. Disappeared. Appeared again.
Unknown:
I'm sorry.
I laughed bitterly, a sound that broke something in me.
Two years of silence.
And sorry was all he had.
Me:
Don't text me again.
I blocked the number before I could change my mind.
I lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling, tears finally falling freely.
I didn't know why fate brought him back into my life.
But I knew one thing.
Loving Liam Hale once nearly destroyed me.
And this time…
I wasn't sure my heart would survive him again.