61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMnbVMdayn
By Friday, Naomi had almost convinced herself things were normal again.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxmfrE7Jfc
She wore her calm like a well-fitted jacket—neatly zipped and carefully ironed. Her hair was pinned back, her folders crisp. If she looked put-together on the outside, maybe the chaos inside her wouldn’t show.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBQT3cEWWna
She didn’t expect anything new when she walked into the music hall.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYXdoLfFg2X
But there it was—taped neatly to the corkboard:
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxJRnrDTifX
> **DUET COMPETITION: Regional Winter Gala Selection**
> *Finalists to perform live before guest judges. Open to all Music Division students.*
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYgiDbhXRFB
Below the bold headline was a growing list of names.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtXLqrVnRJk
Her eyes skimmed down the sheet.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0iPPdpu28t
And froze.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI1OZpiwLNM
> **Levi Hayes & Maya Holloway**
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNKmWS9JJVd
The names were circled in thick black ink.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAAdlbwmAy6
Her throat tightened.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPhSKVMUiOS
Maya Holloway. First-chair violinist. Voice like silk. Always perfectly in tune—on stage, in conversation, in life. Maya wasn’t just talented. She was polished. Public. *Safe.*
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxcLN5z8YYP
Naomi’s fingers tightened around the folder in her arms. The paper creased beneath her grip.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfktZgLYnly
Someone behind her gave a low whistle.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCpIzjuYeBk
> “Guess he’s making upgrades,”
> someone muttered.
> “She’s basically his type. Public performer. People pleaser.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg2NKftjIFp
Naomi turned sharply, but the voice was gone, swallowed by a group of students filing in with coffee cups and instrument cases.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4I6vEUEsFX
And just below the list, someone had scribbled in faint pencil:
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzWFMISrvuD
> **#Leomi is over. #Leaya?**
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡERYt3alrho
She didn’t even realize she was holding her breath until it burned.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZldWWS4g6e
---
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyoBZD0yd7S
She found Levi—too easily—just outside the rehearsal room, casually tuning his guitar by a window like nothing had changed.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVrPaOEHyTl
“Nice choice,” Naomi said, flatly.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZHIJny2s0y
Levi glanced up. “What?”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKsL5xycBf
She nodded toward the flyer. “You and Maya.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTuHPBytofC
Levi blinked. “She asked. I didn’t say yes.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwo2E6wOyoN
“You didn’t say no either, clearly.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDQQFl9HLFY
“She signed us up. I didn’t even see the list until this morning.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1kZkLWj36T
Naomi gave a dry laugh. “Convenient.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeORoAwUruo
He stepped forward, voice quieter. “Naomi, come on. You know I wouldn’t just—”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhEDU8ZFJ3U
“Pick her?” Her voice cracked just slightly. “Maybe not intentionally. But you didn’t stop her either.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJoDXOjnNWu
A beat passed.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI242CLiVDn
“She’s not you.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡphOqN8rwWW
“Exactly,” Naomi said, the words sharper than she meant. “She’s not difficult. Or defensive. Or confusing. She's everything I’m not—and apparently, that works better for you.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQSEsOQbZsG
Levi flinched.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6robIdWscp
“That’s not fair.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡztqvj6o1GL
“No,” she said, stepping back, her jaw tight. “What’s not fair is that I can’t even figure out what we are, and now I have to watch you duet with someone else like nothing happened.”
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡutEKfPTM2o
He looked at her like he wanted to explain everything.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqquwnmtq9T
But he didn’t.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyet39tK1gF
And she didn’t wait.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmPojQwOodt
She walked off, heart pounding in her chest like an off-beat drum.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlsf4qLLIjj
---
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBh5IwEQHDk
That night, Naomi sat in the dim quiet of her room, fingers poised over her notebook. She didn’t try to compose a melody.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMyf2QjRfIU
She wrote.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ52B89s0bD4
Fast. Messy. Raw.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmH8Xjiqjxf
Lyrics poured out of her like confession:
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbL4Hmom2UQ
> *You said it was just the music
> But the silence left a scar*
> *And now I’m a note you skipped
> On the way to who you really are.*
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkl1B8mJHw
Her vision blurred. She blinked it away.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWVXbsgmV8z
She’d never written something so angry. So *real.*
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo7EB17zAHQ
And when she read it back, it hurt.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2KUgsIfrEI
Because it wasn’t just a song.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNwgxBnGP72
It was the truth she couldn’t say out loud.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy9cyA56XtJ
---
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx267pxfMGl
Saturday came. Naomi arrived early to rehearsal, pretending she felt fine.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJRPuG39LL
But the room stayed too quiet.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgSwIoCY4GF
No Levi.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUDw6uB2H4
No call. No text.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvfZugFAge2
He wasn’t just late.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡld3gjoA49l
He wasn’t coming.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Rk4zXiMDD
---
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8FgPMAw4k
She stood alone by the piano, hand resting on the lid, her mind racing.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FqqyNTf0k
Was he avoiding her? Regretting the performance? Choosing Maya after all?
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4rmRndijHH
Or was something else going on—something she didn’t understand yet?
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJTcuz1QBA
The worst part wasn’t that he wasn’t there.
It was how much she’d hoped he would be.
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJybdM7wBgl
--
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡScpSlVqipB
Take a wild guess — what do you think will happen next? I won’t spoil, but I’ll be watching your theories! 👀61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHA1vCL0DsG
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWD4W3sScod
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKpUUdIGJM2
61Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdnWBJeYzj
