I never thought I would fall in love this summer, especially not with another guy.
Theo boards a plane with his parents for a family vacation he's not excited about.
Without a summer job and facing two dreary weeks in Torrevieja, life feels bleak...
He opened the door to the white-painted villa and stepped inside, a smile stretching from ear to ear. He removed his shoes and allowed the comforting sensation of being home to wash over him.
The state of bliss lasted only a few hours.
He sank into the spacious armchair in the living room as evening approached, his mobile phone firmly grasped in his palm. His thumb glided across the screen as he reopened the message thread with Ulrik.
The small text bubbles stared back at him, filled with hearts and messages. There were no read receipts and no replies. Theo bit the inside of his cheek, a common sign of his growing unease.
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"Ulrik, what is it?" he whispered to himself, hopelessly staring at the blank section of the chat where Ulrik's response should have appeared.
He tried again and typed another message: "Is everything okay?" Then he sent it out into the digital void, hoping for a miracle—a sign of life from the boy who always had words and a smile at the ready. But the screen lit up with no response.
With a sigh, Theo rose and walked over to the window. Outside, the garden teemed with life; the leaves fluttered gently on the trees in the breeze, and everything appeared as it should.
Just not his world—at least not without Ulrik's laughter or the spontaneous messages that appeared when he least expected them.
Why wasn't he answering?
Theo sat at the dinner table, his fork scraping against the plate as he pushed the food around. Each mouthful was small and forced.
His parents exchanged worried glances with him across the table, their silence conveying a clear inquiry about what was troubling him.
"You have barely eaten, Theo," his father said gently, his eyebrows furrowed with concern.
"I'm just not that hungry," he mumbled, avoiding his father's gaze.
His mother set down the cutlery and placed a hand on his arm. "Is everything all right, dear?"
"Yes, yes, of course," he quickly replied, though uncertainty resonated in his voice. He smiled, but the smile did not reach his restless brown eyes.
The darkness had descended as Theo lay in bed that evening. His room was completely silent, interrupted only by the sound of his uneven breathing.
Every hour, like a ritual, the screen of his phone illuminated with a blue light as he checked for messages.
Nothing. No words from Ulrik. Anxiety crept up his throat and gripped him like icy fingers.
He rolled from side to side, trapped between the pillows, yearning for sleep that eluded him. He squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to conjure Ulrik's voice—light and carefree—but the memories faded into the silence surrounding him.
