Fallin' Into You

5

Kayla's POV

It was one of those days where nothing seemed to go right. I was lounging in my dorm room, lost in my thoughts when my phone buzzed with a call from Monica. I answered, hoping a conversation might lift my spirits.

"Hey, Monie," I said, trying to sound cheerful.

"Hey, Kayla! What's up? How's your day going?" Monica's voice was warm and friendly, a stark contrast to my current mood.

We chatted about mundane things at first, but then the conversation took a turn. Monica, ever the observant friend, brought up something that caught me off guard.

"So, Kayla," Monica said casually, "Do you ever think about, you know, if you like girls? Just wondering."

I laughed awkwardly, trying to brush it off. "Oh, no offense, but men are really all that have my eye. I guess I just never thought about it that way."

Monica chuckled. "Alright, no problem. But, you know, you do come off a bit like a female T.J. sometimes. You're naturally a little flirty."

Her words hit me harder than I expected. I didn't really want to think too deeply about it, so I just laughed along with her. The conversation shifted to girl talk, and Monica mentioned a girl she met over break who goes to Prairie View and is friends with T.J.'s little friend, Winter.

Suddenly, I felt a pang of disinterest. I was grateful when my mom called me, giving me an excuse to end the call with Monica.

As I walked away from my phone, I found myself replaying the conversation in my head. What made me react like that? Was it really because I didn't know how I felt, or was I just afraid to confront those feelings? Monica probably thought nothing of it—just another day in our friendship.

---

Back on campus, things felt more settled. Monica and I exchanged gifts, and I was thrilled to receive a charm bracelet I had been eyeing for a while. Her thoughtfulness was something I truly appreciated. We kept up with our usual hangouts, catching up and spending time together.

One afternoon, Skylar and I met Amber, Monica's current fling. Something about Amber felt off, but I kept my thoughts to myself. Monica seemed genuinely into her, and I didn't want to be the one to rain on her parade.

Later, Monica and I were hanging out in her dorm, doing what we usually did—talking, laughing, and just enjoying each other's company. Our conversation drifted to Amber, and Monica casually mentioned that they hadn't done much physically.

"I'm not really in a rush with Amber," Monica explained. "She's not that into girls, I think. Maybe she's just hanging out with me to make her ex mad or something. I'm more in it for the free food and company, to be honest."

I burst out laughing. "Seriously? You're just in it for the perks?"

"Pretty much," Monica grinned. "I'm not really crazy about Amber. She's nice and all, but it's more about the fun and the free meals for me."

Her light-hearted take on the situation made me laugh even harder. It was clear that Monica wasn't taking things too seriously, which was part of why I enjoyed hanging out with her.

---

As the days went by, I tried to shake off my earlier overthinking. My feelings for Monica were still confusing, but I wasn't going to let them cloud my interactions with her. For now, I was just going to focus on enjoying our time together and seeing where things went—without overanalyzing everything.

A couple of weeks later

T.J., Skylar, Monica, and I were lounging at our favorite café, a cozy spot where we often hung out. The place buzzed with chatter, but our corner was our little haven of laughter and good vibes.