Her Love Is Traumatic

Fading Lines

Lara sat hunched over her desk, her hands moving swiftly across the pages of her biochemistry notes, the glow from her laptop casting soft light over her tired face. Between her assignments and the endless online classes, the schedule had become overwhelmingly hectic. Biochemistry was one thing, but her anatomy file was a monster of its own—sketching detailed diagrams of muscles and organs was tedious work.

Meanwhile, Christine sat at her own desk, feeling restless. After hours of solving math problems, her mind needed a break. She glanced over at Lara, surrounded by papers and textbooks, and noticed her struggling with the anatomical diagrams.

"Hey, do you need help with that?" Christine asked, walking over to Lara's desk.

Lara looked up, surprised. “You’d help me with this?”

Christine smiled and picked up one of the half-finished diagrams. “Of course. I always loved sketching, remember?”

Lara's face softened. The moment felt strangely nostalgic for both of them—Christine offering to help, Lara quietly accepting. It was like old times, back when things between them were simple and comfortable. There were no hidden motives, no tense conversations—just two friends helping each other out. Christine quickly became absorbed in the drawings, and for a while, the room was filled with a sense of calm.

But while Christine was engrossed in her work, Lara’s mind was elsewhere. Christine’s birthday was coming soon, and Lara had been planning something special for weeks. In the quiet hours between studying, she had started putting together a scrapbook—a diary, really—filled with photos of her and Christine, each one accompanied by a note about how much those moments meant to her.

As she worked on it, flipping through the photos, Lara found herself getting lost in memories. One particular picture of Christine in a simple grey t-shirt caught her attention. Below it, she scribbled the words, “You won’t want to know what you wearing grey does to my heart...”

Then there was another photo—a group shot of Christine, Kate, Rose, and herself. But in Lara’s eyes, the other girls didn’t matter. Underneath it, she wrote, “Many stars around you, but I am your only sun.”

She smiled to herself, thinking about how perfect this would be as a birthday gift—her way of declaring her feelings openly, for Christine to understand fully. She was deep in thought, adding more notes and captions, when she suddenly heard Christine’s voice behind her.

“What are you doing?” Christine asked curiously, leaning over to get a better look.

Lara quickly closed the diary, but not fast enough. Christine had already seen a glimpse of the photos and the notes beneath them. Her brows furrowed in confusion, and then realization hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Seriously, Lara?" Christine’s voice was tense. “I thought I made myself clear. I rejected you. Why are you doing all this again?”

Lara’s smile faltered, but she tried to recover. “It’s for your birthday. I know this is the perfect present, where I can declare my heartfelt feelings.”

Christine shook her head, stepping back. “If this is the present you want to give me, then I don’t want anything from you, Lara. Don’t do this. Please.”

Lara’s face twisted in anger, her expression darkening. “Fine!” she snapped, slamming the diary shut. “You never appreciate my efforts. You know what? I’ll just go and burn these now!”

With that, Lara stormed out of the room, leaving Christine standing there, stunned. The air in the room felt thick with tension, and Christine whispered under her breath, “That was... creepy.”

__________________________

Meanwhile, in the common kitchen, Rose and Kate were engaged in their own adventure—attempting to bake Christine a birthday cake. Neither of them had much experience baking, but they had decided it was the perfect way to surprise their friend.

Kate stood by the counter, staring at her phone as they followed the recipe. “Okay, it says here we need to whisk the eggs and sugar until fluffy.”

Rose frowned at the mess of flour scattered across the countertop. “Fluffy? How fluffy is fluffy?”

“I don’t know!” Kate laughed, whisking wildly. “Let’s just go with it.”

After a few minutes, the kitchen was filled with the sounds of clattering bowls and nervous giggles. They tried melting chocolate for the frosting, but it curdled and burned at the bottom of the pot, leaving a strange smell in the air.

“Ugh! This is a disaster” Rose groaned, her hands covered in sticky batter.

“Yeah, but at least we’re learning,” Kate said optimistically, though her tone was anything but confident.

"Seriously? It's just me trying hard and you finding ways to ruin the whole process. I don't think you can even boil water without creating a mess." Rose said in a mocking tone.

"Alright. But you are good at one thing I must say" Kate said mysteriously.

"What??"

"Shifting the blame" Rose said and there they were again laughing together.

Their first attempt at the cake came out undercooked and rubbery. The second one was burned to a crisp. By the time they finally got a third batch into the oven, they were laughing hysterically at their own failure.

“Third time’s the charm, right?” Rose said, peeking through the oven window. “At least it’s not on fire.”

After what felt like an eternity, they finally pulled the chocolate cake from the oven. It wasn’t perfect, but it was at least passable. They decorated it with a few sprinkles and some crooked frosting swirls.

"It looks... okay?" Kate said hesitantly.

"It’ll have to do," Rose agreed, wiping flour from her forehead.

At midnight, Rose and Kate stood outside Christine’s room, giggling like schoolchildren as they held the cake between them. As the clock struck twelve, they burst into the room, singing the birthday song loudly and off-key.

Christine looked up, startled at first, but then her face lit up in delight. “You guys!” she exclaimed, pulling them into a hug. “This is amazing!”

They placed the cake on the table, and after a round of birthday wishes, they cut into it. Christine took the first bite, chewing thoughtfully as Rose and Kate waited in anticipation.

“Well?” Kate asked nervously. “How is it?”

Christine swallowed and forced a smile, despite the cake’s muddy texture. “It’s... delicious. Thank you!”

Rose and Kate exchanged a relieved look, though deep down, they both knew the cake wasn’t exactly a masterpiece. Lara, sitting silently in the corner, made a face of disgust as she poked at her slice with a fork, but Christine paid her no mind.

After a round of pictures, Christine decided to take a selfie with Kate. They smiled at the camera, and just as Christine was about to press the button, Kate leaned in and kissed her cheek, catching Christine off guard. The moment was frozen in the photo, and they both burst into laughter.

The rest of the night was filled with dancing, laughter, and more attempts at eating the cake. For a few hours, everything felt light and carefree again, like a glimpse of the life Christine had before Lara’s obsession began to take over.