See You Next Saturday

Yesterday

There's an old saying that runs deep about the nature of inevitability—no matter how hard you try to avoid or outrun certain uncomfortable truths, they persist like shadows.

In fact, the more you ignore them, the larger they grow, like cracks in a wall slowly widening.

At some point, the weight of your avoidance becomes too great, and you're pulled into a reckoning—drawn into the "wormhole" you've tried so hard to escape.

The truth doesn't disappear; it waits, relentless, until it's impossible to ignore.

Deep down, Alex knew this.

Though things with Ezra seemed to progress on the surface, small cracks had always existed, whether or not she cared to recognize them.

She'd convinced herself that if she didn't acknowledge them, they wouldn't be there. If she didn't unmask the uncertainties circling in her mind, everything would remain perfect.

And indeed everything did, for a while at least.

But the truth was relentless, unyielding, and yesterday, it finally caught up with her.

Alex sat next to her best friend—numb, as always. She felt stuck between desperately wanting to open up, and knowing that she couldn't.

The events of the day before left her hurt, confused, and scared and she wanted to tell Liz all about it.

But instead, her mind drifted back to how perfect things were before—before the wormhole of truth yanked her in.

Before yesterday.

Things had been perfect with Ezra. Too perfect.

He had promised her he would try harder, and he did, it showed.

For over a year, their relationship had blossomed into something beautiful. He'd shown up for her, time and time again, proving that he could be better if he tried.

The changes were undeniable. Ezra had become a model boyfriend, the kind they wrote about in movies and novels.

And that was why Alex decided to do something he had previously frowned upon, assuming they had passed that point.

She thought the dynamics of their relationship had evolved beyond those constraints, especially after all the growth they had experienced together.

Alex always knew Ezra preferred keeping their relationship out of the spotlight; it wasn't a secret. However, given how great things had been between them, she didn't think he would mind if she did what she did, which ultimately led to the biggest fight they had ever had.

Yesterday after school, Ezra went to pick up Alex like he did every Friday. Their routine was predictable: they'd spend time reading in the sanctuary, and she'd help him with his grades, which had improved dramatically in the past year.

This Friday was no different.

Ezra had one unspoken rule about these pickups, something Alex understood well despite it never being openly discussed.

Whether or not he came into her house depended on her father's presence.

If her father was home, Ezra would wait down the road for her; if he wasn't, Ezra would park in the driveway and might even come inside.