Lines We Cross

Chapter 40

The hum of quiet conversations and the faint rustle of pages filled the library as Lizzie walked down one of the aisles, her fingers tracing the spines of neatly lined books. She wasn't there to work, really—just grabbing a book for light reading, hoping to spend a quiet evening lost in a story. Ever since she'd started thinking about transferring, moments like these had become her rare escapes.

But today, the peaceful atmosphere was doing little to settle her thoughts. She couldn't help herself; as she passed each row, her eyes darted over the students, almost instinctively searching for someone she shouldn't be looking for.

Her fingers froze against the shelf when she spotted a familiar figure sitting across the room. YN was leaning over a table, her head bent in conversation with Nina and Maya. They looked like they were catching up after class, laughter occasionally drifting across the library to where Lizzie stood, half-hidden behind a bookcase.

Lizzie's heart clenched, and she found herself unable to look away. YN's face was lit with a smile—an expression she'd missed more than she'd ever admit. She hadn't seen her up close in months, and just the sight of her in that element, so casual and so... alive, stirred something raw and painful in her chest.

She knew she should walk away. She shouldn't even be lingering, shouldn't even be in the same space as YN, not with everything that had happened. But before she could force herself to turn, she noticed a blonde girl approach YN, sliding into the seat beside her. The girl leaned in, her hand lingering on YN's shoulder as she laughed, her touch a little too familiar. Lizzie watched as YN looked up, her expression unreadable as she responded to something the blonde had said.

A sharp pang of jealousy coursed through her, surprising her with its intensity. She knew YN had likely moved on or, at the very least, was trying to, just as she was. But seeing it, witnessing someone else in YN's orbit, still struck a nerve she hadn't expected.

Swallowing the lump in her throat, Lizzie took a shaky breath and turned back toward the shelf, trying to gather herself. Her hand found the book she'd been looking for, and she pulled it out, her eyes fixed on the cover even as her thoughts spiraled.

Was she really that easy to replace? A part of her had foolishly held on to the hope that maybe, just maybe, YN felt as unmoored as she did. But seeing her here, laughing, surrounded by friends and that flirtatious blonde... Lizzie felt a pang of realization that maybe she'd been clinging to something that was already long gone.

Still, she couldn't help herself. She stole one last glance over her shoulder, her gaze meeting YN's for the briefest of moments. The look in YN's eyes froze her in place—an expression of recognition, something deep and conflicted that mirrored the ache in her own chest.

But then, as if on cue, YN turned her attention back to her friends, her expression guarded, as though she'd shut down whatever had just flickered between them. The blonde laughed again, nudging YN's shoulder, and just like that, the moment was gone.

Lizzie took a step back, her heart pounding, and forced herself to turn away, slipping down the aisle toward the exit. It was better this way, she told herself. YN was moving on. And she... she had to do the same, even if every instinct in her wanted to cross the room and bridge the distance that had grown between them.

But that was wishful thinking. Foolish, even. She had to keep walking, to leave the memory of them behind where it belonged.

———

That evening, Lizzie sat in her apartment, the book lying open on her lap, though she'd read the same sentence three times without actually processing it. Her mind kept drifting back to that fleeting moment in the library, that look in YN's eyes, as though she'd wanted to say something—just as Lizzie had.