Wrong Number

13

Next day, midday

Aaron's phone buzzed again with more urgent messages she kept sending.

Aaron:
Please, just answer me.

Aaron:
I'm worried.

Aaron:
If you need space, just say so. But don't disappear like this.

Suddenly, a new message popped up—from an unknown number.

Unknown:
Hi, this is Gracie. I'm a friend of Lismery's. She's in the shower right now, so she can't reply.

Aaron:
Who's this? I don't know you.

Gracie:
Sorry! Just wanted to let you know she's okay but really shaken after the party.

Aaron:
Party? She was there? She never told me.

Gracie:
Yeah. She didn't want you to know she came.

Aaron:
Wait... the mystery girl? It's her?

Gracie:
Yep. Surprise!

Aaron stared at the message, stunned.

She'd been chasing someone she didn't even know... and it was someone closer than she thought.

Aaron stared at her phone, the message from Gracie replaying in her mind. Lismery. The name was unfamiliar, but suddenly everything felt tangled.

Who is she?
Why didn't she say anything?
Why did she show up at the party and then disappear?

Aaron's fingers hovered over the keyboard, unsure whether to reply.

She typed, then deleted.

She didn't even know this girl, but something about the mystery—and the silence—was eating at her.

Finally, she typed back.

Aaron:
Thanks, Gracie. Can you tell Lismery I want to talk? Whenever she's ready.

No response yet.

Aaron sighed, her mind racing.

She had no idea who Lismery really was, but now she had to find out.

Maybe this mystery girl wasn't so mysterious anymore.

Lismery's POV

The water from the shower rinsed over me, but it couldn't wash away the heaviness in my chest. My phone buzzed relentlessly on the counter outside the bathroom—Aaron's name lighting up the screen again and again.

I didn't want to see it. Didn't want to deal with her messages. Not yet.

I leaned against the cool tile, letting the water drown out the noise inside my head.

Why had I even gone to that party? To see Aaron? To feel that spark again? But seeing her with Alexis—that was like a slap in the face.

I wasn't ready to explain, to admit how much it hurt. Not when I wasn't sure what I wanted anymore.

The mystery girl wasn't a game. It was me. And the truth was scarier than I thought.

I dried off slowly, heart pounding with every thought.

Maybe I needed space. Maybe I needed time.

But deep down, I knew avoiding Aaron wouldn't make this any easier.