T1748_
Brady and Adalynn had always been a pair. They grew up side by side, their houses separated by nothing more than a few feet of grass and a worn wooden fence. Summers were spent chasing fireflies, winters building forts out of blankets and pillows. Their friendship had always been natural, effortless like breathing. But somewhere along the way, Adalynn's heart changed. She didn't know exactly when it happened. Maybe it was the summer before senior year, when Brady shot up a few inches and his voice settled into something deeper, steadier. Or maybe it was the way he laughed easy and careless, like the world was never heavy on his shoulders. Whatever it was, she started seeing him differently, and once she noticed, there was no turning back.
She loved him.Not just as her best friend, not just as the boy she'd known since she was five. She loved him in the kind of way that made her heart race when he got too close, in the way that made her memorize every offhand compliment he ever gave her.But Brady?He didn't feel the same. She never told him how she felt never risked losing what they had but deep down, she always hoped. Hoped that maybe one day, he'd look at her and just know. That maybe she wouldn't have to say the words, because he'd feel them too. But he never did.So she did the only thing she could: she let go.It took time, but eventually, the ache in her chest dulled. She stopped waiting for him to see her the way she wanted him to. She stopped reading too much into every touch, every glance. She stopped hoping.
And that's when Brady's feelings started.
It snuck up on him the way his heart clenched when she laughed with someone else, the way he missed her when she wasn't around. He didn't know when it started, but suddenly, he couldn't ignore it. He wanted her.But by then, Adalynn had already moved on.Brady thought he could fix it. He thought maybe if he tried hard enough, she'd feel the way she used to. But she didn't. Not anymore. Until everything changed.