.•* 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚖𝚊 𝚊𝚍𝚖𝚒𝚗: C A L L A

[* fingers grip the fabric of his clothes, afraid if she lets go, he might vanish. . . a person like ethan can’t possibly be real. . . he’s too kind, too good. . . yet his arms are around her. . . and for once in her life, she feels safe in an embrace—not trapped. *] —

[* her gaze shifts to his hand, and then back to his face—. . . this feeling is new. this desire to be comforted—her body seems to move on its own. she’s grabbing ethan, pulling him into a tight hug, face buried in his shoulder. she’ll apologize for the tears later. *] —

i miss him. he and i were friends. [* she mumbled in-between sobs, wiping her eyes with the sleeves of her sweater. this was so. . . pathetic. deep breaths, finally able to form coherent sentences, though they’re occasionally interrupted by a gasp for air.*] i—