“Because,” I said, my voice barely a whisper. “I like the rain. And I think… I think I like you more.”
The school Halloween party. Liam asked me to dance. LIAM. The wizard! We danced to a slow song, and he smelled like cedar and coffee. He said, “I’m sorry I was weird about Sophia. She’s just… loud. You’re the one who actually sees things.”
But here’s the thing, Diary. The story isn’t about finding the one perfect person. It’s about the mess. The wrong turns. The boy with the untied shoelace who teaches you what you don’t want. The boy with the elbow patches who teaches you what you do.
The truth is a splinter, Diary. You ignore it, but it keeps stinging.
Am I a terrible person? I was just crying over Liam two weeks ago.
Plot twist. A major one.
An hour later, I found Caleb in the art room, sketching a raven. I sat down across from him. My hands were shaking.
But Liam is different. He reads fantasy novels during lunch. He doesn’t try to be cool. He is cool, just by not trying.
The Unwritten Chapters: The Diary of Marleen Vance
But I saw it, Diary. The physics of attraction. And I wasn’t the mass in his orbit.
He didn’t kiss me. He just reached across the table, took my hand, and placed his other hand over mine. Two layers. An umbrella.
Later, Chloe saw me smiling at my phone. “Who is it?” she demanded.
