1) it starts tonight
It was our last year. The corridors were the same, but people were no longer the same. Everyone acted like they had grown up, but no one had actually grown up.
I left my phone on the bed and opened my wardrobe door for the third time.
School was tomorrow.
And I still couldn’t decide what to wear.
The bed was now buried under piles of black hoodies, white T-shirts, and jeans.
“Is it normal that you’re overthinking this so much?” I said to myself.
Just then my phone vibrated.
Nina is calling via video…
I smiled without meaning to.
“She’s definitely having a crisis,” I muttered and answered the call.
The moment Nina’s face appeared on the screen, she screamed.
“ALIN, SCHOOL IS TOMORROW.”
“I noticed.”
“I guess I didn’t because I can’t breathe right now.”
I laughed.
“Is it that bad?”
“I have three outfits and all three look like they were made for someone who wants to embarrass themselves on the first day.”
She lifted her phone and showed me the clothes on her bed. Her room looked like a battlefield.
“The black one is good.”
“No. That gives me abandoned Wattpad character vibes.”
“You kind of are one anyway.”
“Shut up.”
We both laughed.
The sound of a summer night came through my window. Cars, distant music, people still acting like they were on holiday…
But tomorrow everything would change.
It was our last year.
And somehow that thought left a strange feeling in my stomach.
Nina suddenly moved closer to the camera.
“What if we’re not in the same class?”
“Here we go.”
“I’m serious Alin. If I end up in the same class as Violet, I’ll leave school.”
“Don’t exaggerate.”
“I’m not. That girl judges me just by looking at me.”
I threw my clothes onto the bed and sat on the floor.
“Maybe it’s because you always look at her like she’s annoying?”
“Because she is annoying.”
“Reason?”
“Her face.”
I laughed.
Just then a message came to my phone.
The name on the screen made me go silent without meaning to.
Cole
don’t be late tomorrow
I stared at the message for a few seconds.
Nina immediately noticed, of course.
“Who texted you?”
“No one.”
“Alin.”
“Cole.”
Nina’s face formed a sly grin.
“OHHH.”
“Shut up.”
“What did he say?”
“Nothing.”
I showed her the phone on camera.
The moment Nina read the message, she raised her eyebrows.
“Could this guy like you or something?”
“No.”
“I think yes.”
“I think you’re talking nonsense.”
But even while saying that, I realized I looked back at the screen.
I had known Cole since childhood. We had basically grown up in the same circles. In the last few years we had gotten closer but… I don’t know.
Being around him was easy.
That was the dangerous part.
Nina was still grinning.
“You’re blushing right now.”
“I’m not.”
“Alin, you literally turned red.”
“How can you tell when I have a phone in front of me?”
“Because I know you.”
I rolled my eyes.
I looked at my phone again.
are you the one saying that?
I typed.
it’s our last year, I want it to start properly
My heart sped up in a ridiculous way.
And that was extremely annoying.
Nina was looking at me like she could analyze my voice.
“You’re in love.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“You might not be in love but you’re definitely not empty.”
I didn’t answer.
Because I couldn’t.
To change the topic I quickly asked:
“What is Asher doing?”
Nina’s expression changed instantly.
A small but noticeable shift.
“I don’t know.”
“You still haven’t talked?”
“We talk.”
“Then?”
Nina stayed silent for a few seconds.
“They met up with the others today. Ethan was there too.”
I quietly said “ugh” inside.
No one really knew anymore why Ethan and Görkem had fallen out. They used to be inseparable. Then suddenly they stopped talking.
And whatever happened, happened.
“How was it?”
“Asher left immediately.”
“Are you serious?”
She nodded.
“The moment Ethan showed up, he literally left the place.”
I frowned.
“What could have possibly happened between them?”
“I don’t know,” Nina said quietly.
But she seemed like she knew more.
I didn’t push it.
Just then an Instagram notification popped up.
Ryan posted a new story.
I opened it.
A blurry video shot at night.
There were car headlights in the background. was singing loudly. Karan was trying to avoid the camera.
In the last few seconds of the video, Cole appeared.
He looked at the camera under his hoodie, then turned away without smiling.
There was only one caption:
last year.
For some reason, I felt something strange inside me.
Nina must have opened the story too because she suddenly shouted.
“Efe definitely disturbed the whole neighborhood again.”
“Definitely.”
Nina suddenly turned serious.
“Tomorrow feels like it’s going to be weird.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
I didn’t know either.
But she might’ve been right.
Because for the first time, it felt like nothing would stay the same anymore
