The Walk
The Walk
Ethan lingered outside the coffee shop, pretending to scroll through his phone while he stole glances at Abby sitting at their usual table, absentmindedly stirring her latte. Her light brown hair fell in loose waves over her shoulders, and every so often, she glanced at her phone with a faint smile.
They’d been best friends for two years now, ever since they met in Chemistry on their first day of college. Two years of shared lectures, late-night study sessions, terrible jokes, and countless afternoons spent together.
Somewhere along the way, Ethan had fallen hopelessly in love with her. He couldn’t remember exactly when it happened. Maybe when she fell asleep on his shoulder for the first time, or when she brought him soup after he spent three days sick in bed. Whatever the reason, his feelings became impossible to ignore.
But two years later, he still hadn’t worked up the courage to tell her because every time he tried to confess, the words caught in his throat.
He looked through the window again.
Abby’s phone buzzed. She glanced at the screen, and her expression brightened.
Ethan’s stomach sank.
Alex.
It had to be him.
Abby had recently reconnected with her ex-boyfriend, and although she insisted they were just friends, Ethan couldn’t help wondering whether there was something more.
He knew their history.
Alex and Abby dated for four years, practically high school sweethearts. They’d been inseparable until Alex ended their relationship shortly after graduation, leaving Abby heartbroken.
Ethan spent the first months of their friendship watching her slowly put herself back together, and now Alex was back.
Ethan slipped his phone into his pocket and pushed open the coffee shop door.
He had always told himself that being Abby’s friend was enough. Even if she never returned his feelings, he would rather have her in his life than lose her over a confession, but lately, that reassurance had begun to feel less convincing.
He ordered a coffee and walked over to her table.
“Hey, Abs.”
“Ethan!” Abby looked up, and her face brightened, and Ethan felt the familiar flutter in his chest. “I didn’t see you come in.”
“I’ve been working on my stealth skills,” he said, sliding into the chair across from her. “Glad to see they’re paying off.”
Abby laughed.
It was such an ordinary sound, one Ethan had heard hundreds of times, yet it still made his day a little better.
“You’re a goofball.”
Ethan grinned and took a sip of his coffee.
They fell into conversation as naturally as always.
Abby complained about an upcoming assignment. Ethan told her about a professor who had somehow spent an entire lecture explaining something that could’ve been summarized in ten minutes. They talked about their classes, an episode of the show they’d been watching together, and the increasingly terrifying prospect of graduating and figuring out what to do with their lives.
Talking to Abby had always been easy for Ethan. He had always struggled with socialization, but the silence in their conversations was never uncomfortable.
Ethan loved that about her. In fact, he loved many things about her.
He liked the way she tucked her hair behind her ear when she tried concentrating. The way she always ordered the same latte but insisted on staring at the menu for a couple of minutes. The little tune she hummed whenever she worked on her laptop.
He knew how she liked her bagels toasted, which songs she listened to when she was sad, and how she tended to overthink things that other people wouldn’t give a second thought.
Sometimes he wondered whether knowing someone so well made falling in love inevitable.
Abby’s phone rang, and she glanced at the screen.
Ethan caught the name before she turned it over.
Alex.
She declined the call and sighed.
“Everything okay?” Ethan asked.
“Yeah. Nothing important.”
He nodded and didn’t insist.
He wanted to ask about Alex, but he knew better than to pry. Abby had always respected his privacy, and he owed her the same courtesy.
Still, he couldn’t help thinking about how often Alex had appeared in their conversations lately; a late-night phone call here, or an unexpected encounter there.
Ethan knew he had no right to be jealous because he wasn’t Abby’s boyfriend. He was her best friend, and sometimes, that distinction hurt more than he cared to admit.
“I should probably get going,” Abby said eventually, closing her laptop. “I’ve got an early class tomorrow.”
Ethan glanced at the time. “So soon?”
“We’ve been here for almost three hours.”
“Seriously?”
Abby laughed. “You have absolutely no concept of time.”
“Not when I’m being entertained.”
“Oh, so I’m entertainment now?”
“Premium entertainment. Five stars.”
She rolled her eyes, smiling as she slipped her notebook into her bag.
Ethan stood up. “I’ll walk you to your dorm.”
“Oh, you don’t have to.”
“I know, but I want to make sure you get there safely.”
Abby’s smile softened. “Alright.”
They stepped outside into the cool night. Traffic hummed in the distance, and the sidewalks were crowded with students heading back to their dorms. Streetlights flickered on, casting pale pools of light across the pavement.
They walked only a couple of blocks when Ethan slowed down.
“Hey, isn’t that...?”
Alex stood near the corner, waiting for the crosswalk signal to change. He was broad-shouldered and taller than Ethan had seen in pictures, but it was definitely him.
Alex expression brightened when he spotted Abby. “Abby! Hey!”
She hesitated, then offered him a polite smile. “Hi, Alex.”
Alex approached them, glancing briefly at Ethan. “You’re Elliot, right?”
“Ethan,” Abby corrected.
“Right. Sorry, man.” Alex offered him a fist bump. “I’m Alex.”
Ethan forced a smile and returned the gesture.
At least he introduced himself as Abby’s ex-boyfriend, he thought. That would’ve been awkward.
“I wasn’t expecting to run into you,” Alex told Abby. “I was just heading back from the library. Actually, I gave you a call earlier.”
“Yeah, sorry I missed your call. I was busy,” Abby lied.
“No worries. I just wanted to make sure we’re still on for tomorrow.”
Ethan glanced between them.
Tomorrow?
Abby nodded. “Of course. You still need help with that assignment, right?”
“Desperately! If I fail this test, I’m pretty sure my professor’s going to start charging me rent for how often I’m in his office.”
Abby chuckled. “Did you at least look at the study guide I sent you?”
“Yes.” He paused. “Well, most of it.”
“Alex.”
“Okay, fine. Half.”
“You’re impossible.”
“I prefer academically challenged.”
Ethan felt some relief knowing they were in contact because Abby was helping him with schoolwork.
Alex scratched the back of his neck. “Anyway, I was hoping we could go over the answers before class.”
“Sure, but you’re doing the work yourself.”
“Wouldn’t dream of making you do it for me.”
For a moment, the three of them stood in silence. Then Alex looked at Abby, and his expression softened.
“Seriously, though. Thanks. You always made things easier.”
Ethan didn’t miss the silent weight of their shared history: four years of memories, arguments, promises, and moments he knew nothing about. He suddenly felt like an outsider who had walked into a movie halfway through.
Abby shifted her weight. “Well, Ethan and I should probably get going. It’s getting late,” she said.
“Right.” Alex nodded, visibly disappointed. “I guess I’ll see you in class, Abby.”
“Of course. Take care, Alex.” Abby caught Ethan gently by the arm and started walking.
Alex glanced at Ethan one last time. “Take care of her, man.”
Ethan paused, hearing the sincerity in his voice. For the first time in the last few minutes of talking, Alex didn’t look particularly confident. He looked like someone who had finally accepted that a part of his life was over.
“I will.” Ethan nodded.
Alex smiled faintly and turned to cross the street.
Ethan and Abby walked in silence for another block.
“Well, that wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be,” Abby finally said, and let out a long sigh.
“Were you imagining dramatic background music?”
“You’re ridiculous.”
Ethan laughed.
“Things are normal between us now, you know? We’re just friends,” Abby said, adjusting the strap of her bag.
Ethan glanced at her, not quite understanding why Abby was explaining herself.
“We share a couple of classes, so we started talking again. He apologized for how things ended, and...” She shrugged. “I don’t know. It felt easier to forgive him than keep holding on to a grudge.”
“That makes sense.”
“I mean it, Ethan,” she snapped.
Ethan stopped walking and glanced at her, surprised. He couldn’t understand why she was suddenly getting so irritated.
“Nothing is going on between Alex and me,” Abby insisted.
“I didn’t say there was.”
Abby bit her lip. “…I know.”
“Then why are you telling me that?” Ethan asked, concerned.
Abby hesitated for a moment. “Because I don’t want you to have the wrong idea, Ethan,” she explained. “I want things to be good between us.”
Ethan felt a small, dangerous flicker of hope. His mind replayed the past hours. Abby ignoring Alex’s call; the way she’d gently taken his arm when they walked away from Alex; her insistence that nothing was going on between her and Alex.
Ethan didn’t want to get his hopes up, but everything was pointing to the possibility of Abby returning his feelings. Still, something kept him from putting all the pieces together in his favor.
“Can I ask you something?” he asked.
“Sure.”
“Earlier at the coffee shop… you were smiling at your phone.”
“I was?”
“Yeah…” Ethan hesitated. “I thought Alex had texted you.
Abby stared at him for a long moment before she suddenly burst out laughing.
Ethan frowned. “What’s so funny?”
“Oh my God, Ethan. It wasn’t Alex,” she said, clearly amused.
“Then who was it?”
“You.”
“What?” Ethan shouted, completely caught off guard. “But… I didn’t text you.”
“You sent me that stupid video compilation of cat funny moments. I was smiling at that.”
“That was, like, an hour before we ran into each other.”
“I know,” Abby said, and smiled warmly. “I like rereading our conversations.”
Ethan averted his eyes, a bit embarrassed. He had spent half the evening feeling jealous of a cat video.
“Wait.” Abby’s smile turned into a smirk. “Were you jealous?”
Ethan blushed, embarrassed. “No! Of course not!”
Abby arched an eyebrow skeptically.
“Okay, fine. Yes. But in my defense, I had no idea I was competing with my own sense of humor,” Ethan confessed.
The moment he said that, he knew he’d accidentally dropped the bomb. He had practically admitted to having feelings for Abby, and judging by the way she was looking at him, she’d caught on immediately.
The evening breeze blew against Abby’s face, gently swaying her brown hair. She remained quiet for a moment, studying his face with a small smile that gradually faded into something more thoughtful.
“Ethan.” Abby stepped closer. “Can I tell you something?”
Ethan could feel his pulse racing. “Yeah?”
Abby looked down at her own hands, and for the first time that evening, she seemed nervous.
“I’ve been trying to figure out a way to tell you this for a while.”
Their eyes met.
“I like you.”
Ethan smiled. “Well, I like you too,” he replied.
He assumed Abby meant ‘likeness’ in the polite sort of way, which made her give him an exasperated look.
“No, Ethan, I really like you.
Ethan’s smile faltered, and he went completely still.
“God, you’re making this so difficult,” Abby said, shifting her weight nervously. Then she took a deep breath. “I’m in love with you, you idiot.”
For a long moment, Ethan could only stare at Abby in disbelief. He had imagined this conversation hundreds of times. Sometimes he imagined Abby rejecting him gently; other times, he imagined her laughing awkwardly and telling him she didn’t want to ruin their friendship. But he never imagined her returning his feelings, because he had never seriously believed it could happen.
“Are you serious?” he asked.
Abby rolled her eyes. “No. I just thought I’d confess my love to you in the middle of the sidewalk for fun. Of course, I’m being serious!”
Ethan chuckled nervously. “I’m sorry. It’s just that… I’ve been in love with you for over a year,” he confessed.
Abby opened her eyes, surprised. “That long?”
“Yeah… I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want to ruin our friendship.”
They stared at each other for a long instant before they burst out laughing.
It was ridiculous. They’d spent so long worrying about ruining their friendship that neither had noticed they were both wanting the same thing.
Abby wiped the corner of her eye. “Well, I guess I finally beat you at something!”
“I didn’t know this was a competition,” Ethan complained, but there wasn’t any real bite in his voice. “Whatever. Congratulations, I guess.”
“Thank you. I want to thank my family, my friends, and your complete inability to recognize when a girl is flirting with you,” Abby said proudly.
“Excuse me? How was I supposed to know? You weren’t exactly obvious.”
“Ethan.” Abby raised an eyebrow, looking at him amused. “I left you notes every day. One time I even wrote one that said, ‘Don’t forget to eat. Love you.’”
Ethan went silent. Maybe he was kind of slow to read hints. Looking back, plenty of moments probably had meant something more. The little notes she left in his textbooks; the way she always found an excuse to sit beside him; how she never seemed to mind when their afternoons together stretched for hours.
Ethan had dismissed every one of those moments as simple gestures of friendship, too afraid to get his hopes up and consider anything else.
“Okay, fine. I’m an idiot,” he said, rubbing his neck nervously. “So… what happens now?”
“Hmm…” Abby shifted her weight, pretending to consider the question. “Well, I suppose you could walk me to my dorm.”
“I was already doing that.”
Abby stepped closer and smiled warmly. “Yes, but now you could do it as my boyfriend.”
“Your boyfriend?” Ethan’s pulse fluttered.
“If you’re interested.”
“Oh, I don’t know. I gotta check my schedule,” Ethan joked.
Abby rolled her eyes and started walking again. “Never mind then.”
“Wait, wait. I think I can make room.” Ethan caught her waist and pulled her closer.
Abby smiled and melted into the embrace, resting her hands over his chest.
Ethan felt her warmth through his jacket, and he wondered how something as simple as holding her could feel so unfamiliar and, at the same time, so natural. He’d hugged her countless times before, but this time, it just felt like finally coming home.
“Stop staring at me,” Abby complained. “You’ve been looking at me for five minutes straight.”
Ethan chuckled. “Can you blame me? You’re so beautiful.”
Abby nuzzled his neck to hide her blush.
For two years, they’d walked those same streets together, sharing stories, laughter, and countless moments neither had realized would eventually lead them here. Perhaps the only thing missing was the courage to admit what they both already felt.
Abby and Ethan continued walking together, no longer hiding behind the safety of friendship, because the love they’d been searching for had been walking beside them all along.
