Ellie lay awake in the dark, staring at the faint cracks in her bedroom ceiling. The streetlight outside cast long, shifting shadows as a breeze rustled the leaves of the tree by her window. Her phone rested facedown on the nightstand she had set it there hours ago to stop herself from checking Astrid's social media again.
"Pathetic," she muttered under her breath.
Her thoughts wandered to Astrid's laugh, that soft raspy chuckle she got when she found something genuinely funny not polite laughter, but the kind that escaped without warning. Ellie remembered how it used to make her chest tighten in the best way. Then came the memories of Astrid's hands, fingers laced through hers as they walked home together, Astrid humming some song Ellie didn't know but loved anyway just because she loved it.
"Stop this," Ellie whispered into the silence, pressing the heels of her palms against her eyes. "She's gone. She's been gone."
But missing her felt like breathing at this point inescapable.
The school hallway was loud, full of students shoving past each other, lockers slamming, sneakers squeaking against tile. Ellie moved through it all with her head down, hands stuffed in her hoodie pocket.
"ELLIE!"
She jumped at the voice sharp, bright. Turning, she saw Cassandra jogging toward her, waving like Ellie wasn't just right there. Anastasia and Irene trailed behind, already mid-conversation, while Tisha smirked at someone's failed attempt at flirting nearby. Veilah, ever the chaotic whirlwind, slid to a stop next to Ellie with exaggerated panting.
"Did..did you just run here?" Ellie asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No," Veilah lied, grinning. "I teleported."
"Bullshit."
Veilah gasped, clutching her chest. "Language! What if innocent ears hear you?"
Irene snorted. "No one here is innocent."
They fell into step together, their usual rhythm easing some of the tension in Ellie's shoulders until she felt it. That prickle at the back of her neck.
Astrid was in the crowd somewhere.
Her stomach twisted before she even saw her.
And then there. Across the hall. Laughing at something some guy said, her dark hair falling over her shoulder as she tilted her head. Ellie froze mid-step.
"Move." Irene shoved herself between Ellie and Astrid, snapping her fingers in front of Ellie's face. "Nope. Eyes on me."
Ellie blinked rapidly. "I wasn't"
"Don't lie." Irene flicked her forehead lightly. "You're staring like a kicked puppy."
Veilah, without missing a beat, grabbed Ellie's wrist and started dragging her away. "If staring was a crime, you'd both be in jail."
"What?" Ellie yelped.
"You. Her." Veilah waved a hand vaguely toward Astrid. "Toxic eye contact or whatever."
Tisha snorted. "She's not wrong."
Cassandra looped an arm through Ellie's. "Come on. Before you accidentally start making sad eyes at her in public again."
Ellie groaned, flushing."That was one time!"
Veilah cackled. "Legendary."
Their laughter drowned out the lingering pull of Astrid's presence at least for now.
Later, crowded around a table in the back of their favorite café, the group huddled like conspirators. Irene tapped a pen impatiently against her notebook.
"Alright. Ellie is *sad*," she said bluntly.
Ellie choked on her soda. "I'm not sad"
"You moped for forty-five minutes yesterday over a song that reminded you of her," Tisha deadpanned.
"It was a good song"
"You cried."
Ellie groaned, sinking in her seat. "Traitors."
Cassandra reached over, patting her shoulder. "We love you. Which is why we're gonna fix this."
Irene nodded. "Blind date."
Ellie's head snapped up. "What? No—"
"Yes," Veilah cut in, grinning. "With Kira."
Anastasia frowned. "Who?"
Veilah kicked her under the table. "The student council president? Theatre kid? Glasses? Kinda she gestured vaguely. "Cool?"
Anastasia blinked. "Never seen her."
"Idiot," Veilah muttered affectionately.
The conversation dissolved into bickering until Irene clapped her hands. "Plan is set. Two days from now, Ellie will go on a date with Kira."
"Do I get a say in this?" Ellie asked weakly.
"No," the group chorused.
Ellie slumped onto the table dramatically. "I hate you all."
Veilah ruffled her hair. "No, you don't."
And Ellie didn't.
Later, Ellie sat on a bench near the duck pond, feeding leftover bread to a particularly bold sparrow. Her headphones were in, but no music played just the muffled sounds of the park around her.
Then, a sharp nudge to her shoulder.
"Ow—Kyla?!"
Kyla messy-haired, grinning, already stealing a piece of bread plopped down beside her. "You look like someone stole your favorite book."
Ellie rolled her eyes. "Astrid did that, actually. Two years ago."
Kyla winced. "Still not over her, huh?"
Ellie tore off another bit of bread, tossing it toward the birds. "I am"
"Liar." Kyla leaned back, studying her. "You miss her."
Ellie exhaled sharply. "Yeah."
"That sucks."
Ellie barked a laugh despite herself. "Yeah. It really does."
Kyla stretched, draping an arm over the bench behind Ellie. "But hey your friends are scheming behind your back to set you up. That's cute."
Ellie groaned."Oh god. You know?"
Kyla smirked."Veilah told me."
"Of course she did."
They sat in comfortable silence for a while, watching the birds fight over crumbs.
"You'll be okay," Kyla finally said, nudging Ellie's knee with hers. "Even if it doesn't feel like it yet."
Ellie hugged her knees to her chest, resting her chin on them. "…Yeah."
For now, that was enough.