One week later, Ethan moved away.
Just like that.
There wasn't a big goodbye.
No long conversation.
No promise to call every day.
Just—
"we'll keep in touch."
Agnes had believed it.
But they didn't.
Not really.
No calls.
No messages.
No slow attempt to hold onto something that had once felt so… certain.
She told herself it was okay.
Paul was still there.
And he was.
Their days continued like nothing had changed.
The same classrooms.The same routines.The same courtyard.
Agnes laughed the same way.
Ran the same way.
Spun in the grass like she always did.
And Paul—
he was always nearby.
Watching.
Smiling.
Staying.
They grew closer.
Naturally.
Effortlessly.
Somewhere along the way—
Paul became her closest friend.
And that…
never really changed.
Not in elementary school.
Not as the years blurred forward.
Not even when everything else started to.
By the time they reached junior high—
Agnes thought she understood people.
At least a little.
That's when she met him.
Robin.
He didn't hesitate.
He asked her out like it was obvious.
Like it was something that had already been decided.
Agnes remembered how quickly it all happened.
How her friends had crowded around her, smiling, whispering—
"you have to say yes."
And she did.
Not because she thought too deeply about it.
But because…
it felt like the right thing to do.
She was young.
Curious.
And like a lot of girls her age—
the idea of a relationship felt exciting.
She thought she knew what it meant.
She was already close to Paul.
She hugged him.
Held his hand.
Sat too close without thinking twice.
But a relationship was supposed to be… more than that.
Wasn't it?
Closer.
More intentional.
Maybe even—
a kiss.
She remembered thinking about it.
Late at night.
Letting her imagination fill in the gaps.
Something soft.
Private.
Gentle.
Like the movies.
Something that would feel like it belonged to her.
It didn't.
Agnes's fingers tightened slightly where they rested on her desk.
She still remembered that day.
Too clearly.
The courtyard had been quieter than usual.
Classes still in session.
The world… still.
And then—
she saw them.
Behind the school building.
Robin.
And someone else.
Kissing.
Not hidden enough.
Not careful enough.
Not… anything enough.
Just obvious.
Agnes didn't say anything.
She didn't scream.
Didn't confront him.
She just stood there.
For a second.
Maybe two.
And then—
she left.
Her vision had blurred before she even realized she was crying.
And somehow—
Paul found her.
He didn't ask too many questions.
Didn't push.
Didn't try to fix it.
He just stayed.
Close enough that she didn't feel alone.
And far enough that she didn't feel overwhelmed.
Robin didn't apologize.
Didn't explain.
Didn't even seem to care.
Looking back—
Agnes wasn't even sure if it had been about her at all.
Just her name.
Her place.
Her… status.
She let out a quiet breath.
Paul had been there.
Through that.
Through everything.
Always steady.
Always present.
And she had…
never questioned it.
Her gaze drifted back to the window.
To the tree outside.
Still standing.
Still the same.
All those years.
All those moments.
He had always been someone she could count on.
No matter what.
And she had thought—
that was all it was.
Friendship.
Comfort.
Something safe.
She hadn't seen it.
Not then.
Not when he watched her date someone else.
Not when she cried over someone who didn't deserve it.
Not even when she fell again—
for someone who chose someone else instead.
Fayne.
Milo.
Another quiet kind of heartbreak.
Another moment Paul stayed through.
Agnes swallowed lightly.
How many times…?
How many times had he stood there—
watching her choose someone else?
Her chest felt tight.
Not sharp.
Just…
heavy.
And then—
Ethan.
The thought came quietly.
But it didn't leave.
He had been there too.
Once.
Close.
Steady.
And then—
gone.
Agnes lowered her gaze.
"…I didn't know," she whispered.
Not back then.
Not when it mattered.
And now—
she wasn't sure which hurt more.
That Paul had always been there—
or that Ethan hadn't.
Or maybe…
that she had never really understood either of them—
until now.