Tuesday felt normal again.
Or at least, it tried to.
Aylin arrived at 7:52.
Sat down.
Arranged everything the same way.
Notebook under textbook.
Pencil case in the middle.
Water bottle on the right.
Kerem came in at 7:56.
Not late.
Not early.
Just… there.
"Morning," he said, dropping into his seat.
"Morning."
It was simple.
Easy.
And somehow, that felt new.
First period passed quietly.
Kerem wrote more than usual.
Still not everything.
But enough that his page didn't look empty anymore.
At some point—
"Is this right?" he asked, sliding his paper slightly toward her.
Aylin leaned closer.
"…You skipped a step."
"Of course I did."
She pointed at the line.
"You need this first."
Kerem followed it, slower this time.
Then nodded.
"…Okay, yeah. That makes more sense."
Aylin leaned back.
"…You're getting better."
Kerem looked at her.
"…Did you just compliment me?"
"It wasn't really a compliment."
"It was a little."
She didn't deny it.
Second period was louder.
Group work.
Which usually meant Kerem didn't do anything.
But this time—
"Wait, I'll do that part," he said, taking the worksheet before someone else could.
Aylin looked at him.
He didn't look back.
Just focused on writing.
It was small.
But she noticed.
Lunch came quickly.
Too quickly.
Aylin stood up, like she always did.
Then paused.
"…You staying?" she asked.
Kerem looked up from his phone.
"…Yeah."
Aylin hesitated.
Just for a second.
Then—
She sat back down.
Kerem noticed.
Didn't say anything.
Just moved his bag off the chair beside him without being asked.
It wasn't a big gesture.
But it felt like one.
They ate in silence for a while.
Not awkward.
Just… quiet.
"You write every day?" Kerem asked suddenly.
Aylin nodded. "Mostly."
"Even when you don't feel like it?"
"…Yeah."
"Why?"
Aylin thought about it.
"…Because if I stop, it's harder to start again."
Kerem nodded slowly.
"Yeah," he said. "That makes sense."
A pause.
"What about you?" she asked before she could stop herself.
Kerem looked at her.
"…What about me?"
"Do you have something like that?" she said. "Something you keep doing."
He looked down at his hands.
Then away.
"…Not really."
Aylin didn't push.
But she noticed—
The way he answered.
Like it wasn't the full truth.
After school, the sky was clear again.
The air felt lighter.
They walked out together.
Again.
"You busy?" Kerem asked.
Aylin blinked.
"…Not really."
He nodded toward the street.
"Walk a bit?"
She hesitated.
It wasn't a strange question.
But it also wasn't something they usually did.
Not without a reason.
"…Okay," she said.
They didn't go straight home.
That was the first difference.
They walked past the usual turn.
Then another street.
Then another.
Neither of them said anything about it.
"You always go straight home?" Kerem asked.
"Usually."
"Why?"
Aylin shrugged slightly.
"…I don't know."
Kerem glanced at her.
"You could not."
She almost smiled.
"…I am right now."
"Yeah," he said. "You are."
They kept walking.
There wasn't much to look at.
Just quiet streets.
A small park.
A few people passing by.
At some point, they stopped near a bench.
Not because they planned to.
Just because they did.
Kerem sat down first.
Aylin stood there for a second.
Then sat too.
Not too close.
Not far either.
"You don't talk much," Kerem said.
Aylin looked at him.
"…You talk enough for both of us."
He smiled a little.
"Fair."
A pause.
Then—
"You think too much," he added.
Aylin frowned slightly.
"That's not a bad thing."
"I didn't say it was."
She looked ahead.
"…You don't think enough."
Kerem let out a quiet laugh.
"Yeah. Probably."
Silence again.
But this time—
It felt different.
Not empty.
Not awkward.
Just… there.
"Hey," Kerem said after a while.
Aylin turned her head slightly.
"That story," he said. "The two people in it."
Her chest tightened a little.
"…What about them?"
Kerem looked ahead.
Not at her.
"They don't say what they mean," he said.
Aylin didn't answer.
"They just… wait," he added.
A small pause.
"Why?"
Aylin looked down at her hands.
"…Maybe they don't know how," she said.
Kerem nodded slowly.
"…Or maybe they're scared," he said.
Aylin didn't look at him.
"…Of what?"
Kerem shrugged slightly.
"…If they say it, it becomes real."
Aylin's chest felt tight again.
She understood that.
Too well.
The sky was starting to get darker.
Not late.
Just later than usual.
Aylin stood up first.
"…I should go."
Kerem nodded.
"Yeah."
They started walking back.
This time, toward their actual streets.
At the usual corner—
They stopped.
"This is me," Kerem said.
Aylin nodded.
There was a small pause.
"…Today was different," Kerem said.
Aylin blinked.
"…Yeah."
"Not bad though."
"…Not bad.
He looked at her.
For a second longer than usual.
"Stay a little longer next time," he said.
Aylin's heart skipped slightly.
"…Okay."
He nodded.
Then turned and walked away.
Aylin stood there for a moment.
Then continued home.
That night, she opened her notebook.
She didn't hesitate this time.
Didn't think too much.
Just wrote.
"They stayed longer than they were supposed to.
Not because they planned to.
Just because neither of them said it was time to leave."
She paused.
Then added:
"And maybe that was the problem."
Aylin stared at the page.
Then closed the notebook.