Chapter 5 : Thanks & Sorry

My phone vibrated again.

I nearly dropped it.

For a second, my heart stopped.

The mysterious messages.

That was my first thought.

My fingers trembled as I unlocked the screen.

Then I felt ridiculous.

It wasn't the unknown number.

It was Chloe.

Chloe: Nancy?

A second message appeared almost immediately.

Chloe: Are you home yet?

I let out a breath I didn't realize I had been holding.

A few minutes ago, I had been convinced someone was watching me.

Now it was just Chloe.

Normal.

Familiar.

Safe.

Me: Not yet.

The reply came instantly.

Chloe: Good.

I frowned.

Me: What do you mean good?

The three dots appeared.

Disappeared.

Then appeared again.

Chloe: Because if you were already home, I'd be offended.

Despite everything, a laugh escaped me.

A small one.

But real.

Me: Why?

Chloe: Because you literally ran away.

Chloe: I was calling your name like some tragic movie heroine.

I rolled my eyes.

Only Chloe.

Only Chloe could somehow make me laugh after one of the worst evenings of my life.

Me: You're dramatic.

Chloe: I learned from the best.

I smiled despite myself.

The tightness in my chest eased.

Just a little.

Then another message appeared.

Chloe: By the way...

My smile vanished immediately.

Whenever Chloe started a sentence like that, trouble followed.

Me: What?

A few seconds passed.

Then—

Chloe: What exactly happened between you and Elvan?

My feet stopped moving.

Around me, students walked past the college gate.

Cars moved.

People talked.

Life continued.

But I stared at the screen.

Because for the first time all evening, I wasn't thinking about the mysterious messages.

I was thinking about Elvan.

And somehow that hurt more.

Me: Nothing much.

I stared at those words.

Then typed another message.

Me: And please don't bring up high school.

The three dots appeared.

Then disappeared.

Then appeared again.

Chloe: Okay.

That was it.

No questions.

No teasing.

No jokes.

Just one word.

Somehow, that felt worse.

That night felt endless.

I lay in bed staring at the ceiling.

Every time I closed my eyes, another question appeared.

Who was sending those messages?

How did they know I was crying?

How did they know where I was?

Why did it feel like they knew me?

I tried to think logically.

Someone from class?

Someone from high school?

A neighbor?

A friend?

An enemy?

At one point I became so desperate that I mentally listed every single person I knew.

Everyone became suspicious.

Nobody made sense.

The worst part?

I couldn't even reply.

The number wouldn't accept messages.

Calls wouldn't go through.

It was like talking to a ghost.

Eventually, I sat up.

"No."

My cat opened one eye.

Then immediately went back to sleep.

Helpful.

"I'm not doing this anymore."

The room remained silent.

"I didn't do anything wrong."

Still silence.

I nodded anyway.

"Exactly."

Tomorrow would be different.

I wasn't going to cry.

I wasn't going to overthink.

I wasn't going to let some anonymous person scare me.

With that very brave decision—

I fell asleep.

The next morning, I seriously considered skipping college.

For exactly three minutes.

Then I remembered Gawin.

Specifically—

the fact that he got hurt because of me.

The fact that I ran away.

The fact that I never even checked if he was okay.

Unfortunately, my conscience won.

So I went.

On the way, I stopped at a stationery store.

Fifteen minutes later, I walked out holding the biggest greeting card I could find.

An A4-sized card.

Mostly because it was the only one available.

I also bought pain relief patches.

The problem started when I opened the card.

What exactly was I supposed to write?

I stared at the blank page.

Five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Fifteen.

Nothing.

My brain completely stopped working.

In the end, I wrote:

Thanks & Sorry

That was it.

Two words.

In a giant card.

The amount of empty space was honestly impressive.

I stared at it.

Then sighed.

"Perfect."

It was absolutely not perfect.

But it was too late now.

When I entered the classroom, it was already crowded.

Wonderful.

My entire plan depended on Gawin arriving before everyone else.

Instead, almost every seat was occupied.

I carefully placed the card and patches on his desk.

Then sat down.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

Why wasn't he here yet?

Was his hand that bad?

Was he at the hospital?

What if it was broken?

And why didn't I even have his number?

The realization annoyed me more than it should have.

Meanwhile, beside me, Elvan seemed unusually relaxed.

Actually—

happy.

The observation caught me off guard.

Maybe things could go back to normal.

Maybe yesterday fixed something.

Maybe—

No.

Absolutely not.

The first heartbreak was enough.

I wasn't risking a second one.

Just as I was arguing with myself, the classroom door opened.

And Gawin walked in.

My eyes immediately found his hand.

Bandages.

More than yesterday.

A patch wrapped around his wrist.

Another covered part of his hand.

My stomach dropped.

It looked worse than I expected.

Much worse.

And of course—

it was his right hand.

His dominant hand.

Fantastic.

I felt even guiltier.

Gawin sat down.

Ignored me completely.

Not one glance.

Not one word.

I pointed toward the card.

Then toward the patches.

Trying to make it obvious.

He looked.

Picked them up.

Looked again.

Then placed them aside.

My heart sank.

Okay.

Maybe he was upset.

Fair enough.

I deserved it.

The teacher entered before I could think further.

Thankfully, the first lecture was mostly discussion.

No notes.

No writing.

Just listening.

Which was exactly when I heard it.

A quiet chuckle.

I turned slightly.

Gawin was holding the giant card.

Trying very hard not to laugh.

When he noticed me looking, he pointed at the empty space.

Then silently mouthed:

"Two words?"

I immediately covered my face.

Idiot.

A complete idiot.

But at least he wasn't angry.

The knot in my chest loosened.

Then I felt it.

Someone watching.

I glanced sideways.

Elvan.

His eyes moved away instantly.

But not before I noticed the slight tension in his jaw.

That tiny expression he always made when something annoyed him.

What now?

Before I could think about it, Gawin leaned forward.

"Nancy."

I nearly jumped.

"What?"

"You need to help me."

He lifted his injured hand dramatically.

"Punishment."

The next few lectures were torture.

Notes.

More notes.

And somehow—

even more notes.

By the second lecture, my hand was already tired.

By the third, it hurt.

By the fourth, I was convinced it was planning a rebellion.

The problem wasn't just my notebook.

It was Gawin's notebook too.

Every time I looked at his injured hand, guilt returned.

So I kept writing.

My notes.

His notes.

My notes.

His notes.

Page after page.

Then—

"Nancy."

Ignored.

"Nancy."

Ignored again.

"Nancy."

"What?"

"Why do you have two notebooks open?"

I froze.

Wonderful.

One notebook had my name.

The other clearly had his.

"You're writing my notes too?"

"No."

"You are."

"I'm not."

"Nancy."

"What?"

"You literally wrote today's date in my notebook."

I closed my eyes.

Chloe burst out laughing.

I wanted the ground to swallow me whole.

"It's not a big deal."

"It is."

"No, it isn't."

Gawin shook his head.

"My hand isn't broken."

I looked at the bandages.

The guilt returned instantly.

"It got hurt because of me."

For a moment, he stopped teasing.

"It was an accident."

"I know."

"Then stop acting like you committed a crime."

I didn't answer.

Instead, I kept writing.

Then suddenly—

My notebook disappeared.

I blinked.

Confused.

Elvan had taken it.

Without permission.

Without explanation.

Without even looking at me.

"What are you doing?"

No response.

He just kept writing.

Like stealing notebooks was completely normal.

Then Chloe stole the second notebook.

"Chloe!"

"No."

"You can't just take it."

"I just did."

I looked at Gawin for support.

Big mistake.

He looked delighted.

The traitor.

For the next twenty minutes, I was forced to sit there while Elvan completed one notebook and Chloe completed the other.

Every time I tried reaching for them, they ignored me.

Eventually, both notebooks were returned.

Completely finished.

I looked at Chloe.

Then Elvan.

"Thank you."

Chloe smiled.

Elvan simply nodded.

From behind me, Gawin spoke.

"Told you to take it easy."

"It's a habit."

"A terrible one."

"Maybe."

Then Elvan suddenly looked over.

"You know I helped too."

I blinked.

"I know."

"Good."

A pause.

Then—

"So maybe stop talking and let me enjoy being appreciated."

I stared at him.

Then made the most dramatic annoyed face possible.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Chloe laughed.

Gawin laughed.

Even Elvan looked like he was trying not to smile.

The moment the lecture ended, I stretched dramatically.

My wrist immediately protested.

"Ouch."

"Told you."

Gawin sounded entirely too pleased.

"You seem very happy about my suffering."

"I am."

"You're horrible."

"Yet you bought me a giant apology card."

I froze.

Chloe looked interested immediately.

"A giant what?"

"No."

"Oh yes."

Before I could stop him, Gawin opened the card.

The giant card.

My giant embarrassment.

The entire inside was empty except for:

Thanks & Sorry

That was it.

Nothing else.

Chloe laughed so hard she almost fell off her chair.

"Oh my God."

"I panicked."

"I can see that."

"I didn't know what to write."

"So you wrote nothing?"

"I wrote two words."

"On an A4-sized card."

I buried my face in my hands.

"This is why I don't do nice things."

From beside me, Elvan spoke.

"It looks unfinished."

I turned.

Of course he joined the attack.

"It's a card."

"It's barely a card."

"Thank you for your support."

"You're welcome."

Then Gawin grabbed a pen.

Before I could stop him, he wrote beneath my words.

Chloe immediately grabbed the card.

Read it.

And started laughing again.

Underneath my message, Gawin had written:

Also apparently she's writing my notes for the next ten years.

"GAWIN!"

The idiot looked proud of himself.

Across from us, Chloe was dying of laughter.

And beside me—

I noticed something rare.

Elvan smiling.

Just a little.

A tiny smile.

Gone before I could be sure.

But I saw it.

And somehow—

that distracted me far more than the stupid card ever could.

By the time classes ended, none of us seemed ready to go home.

For once, we weren't together because of an assignment.

Or because Chloe forced everyone into the same room.

Or because someone was fighting.

We were simply... together.

It felt strange.

But nice.

Eventually Chloe suggested dinner.

To my surprise, nobody complained.

Even Elvan agreed.

Which was honestly the most shocking part.

A few minutes later, we found ourselves sitting in a small restaurant near campus.

The place wasn't fancy.

Just warm.

Comfortable.

The kind of place filled with students.

I sat beside Chloe.

Across from us sat Elvan and Gawin.

Well...

Not exactly across.

Unfortunately, they ended up sitting beside each other.

Neither looked particularly happy about it.

Which made Chloe and me very happy.

The waiter arrived.

Orders were placed.

Arguments about food happened.

Gawin wanted extra spice.

Elvan claimed nobody needed that much spice.

Gawin said his taste buds were superior.

Elvan said his survival instincts were superior.

Chloe and I simply watched.

By the time the food arrived, the argument was still somehow happening.

The table quickly filled with plates.

For a while, everyone focused on eating.

Then a problem appeared.

Gawin's hand.

His right hand was still wrapped with patches.

At first he tried using his left hand.

It didn't go well.

The spoon nearly slipped twice.

Rice ended up somewhere near the plate rather than inside his mouth.

I watched him struggle for a few moments.

Then pretended not to notice.

Unfortunately, Gawin noticed me noticing.

And immediately took advantage of it.

"Nancy."

I didn't even look up.

"No."

"I haven't said anything."

"You don't need to."

"Nancy."

"No."

When I finally looked at him, I immediately regretted it.

Puppy eyes.

The most shameless puppy eyes I had ever seen.

"Don't."

"I can't eat."

"That's a lie."

"It's not."

"You have another hand."

"It doesn't work properly."

"It works perfectly."

"It doesn't."

I narrowed my eyes.

He looked completely serious.

The liar.

"What exactly do you want me to do?"

The grin that appeared on his face answered before he even spoke.

"You know."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Feed me."

Chloe almost dropped her fork.

I stared at him.

Then at Chloe.

Then back at him.

The audacity.

The absolute audacity.

"You're unbelievable."

"Thank you."

"That wasn't a compliment."

"I'll take it anyway."

I grabbed a napkin and threw it at him.

The idiot looked proud of himself.

Then suddenly—

A spoon appeared in front of his face.

Everyone froze.

Even Gawin.

Slowly, all of us turned.

Elvan was holding the spoon.

His expression completely blank.

As if nothing unusual was happening.

As if he wasn't currently feeding another grown man.

The silence lasted several seconds.

Gawin blinked.

Then looked at the spoon.

Then at Elvan.

Then back at the spoon.

"Why?"

Elvan looked annoyed already.

"Just eat."

Nobody moved.

Nobody spoke.

I was beginning to wonder if I had accidentally entered an alternate universe.

Gawin cautiously took the bite.

Still staring at Elvan.

"Okay... but why?"

"Because if Nancy starts helping you, you'll become even more annoying than you already are."

The answer came instantly.

Chloe burst out laughing.

I followed a second later.

The image was simply too ridiculous.

Gawin looked personally offended.

"You know what?"

"What?" Elvan replied.

"I don't like you."

"Good."

"I wasn't asking."

"Good."

Chloe was literally holding her stomach now.

I wasn't doing much better.

Then suddenly Chloe pointed at them.

"Oh my God."

"No."

"Oh yes."

"No."

She looked at me.

I looked at her.

The exact same thought crossed our minds.

"Bromance."

We said it at the same time.

Immediately.

Without hesitation.

Gawin looked offended.

Elvan looked offended.

Which somehow made it worse.

"Absolutely not."

"No chance."

Again.

At the same time.

Chloe nearly fell out of her chair.

"See?" she said.

"They're synchronized."

I nodded seriously.

"That's usually how bromances start."

Elvan placed the spoon down.

Very carefully.

The look he gave us suggested he was reconsidering every decision that had led him to this table.

"I regret helping him."

"Too late," Chloe replied.

"You're emotionally attached now."

"I am not."

"Sure."

Meanwhile Gawin looked far too pleased with himself.

"Feed me another bite."

The glare Elvan gave him was immediate.

I laughed so hard I almost spilled my drink.

For the next hour, the teasing never really stopped.

Neither did the laughter.

And surprisingly—

neither did the smiles.

For the first time since college started, nobody seemed uncomfortable.

Nobody was pretending.

Nobody was forcing conversation.

We were simply enjoying ourselves.

When dinner finally ended, we stepped outside together.

The evening air felt cool after the warmth of the restaurant.

Chloe's driver had already arrived.

So had Elvan's.

A little farther away stood Gawin's black BMW.

His driver waiting beside it.

For a moment, all four of us stood there.

Nobody seemed in a hurry to leave.

Then Chloe clapped her hands.

"Okay."

"What?"

"If anyone dies before tomorrow, please inform the group chat first."

I stared at her.

Gawin laughed.

Even Elvan shook his head.

"Goodnight, Chloe."

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Nancy."

"Night."

"Goodnight, Elvan."

He nodded.

Then looked at Gawin.

"Try not to injure your other hand."

Gawin smirked.

"No promises."

A few moments later everyone headed toward their cars.

As I sat by the window during the drive home, I found myself smiling.

The day had started with guilt.

Awkwardness.

And too many apologies.

Yet somehow—

it ended with laughter.

And for the first time in a long time...

things felt a little less broken.

But as it's been said ,

" Don't be too happy, because you never what's coming next".​

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