Fragile

Chapter 7 - Internship

I raised an eyebrow.

Me: That's all? Just "Yeah. Okay"?

Leah: What do you want me to say? Oh my God, Evelyn, I've been lost without you, my life has been an endless void of sadness and despair?

Me: ...Yes, actually.

Leah: Well, I'm not saying that.

I smirked.

Me: But you thought about it.

Leah: Go to bed.

Me: You first.

Leah: You're so annoying.

I grinned at my phone, warmth spreading through my chest in a way I really didn't want to examine right now.

Because Leah was still Leah.

Still the same awkward, guarded, frustratingly endearing person I had left behind.

And for the first time in months, I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep running from her.

~ ~ ~

The past few days had been... unexpected.

After that first night, Leah and I kept texting. Nothing too deep, nothing heavy—just casual conversations, bits of banter, her complaining about training, me telling her about the chaos of adjusting to a new hospital. It felt easy, like no time had passed.

And maybe that was the dangerous part.

Because I had spent months trying to not think about Leah Williamson, and now here I was, checking my phone more than I should, catching myself smiling at her messages, remembering things about her that I shouldn't still remember.

Then, one evening, as I sat curled up on the couch, scrolling aimlessly on my phone while Friends played in the background, another message popped up.

Leah: So... Riggs is at a sleepover tonight, yeah?

I blinked, sitting up slightly.

Me: Yeah. How do you remember that?

Leah: You mentioned it yesterday.

I chewed my lip, staring at the screen.

Me: Right.

A few dots appeared, then—

Leah: Can I come see you?

My stomach twisted.

I hesitated, fingers hovering over the keyboard.

This was different. The texting had been safe—just words on a screen, nothing real, nothing I had to face. But if she came here, if I saw her in front of me, if I let myself be in the same room as her again...

I didn't know what that would mean.

And that scared me.

Another message popped up before I could reply.

Leah: You can say no. I won't be weird about it.

I exhaled slowly, running a hand through my hair.

Was I ready for this?

Maybe not.

But some stupid part of me wanted to see her. Wanted to hear her voice in person, to watch the way she got all awkward when she didn't know what to say, to feel whatever this was between us instead of just pretending it wasn't there.