ve for Liam felt like a slow unraveling. Piece by piece, I was losing parts of myself, tradin

align with his, choosing study spots I knew he liked or agreeing to plans even when I was exhausted

workshop tomorrow?" my friend Sarah as

ooking forward to. But then Liam's voice echoed in my mind from the night before.

I'll pass," I sai

n skipping a lot of these

st busy,"

m. Every moment with him felt like a lifeline, a chance to fee

-

m, I was just Anna-his dependable, easy-going f

ne afternoon as I helped him assembl

f cardboard and glue. My fingers were sticky, and my hair was falli

g me that devastating smile. "I do

nife. *You'd be fine,* I wanted to say. *You'd find someone e

just nodded, swallowing

-

he unspoken feelings. It was watching him l

everyone around him. He was magnetic, the kind of person who could make anyone feel special. But as

e were th

kind of guy people gravitated toward, the kind of guy who made yo

e kind of girl who looked like she belonged in his world. They were standing outsid

I had no right to be upset, that Liam wasn't mine and never would be

-

my feelings was finally too much to bear. I grabbed my journal

ch it hurts. But he doesn't see me. He never will. And I don

owledge the truth I'd been avoiding for so long. L

-

d been laid bare. But I couldn't let Liam see that. So I plastered on

if I wanted to hang out, I

s new café I've been meaning t

is orbit, willing to set aside my p

der how long I could keep this up. How long could I keep losing mysel

w, I wasn't ready to let go. Because even if loving