Written And Composed

09 / crowded room

"Ashton loves candles, you know," Melannie said, on the phone. During the break, as Ash promised, she met with Leah. Now Melannie suspected that he regretted introducing them to each other.

The best word to describe Leah was vibrant. The first time she met her, she wore a purple knitted cropped sweater with little white hearts on it, paired with faded blue jeans and ankle high boots. But her smile was her brightest accessory. She glowed. Ash only smirked and told Melannie, "I told you so."

When you meet some people, you would just know they are good. You get this warm vibe from them. It happened with Leah. She was very enthusiastic about knowing more about Melannie and her college life but Melannie also didn't miss the way she leaned in to Ash and curled her arm around his like it was the most natural thing to do. She was really happy for them.

Soon, Leah and Melannie had become close. They talked to each other on the phone throughout the break. Melannie had even sat right in between them while watching a movie just for the fun of pissing off Ash.

And Leah knew about Jake.

During the break, Jake and Melannie had been texting, sometimes even late into the night. She had never once before in her life tried to stifle her smile like that with her pillow. He was so different when he texted — more open, more vulnerable. The How likely game they had had become the most interesting part of her life.

Leah read some of their texts and immediately called her a fool if she couldn't tell that he liked her. "Girl, it's so obvious. With what you've said, it looks like this boy is head over heels for you. He is literally baring his heart out. Do you like him too?"

"I don't know," she sighed. Just a few weeks ago, Jake and Melannie were sworn enemies, baiting each other into arguments and firing off insults. Now it was hard to believe that the pull she felt for him whenever his name popped up on her screen and the urge to look at his pictures on Instagram just one more time were real and not something she imagined.

And that's why she was nervous about returning to college after the break. What was Jake's and Melannie's relationship now? Where did they stand? Would they talk as they did back then? Or hang out more often because they knew each other better?

She had called Leah for some advice and the only thing she said was to go with the flow. "React to his actions and then you'll know what the situation is," she said.

Then, Leah launched into a rant about how buying presents for Ash was the biggest problem in her life. She had raked her mind for his Christmas present and ended up buying him a nice watch.

So Melannie suggested candles for his birthday. Her brother had a small obsession with them since they were young. Last year, Melannie had signed him up for a candle-making workshop without his knowledge and after hours of blaming her for doing unnecessary things, he finally agreed to go and enjoyed it. Maybe, Leah could give him a candle-making set.

"You really think he would love it?"

"Trust me, Leah. He would fall in love with you more if that is possible."

"Shut up," she said, giggling. When she heard Ash walk in, Leah quickly said goodbye and hung up the phone.

Melannie sighed and lugged her duffel bag on her shoulders. Pocketing her phone and taking a deep breath, she started climbing the stairs to her room.

By the time she reached her door, she was heaving. Melannie wasn't an athletic person at all. This exercise was unwarranted for. She plastered herself against the door and caught her breath. Before she could knock on the door, the door yawned open and she was propelled forwards, the weight of the bag in her hand pulling her down. A scream slipped out of her mouth as she squeezed her eyes shut, her free hand jutting out to cushion her fall, already anticipating a fracture.