Chapter 2
For the next few days, Samuel went through the motions, as if he were functioning without feeling anything.
He kept going to class, studying, and eating like usual, but nothing registered anymore. He felt hollow, like something inside him was missing.
His teachers and classmates noticed that something was off about him, but no one knew what exactly had happened.
Then, one day, Samuel ran into Gemma again at the café.
Gemma was sitting with Harry, the two of them laughing and chatting. When she saw Samuel, her face stiffened, but she forced herself back into a calm expression.
"Hey, isn't this Samuel?" Harry said, standing up and walking over to Samuel. "What, you here to join us again?"
Samuel stared at him coldly, saying nothing.
"Why so quiet?" Harry smirked, giving Samuel a light pat on the cheek. "Kid, I'm warning you, stay away from Gemma. She's with me now, so you'd better know your place."
"Gemma," Samuel said, ignoring Harry as he looked right at her. "Are you really going to be with a guy like him?"
A flash of guilt flickered across Gemma's face, but it disappeared quickly. "Harry's way better than you. He knows how to party and how to make me happy. And you? You make my life dull."
"Gemma." Samuel's voice was choked up with emotion.
"Cut the crap," Harry snapped, then kicked Samuel in the gut. "Get lost."
Samuel doubled over from the pain, but he gritted his teeth and stayed silent.
People in the café turned to look, but nobody dared to intervene.
"What are you staring at?" Harry kicked him again.
Samuel struggled to stand, then looked at Gemma.
A hint of pain showed in Gemma's eyes, but she stayed silent.
Samuel felt the last bit of warmth drain from his heart. He knew Gemma had changed.
He turned and left the café quietly.
*****
After returning home, Samuel sat alone in his room, tears streaming down his face.
He remembered Gemma as a kid, how she smiled and said they'd always stay together, and how she used to stay by his bed when he was sick.
Those memories flashed through his mind like fragments of a film, each one piercing straight through his chest.
The truth was harsh. Gemma had chosen another path, and he couldn't pull her back anymore.
Samuel wiped his tears and focused fully on his studies.
He knew he couldn't stay like this anymore. He needed to get into college, leave the city, and start over.
*****
The March wind still felt cold, like winter hadn't fully left. Samuel stood in the shadow of the school building, holding a letter Evelyn had asked someone to give him. The paper was all wrinkled in his hand, the ink a bit blurred.
It read: [Samuel, I'm sorry. Don't look for me, and don't wait for me. I know I've disappointed you and everyone else, but I'm really tired of that boring life. I want to see a different world.
[Maybe I'll regret it someday, but not right now. Please forget about me. Focus on your SAT. You've got a bright future ahead. Love, Gemma.]
Those final words felt like something heavy and dull grinding into Samuel's heart again and again. He slid down the wall and sat on the ground, letting the letter fall from his hand.
The cold wind blew the fallen leaves around, and his vision blurred with tears.
He remembered how Gemma used to sneak him her milk when they were little, how she stayed with him when he was sick, and how they buried coins under the palm tree together.
Those memories kept flashing like movie clips, each one hurting like a stab in his chest.
"Samuel? What are you doing here?" a familiar voice called out.
Samuel looked up and saw Sophie standing nearby, holding a stack of books, her face worried.
Sophie Stein was his classmate, always quietly sitting in a corner of the classroom, with grades on par with his.
"Nothing," Samuel said, quickly brushing away his tears and getting to his feet. "I'm a bit tired."
Sophie noticed his swollen eyes and glanced at the crumpled letter on the ground, but she let it slide. "Class is about to start. Let's go together."
Samuel nodded, picked up the letter, folded it neatly, and put it deep in his backpack.
He knew that from today on, he had to wipe Gemma from his heart forever.
*****
Over the next few days, Samuel felt like a different person. He stopped going to the café, stopped walking the path he used to take with Gemma, and stopped looking at her seat during breaks.
He buried himself in his studies, as if it were the only way to distract him from the pain.
His academic performance surged rapidly, rising from average to the top ranks in no time.
His teachers and classmates were surprised, but only Sophie understood that he was using studying to escape reality.
"You got this one wrong," Sophie said one night, gently tapping Samuel's desk.
Samuel looked up, a bit lost. He'd been staring at the quiz for half an hour, but his mind was blank.
Sophie slid into the seat next to him, grabbed her pen, and patiently broke it down for him. "Look, you need to draw an extra line here, then use the Pythagorean Theorem."
Her voice was soft, and it gently brushed past Samuel's mind.
Samuel watched her side profile as she focused, her long eyelashes casting soft shadows in the light.
"Thanks," Samuel said.
Sophie looked up and gave him a warm smile. "No problem. We're classmates."
At that moment, something inside Samuel softened a little. He realized maybe he wasn't completely alone after all.