She brought light with her, and after years of grief, something I didn’t even realize I was battling with, I found myself gravitating towards this girl who made my heart stir.
But right now, I have questions, because everything between us halted abruptly.I didn’t even see it coming.
“What happened, Maya?”I ask, quietly.The question has been gnawing at me ever since I saw her.The question I asked myself a hundred times during the days after she and her mom left the Knight Estate.
She shrugs, being evasive.
“You disappeared without a trace.Didn’t even leave a note.”
She narrows her eyes at my accusation.“Why do you think we left?”she asks, slowly, watching my reaction.
“I don’t know.I’m asking you.”
She lets out an exhale, like it’s hard just to say the words.“What did your father say?”
“Something about your mom finding another job and that’s why you moved.”
She’s different.Guarded and closed off, nothing like the girl I remember.
She nods.
That’s it?That’s all she’s giving me?
“Let’s meet up and catch up on old times,” I offer.
“Old times?”The distrust in her voice warns me off.Seems like her memories of our past aren’t brushed with the same veil of nostalgia that mine are.
I open my mouth to tell her that I don’t want to just talk about her leaving suddenly—though I want to know why—I want to talk about us.How we used to be.The way she used to look at me.The way she laughed, and talked, and how she was with me.
How I was with her.
We were young, carefree, and increasingly drawn to one another.
But the words stay on my tongue, heavy and unsure.“You don’t want to?”I ask, instead, because I don’t recognize this woman.She’s not as happy as I expected her to be.
“I … don’t see … the point.”Her words are careful.I sense she doesn’t want to hurt me, but at the same time she doesn’t want to offer me hope.She tried hard to dodge me all night, and here I am, in Matteo’s lab, still looking out for her.
“It’s ready,” Matteo calls out.
“That was quick,” Maya whispers.
Too quick.I wish he’d given us more time.We walk over to Matteo.He powers up the laptop, and shows us the screen.“No crack.No data loss.No flags tripped.Whoever this belongs to will never know.”
Maya peers at it, her fingers moving all over the screen as she examines it closely.Then her expression relaxes and she turns to Matteo.“Thank you.I can’t thank you enough.”
He shrugs.“Glad I could help.”
She closes the laptop and slides it back into its padded sleeve.
I exhale, feeling relieved for her.She walks away, obviously desperate to get away.
“Next time,” Matteo adds lightly, “try not to impress women by throwing executive hardware at the floor.”
“I wasn’t trying to impress.”
He lifts both hands.“Just saying.”
“I owe you.”
