I thought I was getting over it.
I really did.
After everything—
After the questions, the silence, the overthinking—
It felt like I was finally starting to let go.
But then Aisha made sure I didn't.
It was a normal day.
Nothing special.
I was talking to him.
Just a simple conversation.
And then—
Aisha pushed in.
Not literally.
But enough.
She came in between, started talking to him like I wasn't even there.
Like the conversation had always been hers.
I went quiet.
Again.
And that familiar feeling came back.
That irritation.
That frustration.
That feeling of being… replaced.
But this time—
It didn't just hurt.
It annoyed me.
Later, Maria told me something.
"Aisha said she talks to him every day," she said carefully.
I looked at her.
"What?"
"On text," she added.
That was it.
Something in me snapped.
Every day?
I didn't say anything immediately.
But Maria could tell.
Because I wasn't just annoyed anymore.
I was angry.
Visibly.
And for the first time—
I stopped trying to convince myself I didn't like him.
Because clearly—
I did.
And maybe I had been trying to run away from that.
But not anymore.
That day, I made a decision.
I wasn't going to let this just… slip away.
Not to Aisha.
Not to Praveena.
Not to Jamie.
Not when I had noticed everything first.
Not when I had felt everything first.
If there was even the smallest chance—
I wasn't giving it up so easily.
From the sidelines, Jennie and Natalie watched everything.
"Jamie probably likes Mark," Jennie said one day, casually.
"Yeah," Natalie added, nodding. "You're overthinking that part."
I didn't respond.
But it helped.
A little.
Then Natalie looked at me again, this time half serious, half joking.
"You know… you could just go back to us," she said. "Instead of chasing him in the middle of all this competition."
I rolled my eyes slightly.
But her words stayed.
Because she wasn't completely wrong.
It did feel like competition.
And I hated that.
So I did something I hadn't done in a while.
I went to the one person who had known from the very beginning.
My favourite senior.
The only person who knew about my crush before anyone else.
Before Natalie.
Before Maria.
Before Jennie.
I told her everything.
Again.
She listened quietly, like always.
Didn't interrupt.
Didn't judge.
And when I finished—
She just smiled slightly.
"Have patience," she said.
That was it.
No dramatic advice.
No overthinking.
Just that.
Patience.
I nodded.
Even though I wasn't sure if I had any left.
Because everything felt messy now.
Confusing.
Frustrating.
But one thing was clear.
I wasn't trying to stop liking him anymore.
Not this time.