Chapter 38 – A Weekend Between Worlds
The moment Andrea saw Sheik step off the provincial bus, her breath caught.
He looked tired — dark circles under his eyes, hair a bit longer than usual — but when their eyes met across the station, it didn't matter.
He dropped his duffel and opened his arms.
She ran straight into them.
They didn't say much at first. Just held each other, like the world had finally stopped spinning for a second. Like their bodies remembered what their hearts had been missing.
"I thought you weren't coming until next month," Andrea mumbled into his chest.
"I asked for two days off," he whispered. "Told coach it was for 'mental clarity.'"
She pulled back and looked up at him, grinning. "You lied?"
"No," he smiled. "You are my clarity."
The weekend was short but golden. They didn't try to do too much. Just… existed in each other's space again.
Saturday morning, Andrea took Sheik to her favorite hole-in-the-wall café near campus. They sat in a booth by the window, sharing a plate of waffles and coffee that was too strong. Sheik kept sneaking Mochi bits of egg under the table.
"You look happier here," he said softly.
Andrea shrugged. "Maybe I am."
"Does that scare you?"
"A little. But I think it's okay to grow in places we didn't expect."
He nodded. "I'm proud of you, you know."
She smiled. "Even when I flake on texts?"
"Especially then. You're living. That's what matters."
Saturday night, they danced in Andrea's tiny dorm room to a playlist they made together months ago. No fancy lights, no party — just them, swaying slowly under the yellow glow of a desk lamp. Mochi barked once, then gave up and went to sleep on a sketchpad.
"You think we'll make it?" Andrea asked quietly, cheek pressed to Sheik's shoulder.
"I don't know," he said. "But I want to keep choosing this. You."
Sheik left Sunday morning.
The goodbye was quiet, no dramatic tears, just a tight hug and a long kiss that held all the things they didn't have time to say.
"I'll see you soon," he said, thumb brushing her chin.
"Soon can't come soon enough," she whispered.
And then he was gone again. But the silence that followed didn't feel empty this time.
It felt full of something real.
Of love that wasn't perfect, but was true.