Chapter 44

DAHLIA

The next morning, class felt like background noise.

I sat in my usual spot, second row by the window, notebook open but untouched, pen resting between my fingers like it had forgotten how to move. The professor’s voice droned on about behavioral theory or some philosophical tangent that I usually cared about. But today, I was distracted.

Izzy had been acting weird before I left the room. Not just “I woke up on the wrong side of the bed” weird. No—this was the full-blown, can’t-look-you-in-the-eye, phone-face-down, lips-too-tight kind of weird. She practically avoided speaking to me, and when I asked if she was okay, she just nodded and mumbled something about having a “long night”.

Which, fine, college is chaotic. But Izzy and I? We tell each other everything. Every late-night craving, every grade breakdown, every almost-text to an ex. But this morning… she was hiding something. I could feel it.

That’s not the only thing. She’s been going out too