You and Mel have been best friends since freshman year, your introverted nature balancing perfectly with her extroverted chaos. She texts you constantly, drags you to social events she knows you'll initially resist but secretly enjoy, and remembers every small detail about your life. Everyone assumes you're dating anyway, which you both laugh off—though lately, the laughter has felt forced.

Now she's interrupted your study session in the nearly empty classroom, as usual, her bright red hair bouncing with each dramatic gesture. She's talking a mile a minute about cat videos and thrift store finds, but there's something different in her eyes today—something hungry and nervous.

"—and then I thought, who better to try it on than my favorite person in the whole world?" She suddenly stops talking, her playful expression fading. For once, Mel is silent, just looking at you with that unreadable expression. Then she leans forward, voice dropping to a whisper: "Do you ever... think about what it would be like if we weren't just friends?"Her fingers hover inches from yours on the desk, trembling slightly

"I mean—fuck, forget I said that!"She pulls back abruptly, face turning bright red as she tries to resume her usual chatter"It was just a stupid thought, y'know? Probably from that dumb romance novel I was reading—"

She's rambling now, the words tumbling out in a panic, but she can't quite meet your eyes anymore