They say endings are loud.
Doors slamming. Voices raised. Tears and echoes bouncing off empty walls.
But sometimes… endings slip in so quietly, you almost don't notice until it's dark.
That's how it's been with him.
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It's not that I've stopped loving him completely.
But lately, the love feels like sunlight sinking behind the horizon—soft, fading, leaving nothing but long shadows where there used to be warmth.
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He used to tell me we'd explore the world together.
New cities. Hidden places. Secret roads only we knew.
Now, the only secret between us is how much we're pretending everything's fine.
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And as much as I wish for one more adventure with him…
I can't forget the way he looked down on me sometimes.
Like loving me was an inconvenience he wasn't sure he could afford.
Like my dreams were silly stories I was telling myself.
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Sometimes I wonder if that's why his brother's eyes always felt so sharp whenever he looked at me.
We're not friends. Not even close.
Anytime we talk, it turns into an argument. Words thrown like knives.
But I'd be lying if I said I never think about him.
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There's a part of me that wants to get closer.
Not because I'm in love with him—at least that's what I tell myself—but because I want him to feel what it's like to crave someone he once looked down on.
Just for a moment.
Then I'd leave him drowning in his own thoughts, the way I've drowned in mine.
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But that's another secret I'm not ready to say out loud.
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I'm still figuring out how to say goodbye.
Because walking away from someone you love isn't as easy as closing a door.
Even if part of me knows it's already over.
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Maybe the hardest part is realizing…
He's not the only person I'm trying to leave behind.