Val's pov
He wasn't in school.
Not in English, not in Math, not even in History where his sarcastic commentary usually made the hours tolerable. His seat stayed empty, untouched, like no one even dared breathe in his direction.
Ash didn't come either. Her name on the attendance sheet was just a ghost.
I asked Avinav once, casually—"Have you seen Theo today?"—like it wasn't the most desperate question clawing at my throat since morning.
He just shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe he's home?"
Maybe he's home.
That's where I left him. Window open. Apples sliced.
I checked the rink at lunch, too.
Empty.
His gear wasn't there. No sweatshirt tossed over the bench. No bag dumped like he owned the place.
He was gone.
Just like I left.
By the time the final bell rang, my chest felt hollow. My brain couldn't focus. I don't even remember what the science teacher was talking about—something about heat conduction. All I knew was that everything I touched burned wrong.
I failed the experiment. The beaker cracked. Everyone stared.
"Sorry," I muttered, but I wasn't even sure who I was apologizing to anymore.
I was just trying to breathe.
I was about to leave the building when it happened.
The door creaked open, and there he was.
Theo Dodge.
Casual. Cold. Like he hadn't been MIA all day. Like he didn't leave me spinning in my own head, waiting for something, anything—just a text, a look, a goddamn clue.
I was heading out. He was walking in.
We stopped right there at the threshold like fate had nothing better to do today but slap me in the face.
I looked up at him, eyes searching. His were unreadable. Guarded. Annoyingly perfect.
"Why didn't you call?" I asked.
He blinked.
"Why are you ignoring me? Why did you send someone else to return my shoe? Was I really that easy to forget—?"
"Val." His voice cut through my spiral, flat and low.
"You didn't say anything," I whispered. "I needed you to say something. Anything. I thought—"
He tilted his head slightly, lips twitching—not a smile, not even a smirk. Just something colder.
"All this because I didn't talk to you for one morning?" he said, tone so nonchalant it hurt worse than if he'd screamed. "Damn. If that's enough to haunt you, you'll never survive a month when I go home."
I blinked. "What?"
He shrugged like it was nothing. "One month in Russia. Family stuff. Try not to die of heartbreak."
And just like that, he walked past me.
I stood there, chest tight, unable to move, unable to think. My mouth was dry. My hands were cold.
Practice was a blur.
Every jump failed.
Every spin collapsed.
Coach looked at me like I'd betrayed the entire sport.
Focus, she snapped. You've got two days till Emma's birthday. Pull yourself together.
Even in science, I dropped something. The glass shattered again. The teacher didn't even say anything this time—just sighed.
And when I finally walked through the door at home, exhausted, mascara smudged under my eyes, I was met with a small voice.
"Val!"
Emma came running up, cheeks flushed, eyes bright with excitement.
"My birthday's tomorrow!"
I stared at her.
Her smile was so pure, so proud. She didn't deserve my storm cloud of a mood.
So I forced a smile.
A real one.
Pulled her into my arms and whispered, "Happy birthday in advance, baby."
And for a second… I forgot.
Forgot about Theo.
Forgot about Russia.
Forgot about heartbreak.
Just held her a little tighter than usual.