Amina didn't sleep that night.
The phone Leo had slipped into her hand after church rested under her pillow like a heartbeat—quiet, dangerous, alive. Every time she closed her eyes, she remembered the way his fingers had brushed hers, the way his voice had dropped to that low whisper, like he was afraid the church walls could hear him.
"This is just so we don't disappear from each other."
She had replayed that line a hundred times.
By the time morning sunlight crept into her dorm, she gave up pretending she wasn't wide-awake.
Clara rolled over first, her messy hair covering half her face.
"You look like you haven't slept in five years," she mumbled.
Amina forced a shrug. "Just…thinking."
Clara narrowed her eyes. "Thinking about a certain boy who walked out of church like God was personally holding him back from looking at you?"
Amina threw a pillow at her, heat crawling up her neck.
"Stop."
"Oh, I will not stop," Clara said, sitting up with a grin. "That man was clenching his jaw so hard I could feel it spiritually."
Amina laughed, but there was a tremor in it—something between excitement and dread.
Because the phone was still there.
Because she knew she shouldn't use it.
Because she wanted to anyway.
Study Hall Should Not Feel Like a Crime Scene
By midday they sat in supervised study hall, the nun at the front desk clicking her pen aggressively—like it personally offended her that teenagers existed.
Amina kept her head down, her hair falling around her face as she slowly, carefully pulled the phone from her sleeve.
Her heart hammered.
She typed:
Amina:
Hi. I don't even know if this works.
The message sat there like a confession.
She waited.
Ten seconds.
Twenty.
Thirty.
Then—
The screen lit up.
Unknown Number:
It works. I've been waiting for you to text.
Her chest tightened. Clara peeked over, eyes widening like she discovered forbidden treasure.
Amina flipped the phone over immediately, mouthing later. The nun looked up. Both girls froze.
Silence.
The nun looked back down.
Amina exhaled shakily.
Leo's Messages Hit Harder Than They Should
After study hall, Amina read the rest of his messages while walking to their dorm, pretending she wasn't smiling like an idiot.
Leo:
Did you get in trouble for yesterday?
Leo:
You vanished so fast.
Leo:
Also, if anyone asks, you don't have this phone. Break it before letting them take it.
She stopped walking.
Something about that line—the seriousness, the protectiveness—hit her belly like a warm weight.
Clara bumped her shoulder.
"What did he say?"
Amina hesitated, then handed the phone over. Clara read silently and shook her head with a grin.
"He's obsessed," Clara announced. "Like clinically. That's not flirting—he's invested."
Amina didn't reply.
She just kept reading.
Amina:
No, I didn't get in trouble. I left because I panicked.
Leo:
I noticed. I thought you were going to faint when our eyes met lol.
She bit her lip to hide her stupid smile.
Amina:
Shut up.
Leo:
Never.
She looked up. The sky was soft and cloudy, warm wind brushing her cheeks. For a second she forgot she was even in Mexico, forgot she was stuck in a strict Catholic school she never wanted to be in.
For a second, she felt…free.
Night Falls, and Secrets Feel Heavier
After lights-out, the dorm drifted into silence.
Amina lay awake in the dimness, staring at the tiny phone screen under her blanket.
Leo:
Are you awake?
She typed back immediately.
Amina:
Yes.
Leo:
I wanted to ask you something yesterday but couldn't. Too many eyes.
Why did your parents send you here?
Her breath caught.
She stared at the message, thumb hovering.
What was she supposed to say?
Because she got drunk at a party?
Because her family wanted to fix her?
Because they saw her slipping and panicked?
She typed.
Paused.
Deleted.
Typed again.
Amina:
It's a long story.
Leo:
We have time.
She stared at the glow of the screen, the weight of the moment sinking into her bones. She didn't know why, but talking to him felt safe. Easy. Dangerous in the best way.
So she told him the truth.
Not all of it—not yet—but enough.
Amina:
I messed up. I scared them. This was their solution.
There was a pause. Long. Heavy.
Then:
Leo:
Everyone messes up. But they shouldn't cage you for it.
Her throat tightened.
Her eyes burned.
She wiped them quickly.
Amina:
Why were you even at the church today? I thought yesterday was just coincidence.
Leo:
It was. Today wasn't.
I hoped I'd see you again.
Her heart flipped.
Amina:
You risk a lot talking to me like this.
Leo:
Yeah.
But I think you're worth the risk.
She pressed her fist to her mouth to silence the sound she almost made.
He didn't talk like a 16-year-old boy.
He talked like someone who meant every goddamn word.
The Moment That Changes Everything
Just when she thought the conversation was ending, a final message appeared.
Leo:
Amina… don't disappear on me here. Please.
Her chest twisted painfully.
She typed back slowly, carefully, like carving a promise into stone.
Amina:
I won't. Not this time.
She locked the phone and tucked it under her pillow, her heart beating too fast.
She was supposed to be healing here.
Fixing herself.
Staying out of trouble.
But somehow Leo already felt like a rebellion she wasn't ready to let go of.
Not now.
Not ever.
And as she finally drifted into sleep, one thought circled in her head:
This boy is going to ruin me in the softest way possible.