Chapter 17
Gwen tugged her jacket tighter around her as she stepped into the tiny café two blocks from campus. It smelled like cinnamon and espresso and the faintest hint of lavender syrup. It was one of those places that always had fogged windows and a chalkboard menu someone actually updated daily. Cozy. Intimate. Too intimate?
She spotted him right away.
Miles was already there, sitting by the window with a lopsided grin and two drinks in front of him. One was definitely hers—lemon tea, with just the tiniest twist of smug memory.
"Hey," she said, sliding into the seat across from him. "You ordered for me?"
"You’re predictable," he replied, nudging the tea toward her.
“Rude. And yet, accurate.”
He laughed softly, looking at her like he still couldn’t believe this was happening. “It’s weird seeing you like this. Outside of class. No textbook between us.”
“Right? Like we’re actual people or something.”
They sipped in silence for a moment. Comfortable silence. The kind that only exists when you’ve been almost friends for a while and you're both wondering if it could ever be more.
“So,” Miles said, setting his cup down. “Are we gonna acknowledge how bizarre this is?”
“What? That we’re drinking overpriced beverages and pretending we’re normal?”
He snorted. “Exactly.”
“I dunno,” Gwen said, toying with her sleeve. “Maybe we need a little normal. Just for a minute.”
His smile softened. “Then this isn’t a date.”
“Nope. Definitely not.”
“Cool. So if it were... hypothetically... what would be different?”
She looked at him over the rim of her cup. “Maybe I’d let you pay.”
“I already did.”
“Then it’s a hypothetical not-date.”
They both laughed, the kind of laugh that makes your chest hurt just a little. The café buzzed around them, but it didn’t really matter. For now, it was just them and lemon tea and something quietly blooming between the lines.
They stepped out of the café into the early evening chill, the sky blushing orange and lavender. Gwen zipped up her jacket, but not before Miles noticed the little Spider-Man patch stitched onto her sleeve.
“Nice patch,” he said, nudging her arm. “Where’d you get it?”
She blinked, looked down. “Oh—this? Random shop. Clearance bin. Regret-free purchase.”
“Totally unbiased fan, I see.”
“Mmhm,” she hummed. “I’m allowed to support local talent.”
Miles gave her a look. “You talk about him like he’s a garage band.”
“Maybe he is. Mysterious. Elusive. Questionable outfit choices.”
He chuckled and kicked a stray leaf with his sneaker. “You really think his outfit’s questionable?”
“I think he could try layering. It’s New York. It gets cold.”
They walked for a few more steps, passing flickering lampposts and couples with linked pinkies. Gwen's hand brushed against his once—accidentally.
Twice—less accidentally.
Three times—neither of them moved away.
“I like this,” Miles said quietly, staring ahead but sounding just a bit nervous.
She glanced up at him. “Like what?”
“This. Us. Walking. Talking. No physics problems.”
She smiled. “Yeah. Me too.”
They paused at the dorm gates. Gwen shoved her hands into her pockets. “Thanks for the tea. And the walk.”
“Anytime,” Miles said. And he meant it.
She hesitated. “Hey—if it was a date…”
“Yeah?”
“I think it would've been a pretty good one.”
He grinned. “Best not-date I’ve ever had.”
And then she was gone, up the steps and into the dorms, leaving him smiling at the sidewalk like a complete idiot.
The campus library was almost empty on a Sunday afternoon, golden light spilling through the tall windows. Gwen sat cross-legged on the floor between two shelves, a massive physics textbook in her lap. Her phone buzzed next to her.
[Miles]: Found you. Left aisle. 3rd row. Stay where you are.
She looked up just in time to see his head pop around the corner.
“Creepy,” she said flatly. “Very ninja-like. You have experience stalking people in libraries?”
He held up a paper bag like it was a peace offering. “Only the cute ones. Also, I brought snacks.”
That earned a snort. “What, no lemon tea?”
He grinned. “Thought I’d switch it up. I brought gummy bears and those weird little panda cookies.”
Gwen reached for the bag. “Okay, forgiven.”
They sat side by side, backs against the wall, books open in front of them—but mostly ignored.
“You ever notice how textbooks always make everything ten times more boring than it needs to be?” Gwen mumbled through a mouthful of cookie.
“Absolutely,” Miles said. “Like, explain entropy but make it sound like a bedtime story for robots.”
They both laughed, and then fell into an easy silence—one of those warm, safe kinds.
Gwen leaned over and looked at his notes. “You write your eights so weird.”
He raised a brow. “Excuse you, that’s calligraphy.”
“That’s chaos.”
She nudged him with her shoulder, and he nudged her back—maybe a little softer than necessary.
“Hey,” he said after a moment, quieter, “this doesn’t feel like tutoring anymore.”
Gwen glanced at him, eyes soft. “That’s because it isn’t.”
He looked at her—really looked at her—and then quietly said, “Cool.”
They didn’t need to say anything else.
Gwen was lying upside down on her bed, legs up the wall, hair dangling off the side. “I think I’m in trouble,” she muttered dramatically.
Amaya didn’t look up from her laptop. “What kind? Emotional, academic, federal...?”
“Romantic,” Gwen groaned.
Now that made Amaya close the laptop. “Oh, here we go.” She crawled across the bed and plopped down next to Gwen. “Spill it.”
Gwen pointed at the ceiling like it had betrayed her. “So, Miles and I studied in the library. And by studied, I mean we shared cookies, made fun of physics, and stared at each other like idiots.”
Amaya gasped. “Was there eye contact?”
“Sustained eye contact.”
“Dangerous.”
“Lethal,” Gwen agreed.
Amaya squinted suspiciously. “So… you like him.”
“I think I’ve got a big, stupid, full-body crush, and I don’t know what to do with it,” Gwen confessed, arms flailing like she was trying to throw the feelings off her body.
Amaya leaned closer, grinning. “You could ask him out.”
Gwen rolled over to smother her face in a pillow. “You’re the worst.”
“And yet you keep me around.”
Gwen peeked out. “Because I need a witness for when I combust.”
Amaya smiled, softer this time. “You’re glowing, you know. Like, actually. I haven’t seen you like this in a while.”
Gwen blinked, caught off guard. “I didn’t realize I wasn’t glowing before.”
“You weren’t. But now you are. And it’s kind of beautiful, G.”
Gwen looked away, suddenly shy. “Yeah… it kinda feels like it.”