It was Knox's graduation day. The air was alive with chatter and laughter, everyone buzzing with excitement, their faces bright with happiness. Matt and I made our way through the crowd to congratulate him, our hearts light with the energy of the day.

The campus was a sea of people, all congratulating the new graduates, and for a moment, it felt like time had slowed.

"Livi."

I turned, still flushed from the way Matt's gaze lingered on me. "Hmm?" I mumbled, my words soft, a little lost in the moment.

He smiled, his eyes playful. "Let’s go to the mountains after this."

I blinked, surprised. "What?" The words barely left my lips before I realized what he meant, my heart skipping a beat.

He laughed, a low sound that sent a thrill through me. "Let’s go. Right now."

Before I could even react, he grabbed my hand, pulling me through the crowd, leaving behind the sea of graduates and well-wishers in our wake. We ran, laughter escaping between us, the world fading away until it was just us—caught in a moment of our own.

Meanwhile, Knox was still engaged in conversation with some of his classmates, but a couple of them couldn't help but notice us.

"Oh, look at them go," one of them remarked, their voice filled with a touch of envy.

"How nice to be in love," another classmate added wistfully, their eyes following our retreating figures.

Knox, hearing the murmurs, turned his gaze toward us. His face, usually so composed, flickered with something bittersweet, a shadow passing over his features. For a brief moment, his usually unreadable expression faltered, the corners of his lips tight with a quiet sorrow. A heavy sigh escaped him, barely audible amidst the hum of the celebration, as if the weight of something unsaid had settled upon him.

“Yeah, look at them go.”

A close friend of Knox says, “You’re just gonna let her slip away?”

“She wasn’t mine to begin with.”

“Are you sure? Because from the look of your face–”

Knox expression darkened, and then went to a forced smile.

“I told you, it’s a hassle.”

The sky remained a soft, pale blue, as if it had yet to fully embrace the day, the clock inching closer to one o’clock. We made our way up the rugged trail, our running shoes crunching on the uneven earth beneath us. The path twisted and turned, guiding us through a dense forest of trees that whispered secrets in the wind. Each step felt like a small victory, the air growing thinner with every upward climb, yet the anticipation of what lay at the summit kept our spirits high.

By the time we reached the peak, the sun had risen fully, casting a warm, golden glow over the landscape. The mountains stretched endlessly before us, their peaks dusted with the last remnants of snow from the winter, now bathed in the early afternoon light. The land seemed to shimmer, as though nature itself had been kissed by the sun, its golden hue spreading like a blanket over the world below.

We paused to catch our breath, the quiet of the morning settling around us like a soft embrace. I could feel the gentle pull of the breeze, and the distant song of birds echoed across the valley. Everything was peaceful, almost too peaceful. The kind of stillness that made you wonder if this moment would last forever.

We found a large tree, its broad branches offering a cool shade, and decided to sit beneath it. The weather was perfect, not too hot, not too cold, the kind of day that made you forget the rest of the world existed. I dug through my bag, pulling out the snacks we had brought along for the hike—sandwiches, chips, and a bottle of water. The simple pleasure of sharing food in such a beautiful place made the moment feel even more special.

"Livi."

I looked to my left, my gaze meeting his. The way the sun caught his hair made it glow like strands of gold, his features soft and relaxed as he leaned back against the trunk of the tree.

"Hmm?" I replied, a slight smile tugging at my lips, a comfortable warmth spreading through my chest.

“I will be choosing Engineering,” he said, his voice steady but laced with something more—a quiet certainty that hung in the air, waiting to be understood.

“Oh, were you inspired by the seniors earlier?” I asked, curious, though part of me already had a sense of where this was going.

“Yeah,” he said, his eyes distant, now turned towards the sun. He closed them for a moment, letting the warmth wash over him. “My dream is to build houses. Modern houses. All kinds of houses. With big windows. I want to draw them, create them. And it makes good money too,” he added with a grin, glancing over at me. His eyes were bright, full of something deeper than just ambition.

I turned my face toward the sky, letting the breeze run its fingers through my hair. His words lingered in the air like a promise, though I couldn’t quite name it.

“How about you, Livi?” His voice broke through my thoughts, pulling me back into the moment.

I hesitated for a moment, unsure how to answer, yet somehow the words came naturally, slipping from my lips like a secret I had been keeping from myself.

"I like...," I whispered, my voice soft, as though testing the truth in it. "I like Engineering too, because of my dad. But I’m also thinking about Business courses. It interests me. I still don’t know yet." My voice faltered for a second, but then I continued, more certain now. "But you’re right. Engineering makes good money. I might choose it too."

He smiled, that same soft, knowing smile that made my heart skip a beat. "Then we’d be classmates again."

I felt a blush creep up my cheeks, my gaze dropping to the ground in a sudden wave of warmth. The idea of being with him again, in the same space, with the same dreams... it felt right. It felt like something I had never quite allowed myself to hope for, but now, the possibility was there.

“Oh!” He suddenly exhaled in excitement, rummaging through his bag.

I looked at him, intrigued. “What is it?”

He pulled out a small set of watercolors and a blank canvas, his grin mischievous. “I brought these,” he said, offering them to me with a flourish.

“Oh wow, you’re really prepared for today,” I teased, raising an eyebrow.

“Of course,” he winked, that glimmer of playful confidence in his eyes making my heart flutter in a way I couldn’t quite explain.

The sun’s rays filtered through the trees above us as we were painting, casting dappled shadows on the ground. The warmth spread slowly across my skin, a gentle, comforting heat that seeped into my bones. The soft murmur of the wind and the rustle of leaves seemed like nature’s way of keeping time, reminding us that here, in this place, there were no expectations—only the present.

“Livi.”

“Hmm?” Turning my gaze to him, my painting still on my lap.

With a sly grin, he leaned closer, his lips brushing mine in a teasing caress before she had the chance to react. The kiss was light and full of laughter, like two souls engaged in a playful dance, each one trying to outsmart the other in a sweet, stolen instant.

“I like you.”

Flustered and overwhelmed by the rush of emotions, I could hardly believe what he just said. This, I realized, was what I had been waiting for all along. Not just the silence of the morning or the beauty of the landscape, but the quiet, steady growth of something deeper. Something that had been growing in the background, unnoticed until now.

“I like you too.”

It was subtle, almost imperceptible, but it was there. In the way we looked at each other, in the silence that felt more like a conversation than any words we could have spoken. And in that moment, under the vast sky, with the world stretched out before us, I realized that what had begun as a simple friendship had quietly evolved into something more. Something real.

The soft, unhurried bloom of a love that had been growing quietly, patiently, just waiting for the right moment to be acknowledged. And now, as the sunlight bathed us in its golden warmth, I knew—this was the beginning of something beautiful.

As we descended the hill, his fingers brushed against mine, and without a second thought, they slid effortlessly into place, entwining with mine. It was as if our hands had always been meant to find each other, fitting together with a quiet, inevitable certainty, as though they had been longing for this connection all along.