Weeks passed. 

This week I had a belt exam. To my surprise, I passed the exam with triple promotion to green belt. The belt ceremony was a proud moment—my name called, the medal around my neck, the crisp green belt in my hands handed by the principal . The auditorium erupted in applause for all of me… and for once? I felt happy. Not overthinking Theo, not sad—just achieving something great. Between congratulations from classmates and teachers patting my back, I didn't even glance around to see if he’d shown up. Too busy celebrating with friends and other karate members. But somewhere in the crowd? Dark eyes watched as I beamed on stage… quietly impressed. I posted myself  with the belt and medal. My phone buzzed with a notification—Theo had liked my post. Then, a DM popped up:

"Congrats."

—That was it. Short, simple… but he had messaged me.

A wave of relief crashed over me so hard it almost embarrassed me. Of course he remembered! He hadn’t erased me from his life after all… and the fact that he reached out? It meant something. For the first time in months, my  heart didn’t ache when thinking about him—it fluttered instead. My stupid mind started to think he hates me. But no. No, he didn’t hate me. 

I stared at his message, my  thumb hovering over the keyboard. Should I reply? What do I  say to the guy who ghosted me for months… but just congratulated me on social media? A part of me wanted to be cool—play it safe with a simple "Thanks." But another part—the bolder, more hopeful side—ached to say something real. Before my brain could overthink it… my  fingers typed:
"Thanks Theo. Means a lot that u saw it."

I hit send before I could second-guess it. Then… the three dots appeared. Theo was typing back.A few seconds passed—long enough to make my stomach flip. Then his reply came through:

"Yeah. Looked good on u."

Simple, but not cold. Not distant either. Just… genuine? And for some reason, that tiny compliment warmed my entire chest. That was it. No more talking. And just like that, the conversation died. No follow-up from him. Back to silence. The next time I saw Theo in person—passing each other in the hallway—he didn’t even glance at me. It was like that DM never happened… as if online kindness was a different version of him entirely.Back to ignoring each other. Back to pretending the other didn’t exist whenever paths crossed physically.A painful contrast: sweet words on screen, icy indifference face-to-face.

Days passed, and the pattern continued. Nothing.

I started to feel silly. Was he just being polite online? Did he actually want to talk offline too… or was this his way of keeping distance without hurting me? A part of me wondered if maybe—just maybe—he was scared too. Scared that acknowledging each other in person would reopen everything… and neither of us knew how to fix it. That made sense. Theo was the president—responsible, composed, always in control. Confessing feelings or acting emotionally vulnerable? That didn’t fit his "image" as a serious student leader. Especially with exams looming… he probably saw this period as too high-pressure to complicate things with romance—or even just reopening conversations from the past. So maybe that’s why he kept interactions online casual and distant IRL: priorities. Not because he didn’t care… but because right now? He had responsibilities to focus on.