Page 20 of Love You Like That

I laughed, loud and real. “Okay, okay. I’ll spill.” They leaned in closer. “Ezra is…” I started. “Everything. He's hood but sweet, soulful and talented. He writes these poems that slice through you like they know your secrets.”

Dianna clutched her heart dramatically. “I knew that man had soul ties in his beard.”

Erin nodded. “Continue.”

I paused, fingers toying with the edge of my napkin. “We’ve been seeing each other a lot. Texts. Calls. Dates. Nights in. Sex that should probably be illegal.” Both girls let out synchronized gasps. “But more than that,” I continued, quieter now. “It’s emotional. Like… he sees me. All of me. And he doesn’t try to fix me. Just… holds space.”

“That’s rare,” Erin said seriously.

“I know. And… I’m falling fast.”

They both stared at me for a beat. “Wait,” Dianna said slowly. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“I don’t know,” I murmured. “I just know when he looks at me, I feel calm and like I don’t have to be something I’m not.”

Dianna reached across the table and squeezed my hand. “I’m happy for you.”

I smiled a little. “Thank you.”

“But…” she added, reading my face. “Something’s off, isn’t it?”

I nodded. “I missed his open mic night the other night. It was an important night. The one that could’ve launched something major.”

“You didn’t go?”

I shook my head. “Clinical had me locked down. I couldn’t get out of it. Plus, I had my head buried in books.”

“Did he understand?” Dianna asked.

“He said he did,” I replied. “And I believe him. But ever since, the vibe’s been… different. Not bad. Just… off. Our texts feel shorter. Calls don’t last as long. We’ve both been busy, but…”

“You feel the shift,” Erin finished.

“Exactly.” The server dropped off our food, but none of us reached for it right away. “I just feel stretched thin,” I admitted. “My program is winding down and shit is getting real and my parents are pushing me about my career. And I’m tryna be a present girlfriend if that’s even what I am, but it’s like… something’salwaysslipping.”

“You ever tell him all that?” Dianna asked.

“Not really. I don’t want to sound like I’m making excuses.”

“Girl,” Erin said, leveling me with a look. “He likesyou. Not some flawless, always-available version. You gotta let him see the mess too.”

“I know,” I said softly. “I just don’t want to lose this before it’s fully grown.”

“You won’t,” Dianna followed up. “Not if it’s real.”

And I believed her but that didn’t stop the knot in my chest from tightening every time I thought about Ezra.

T h en i g h ta i rwas soft and sticky as we stepped out of the restaurant, streetlights humming above us, cars rolling slowly down Talbot Street like they had nowhere to be. Dianna kissed both my cheeks and adjusted her jean jacket. “Next time, don’t wait so long to come up for air, okay?”

“Promise,” I said, hugging her tight.

“You better,” Erin added, keys jingling in her hand. “And tell your poet bae we wanna meet him officially and we’re expecting autographed books when he blows up.”

I laughed, shaking my head as we parted ways. But the second I slid into my car, the humor faded into something quieter. Something I hadn’t wanted to sit in all night. That feeling. That off thing between me and Ezra. The missed connections. The slow shift from eager texts to “call you later” replies. The low hum of something unsaid.

I pressed his name on my phone before I could overthink it and put it on speaker as I pulled out of the parking lot. He picked up on the second ring.

“What up?” His voice was warm but quiet like he’d just exhaled a long breath before answering.

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