Chapter 3

Ethan

The next morning I woke up still thinking about Alex’s last message. I stared at the ceiling for a while before dragging myself out of bed. The cold shower helped wake me up, but I couldn’t shake the weird feeling in my chest. The weird feeling from yesterday must have kept me from having those dreams last night. All I could think of was Alex reply last night. Something about him refusing the photo kept bothering me, even though I knew I should respect it. I got dressed anyway, grabbed my camera bag, and headed to the studio.

Lila was already there when I walked in. She had her headphones on and was clicking through photos, but she looked up as soon as I set my bag down.

“Morning,” I said, trying to sound normal.

She studied me for a second. “You are moodier than the normal moody you, Ethan. What’s up with that face?”

I tried to smile but it didn’t come. I just shrugged and opened my laptop instead.

Lila rolled her chair closer. She took off her headphones and set them on the desk. “Okay, for real. What’s the problem? You didn’t even laugh at my joke, and that’s usually an easy win.”

I rubbed the back of my neck. “It’s nothing big. Just… Alex. I sent him a picture of myself last night and asked for one back. He said he wasn’t comfortable yet. He just wants to keep talking first. I get it, but it felt off. It made me overthink everything.”

She leaned in, her curly red hair falling over one shoulder. “Ah. The classic slow mover. That can be sweet, you know? Or it can be a red flag. You like him though, right?”

“I do,” I said. “The chats are easy. He makes me laugh. But after Marcus, I guess I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.”

Lila nodded slowly. She knew the whole messy story with my ex. She had been the one who helped me pack his stuff and drank cheap wine with me on the worst nights. “I get that. Trust is hard after someone pulls what he did.” She paused, then her eyes lit up with that familiar playful spark. “You know what? We should go out properly tonight, it's been a while you know? Not just quick lunch. A real hangout. Drinks, maybe some food that’s not from the café downstairs. It’s been way too long since we did that. What do you say?”

I knew exactly what she was doing. This was her classic Lila move, spot the bad mood and drag me out of it with plans. Part of me wanted to stay home and scroll through old messages with Alex. But the bigger part knew she was right. I needed this, staying in doors thinking about everything wouldn't help me.

“Yeah, okay,” I said, giving her a real smile this time. “Let’s do it. Where were you thinking?”

Her face brightened. “There’s that new place a few blocks over. They have good burgers and strong cocktails. We can complain about clients, talk about your mysterious Alex, and I can tell you about the disaster date I had last weekend. Deal?”

“Deal.”

The rest of the morning felt lighter. We worked side by side, swapping files and asking each other for opinions on edits. Lila blasted her usual indie playlist and sang along badly on purpose to make me laugh. At one point she wheeled her chair over and bumped mine.

“See? Already better,” she teased. “You’re smiling for real now.”

“You’re annoying,” I said, but I was grinning.

We took a short lunch break together, then got back to it. I finished editing the latest hotel shots and sent them off to the client. The afternoon passed with normal studio chatter, talking about lenses with one of the other photographers, fixing a jammed printer, and listening to Lila rant about her picky client again.

By five-thirty I felt more like myself. Lila packed up her things and pointed at me.

“Seven o’clock. Don’t bail on me, Vale.”

“I won’t. See you there.”

I went home, took another shower, and changed into a clean shirt. The place Alex and I had been texting about kept popping into my head. I checked my phone. No new messages from him yet. I thought about Adrian too, how steady he looked in yesterday’s session, the way his fingers had brushed mine. I shook my head. *Stop.*

The bar was loud but comfortable when I got there. Lila had already grabbed us a table near the back. She waved me over with a big grin.

“You made it! I ordered us starters. Figured you’d be hungry after pretending to work all day.”

I sat down and laughed. “Pretending? I edited thirty photos. That counts.”

We ordered burgers and cocktails. Over the food, Lila launched into the story of her terrible date. She waved her hands around dramatically as she described the guy who spent the whole night talking about his fantasy football team.

“I swear I almost fell asleep in my pasta,” she said. “Your turn. Tell me more about Alex. Any red flags besides the photo thing?”

I took a sip of my drink. “Not really. He’s really thoughtful. Remembers little things I mention. But yeah, the no-photo thing threw me. Makes me wonder what he looks like. Or if he’s hiding something.”

Lila shrugged. “he could be shy. Or careful after bad experiences. Give it a little more time before you decide. You deserve something good, Ethan. Not another Marcus situation.”

Hearing his name still stung, but less than before. “I know. I’m trying.”

We talked for hours. About work, old art school stories, and random dreams for the future. Lila even made me order dessert just to keep the night going. By the time we paid the bill, my mood felt a lot lighter.

“Thanks for dragging me out,” I said as we stepped outside. “I needed this.”

She hugged me quick. “Anytime. That’s what friends are for. Text me when you get home, okay?”

I walked back to my apartment feeling much better. The city lights looked softer tonight. When I got inside, I kicked off my shoes and checked my phone. There was a new message from Alex.

Alex: Hope your day was good. Been thinking about our last chat.

I smiled and started typing back. Part of me still wondered about the photo, but for now I pushed it aside. Tonight had reminded me I had good people in my life. That counted for something.

Still, as I got ready for bed, that familiar pull came back. Thoughts of Adrian’s hazel eyes mixed with Alex’s comforting words. I wondered how long I could keep pretending everything was fine.