Chapter 6

I swallowed hard, my voice trembling as I tried to speak.

“Od—”

Before I could say another word, the car slowed to a stop.

The door opened.

And his mum’s voice broke through the moment.

“We’re here.”

Just like that, the spell shattered.

His hand slipped from mine, and he looked away, his face closing off again, as if nothing had happened.

My heart was still racing when I stepped out of the car, my thoughts spinning, my chest warm and light at the same time. I barely even felt the ground beneath my feet as we walked into the university building.

I kept glancing around, hoping Odell would walk beside me again, that we would finally finish the conversation that had waited years to begin.

But he didn’t.

Odell’s mum led me down a long hallway and stopped in front of a large door where a few other students were already waiting.

“This is the exam hall,” she said gently. “Go in, sweetheart. You’ll do great.”

I nodded, clutching my documents, and walked inside.

As I found my seat, my mind kept replaying that moment in the car, his eyes, his voice, the way my name had sounded when he said it. I felt light, almost giddy, like I was floating.

When the exam papers were placed on our desks, I blinked and focused.

The questions were… easy.

Not careless-easy, but familiar. Like everything I had studied had finally decided to show up exactly when I needed it. My pen moved quickly, confidently. I answered one question after another without hesitation.

I finished early.

But instead of checking my work, I found myself smiling at nothing, my thoughts drifting right back to Odell.

He talked to me.

He finally talked to me.

I couldn’t wait to leave the hall and run back to him. I couldn’t wait to ask him everything. All the questions that had lived inside me for years were finally about to have answers.

When the invigilator announced the end of the exam, I stood up almost immediately and handed in my paper, my heart pounding with excitement.

I rushed out of the hall, my eyes searching for him.

But the first person I saw was Odell’s mum.

She was standing near the entrance, her phone in her hand, smiling warmly when she saw me. “There you are! How did it go?”

“It was… it was okay,” I said quickly, still looking around. “Where’s Odell?”

Her smile softened. “Oh, he had to leave. He has a school project he needed to attend to, so he couldn’t stay.”

My heart dropped.

“Leave?” I repeated quietly. “He… he’s not here anymore?”

She shook her head gently. “No, sweetheart. But it’s fine. You’ll pass this exam, I’m sure of it. And once you start school here, you’ll be seeing him every day.”

I forced a smile, but disappointment settled heavily in my chest.

Every day.

That sounded nice… but right now, all I could think about was the conversation that had almost happened and never did.

We walked back to the car, and the drive to the hotel felt much longer than before. The excitement I’d felt earlier faded, replaced by a quiet sadness that refused to leave me.

At the hotel, I barely touched my food. My appetite was gone, my mind too busy replaying the same moment over and over again.

His hand. His eyes. My name on his lips.

Why did he leave right after that?

Why didn’t he say more?

Why didn’t I get a chance to ask anything?

That night, sleep came slowly.

The next morning, I learned that Odell’s mum had to travel back home earlier than planned. Something urgent had come up, and we couldn’t stay the extra days she originally wanted.

So just like that, I was on a flight back home, carrying nothing but unanswered questions and a heart full of hope that felt painfully unfinished.

Back home, every day felt like waiting.

Waiting for the scholarship results.

Waiting for my future.

Waiting to see Odell again.

I checked the portal constantly, refreshing the page until my eyes hurt. I kept wishing he had spoken to me earlier, wishing I had his number, wishing we had exchanged anything, anything at all, so I could talk to him.

But I had nothing.

Only memories.

Only hope.

And then, one afternoon, it happened.

I refreshed the page, and the words appeared.

STATUS: PASSED.

For a second, I just stared, not breathing.

Then I screamed.

I screamed so loud my mum came running into the room, panic all over her face. “Nichole, what is it? What happened?”

“I passed!” I cried. “Mum, I passed! I passed the exam!”

She screamed too, pulling me into a tight hug. My dad rushed in, confused at first, then smiling so wide it made my chest ache with happiness.

We called Odell’s mum immediately, and she was overjoyed. She congratulated me again and again, telling me how proud she was, how she knew I could do it.

Everyone was happy.

And so was I.

But not just because of the scholarship.

I was happy because now, finally, I would be going back.

Back to the same university.

Back to the same campus.

Back to him.

I would finally see Odell again.

And this time…

nothing would interrupt our conversation.