All Chapters of How the Tables Turn: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

It started subtly — the kind of change you almost don’t notice until it’s already there.By the end of Senior year, Amelia and Colton had their rhythm down to a science. They didn’t fight, didn’t argue, didn’t really have reason to.Everything still worked. It was just… quieter.The conversations that once stretched for hours between classes now lasted a few minutes before tapering off into silence.When they texted, she’d find herself staring at his replies — short, polite, but missing that spark that used to make her grin at her screen.She told herself it was normal. People got comfortable. They didn’t need to fill every silence.But sometimes, when he’d walk her to class and his hand slipped into hers, it felt like muscle memory instead of meaning.One weekend, they met up at a local diner after practice.Colton was tired — distracted, scrolling through his phone between bites of fries. Amelia smiled and tried to keep the conversation light, telling him about Ellis latest attempt

Micah had always dated casually.He wasn’t the type to chase — not loudly, anyway. But somehow, every few months, there was someone new on his arm: a girl from his psychology class, another from the gym, once even a friend of Ellis’s.At first, people teased him about it. Micah the mystery guy, they called him — quiet, polite, intense in a way that drew people in. But over time, his dating life started following a pattern everyone noticed but no one talked about.Every relationship ended the same. Quickly.And somehow, Amelia was always somewhere in the middle of it.It began small.Amelia would show up to class with her favorite iced coffee from the café down the street — a exotic lavender cold brew she swore helped her write faster.Micah noticed. He noticed everything.The next week, his girlfriend at the time, Lexie, showed up with the same drink. She laughed, waving it in front of him.“You were right, this is actually pretty good.”Micah smiled faintly. “Told you.”“What made yo

It had been nearly a week since the café.Life had returned to its usual — class, work, study nights.Everything looked normal.But Amelia couldn’t shake the feeling that something beneath it wasn’t.Micah had gone quiet again.Not in the way that meant he was distant — in the way that meant he was watching.She’d feel it sometimes, sitting in the student union, typing a paper or reading a book.That subtle prickling on her neck, the sense of being seen.And when she looked up — just once — she’d catch him across the room, pretending to scroll through his phone, a small, unreadable expression on his face.He never stared long enough to be accused of anything.Never close enough to seem intrusive.Just… present.Always within sight.Always enough to make her feel unsteady.Ellis noticed first — not Micah’s stares, but Amelia’s restlessness.They were sitting on the dorm floor surrounded by open notebooks and half-eaten takeout boxes when Ellis finally said it.“Okay, what’s going on w

Amelia Hart didn’t notice Micah at first.She saw him the way people see clouds while walking — there, but not meaningful. A classmate in her literature seminar, a coworker at the university library, a faint background figure on the edge of her social orbit. He never spoke much, never intruded, never left a lasting impression.Micah, Ellis, and their older brother are Hispanic on their mother’s side Dominican and white on their father’s side. Their parents raised them with strong cultural ties — Spanish spoken at home, Sunday dinners filled with arroz con pollo, plantains, and loud arguments that always turned into laughter.Sibling Dynamics Micah brother Mateo (eldest): Protective, quick-tempered but responsible. He inherited the “golden boy” expectations, so he often feels like he carries the weight of the family’s image. He notices when Micah drifts too far, but doesn’t always confront him directly.Ellis (middle): The bridge. Sharp-tongued, nurturing, observant. She’s Amelia’s best