Chapter Text
The first time I met Sua, I was having probably the worst day ever. It had been raining since the morning, and of course my umbrella decided to break when I was literally halfway to school. My shoes were soaked, my hair was a mess, and I was already annoyed before I even got through the front doors. Then I forgot an assignment I'd stayed up until two in the morning working on, almost walked into a teacher because I wasn't paying attention, and spent lunch listening to people argue about something so stupid that I didn't even bother trying to understand it. By the time school ended, I was exhausted. I didn't want to go home yet, though, so I decided to stop at the little café across from the school. I figured I'd get something warm, sit by myself for a while, and pretend the day never happened.
The café was almost completely empty when I walked in. It was warm, and it smelled like coffee and cinnamon, which already made me feel a little better. I ordered a hot chocolate and looked around for somewhere to sit. There was one empty chair at a table near the window, except there was already a girl sitting on the other side. She had really long dark hair and was reading a book like she was completely disconnected from everything around her. I stood there for a second because I didn't want to bother her, but there weren't really any other places to sit.
"Um, excuse me?" I asked.
She didn't look up.
"Hi?"
This time, she slowly looked at me. Her eyes were purple, which I honestly wasn't expecting, and for some reason I completely forgot what I was going to say. I pointed at the empty chair. "Can I sit here?" She looked around the café and then back at me. "There aren't any other seats." I stared at her for a second. "Yeah, I know. I just thought I'd ask because it'd be rude if I just sat down." She stared at me like she was trying to figure out if I was serious. Then she gave the tiniest smile. "Sure."
I sat down across from her and tried not to make things awkward. For a while, neither of us said anything. She went back to reading, and I started drinking my hot chocolate while staring out the window. Eventually, though, I got bored. I glanced at her book and asked, "What are you reading?" She looked down at it. "A novel." I waited. She looked back at her book. "That's it?" I asked. She looked at me again. "You asked what I was reading." I laughed. "I thought you'd tell me the name." She shrugged. "You didn't ask." I couldn't help smiling. "You're kind of mean." She closed her book and looked at me. "I'm honest." I rolled my eyes. "That's what mean people say."
She actually laughed at that. It wasn't loud or anything, but it was really cute, and I remember thinking that I wanted to hear it again. She told me her name was Sua, and when I told her mine was Mizi, she said she already knew. Apparently, we'd been in the same literature class all year. I was so embarrassed when I realized that I'd never noticed her. "Oh my god, you're in my class?" I asked, and she just nodded like this was completely normal. "You've seriously never seen me?" she asked. "I mean... obviously I have. I just didn't know you were you." That probably made absolutely no sense, but she laughed again, so I decided it didn't matter.
I probably should've just finished my drink and gone home that day, but I didn't. We kept talking. It started with school, then books, then music, and somehow turned into us talking about random stuff that didn't even matter. I found out she hated really sweet drinks but loved pastries, and she found out that I hum when I'm nervous. I didn't even realize I was doing it until she pointed it out, which made me incredibly embarrassed. By the time I checked the clock, I'd been sitting there for almost two hours. It felt like maybe twenty minutes.
After that, we started seeing each other at the café almost every day. At first, we'd pretend it was just a coincidence, but eventually it became obvious that we were both showing up because we wanted to see each other. I'd walk in after school and find her sitting at our table with her book, and she'd look up at me like she'd been waiting. Sometimes I'd bring homework, although I barely got anything done because I would end up talking to her the entire time. She'd always complain that I was distracting her, but she'd never actually tell me to leave. I think that's when I started realizing how much I liked being around her.
We got close really quickly. We started walking home together after school, texting each other all the time, and sending each other random pictures whenever something reminded us of the other person. I'd send her pictures of ugly dogs I saw on the internet, and she'd send me pictures of the moon because she knew I liked it. We started telling each other things we didn't really tell other people. Sua was quieter than me, but I eventually realized that she wasn't cold. She was just careful. Once she trusted someone, she actually cared a lot. I think that was one of the things I liked most about her.
The problem was that somewhere along the way, I stopped thinking of her as just my best friend.
I realized it on a random Tuesday.
We were sitting under a tree after school, sharing earbuds and listening to music. Sua had gotten tired and rested her head against my shoulder. I remember becoming completely still because I didn't want to move and accidentally wake her up. I looked down at her and suddenly realized how much I loved everything about her. The way she pushed her hair behind her ear. The way she tried to hide her smile when I complimented her. The way she always pretended she wasn't listening when I talked too much, even though she remembered basically everything I said.
My heart started beating so fast.
"Oh no," I whispered.
Sua moved slightly. "What?"
"Nothing."
"You said something."
"I didn't."
She lifted her head and looked at me. "You did."
I panicked.
"I think I like you."
The second the words came out, I wanted to disappear. I started talking way too fast because apparently my brain had decided that making the situation worse was the best possible idea. "I mean, I really like you. Like, more than friends. And you don't have to say anything because I know this is probably weird and I don't want to ruin our friendship, but I've been thinking about it for a while and I don't know how to stop thinking about it and—"
"Mizi."
I stopped.
She was smiling.
"I like you too."
I just stared at her.
"What?"
"I like you too."
My face immediately felt like it was on fire. "Like... you actually like me?"
She nodded. "Yes."
"Like romantically?"
She laughed. "Yes, Mizi."
I covered my face with my hands. "Oh my god."
She gently pulled my hands away. "I was actually waiting for you to figure it out."
"You could've told me!"
"You never stopped talking long enough for me to."
I stared at her before laughing. "That's so mean."
"You'll survive."
I smiled at her, and for some reason everything suddenly felt lighter. I looked down at our hands, which were resting next to each other in the grass, and then I slowly reached for hers. She let me take it. Our fingers fit together, and I couldn't stop smiling.
"So... what does this mean?" I asked.
Sua looked at me, and her cheeks were slightly pink. "It means we're dating, I guess."
I swear I almost screamed.
"Really?"
She laughed. "Unless you don't want to."
"I definitely want to."
She smiled. "Then we're dating."
I looked down at our hands again and couldn't stop smiling. "I have a girlfriend."
"Don't say it like that."
"I have a girlfriend!"
"Mizi."
"My girlfriend!"
She covered her face, but I could see her smiling.
Dating Sua didn't really feel that different from being friends with her, which I actually liked. We still went to the café after school, still studied together, and still argued over stupid things. The only difference was that now I could hold her hand without wondering if it was weird. Sometimes we'd walk home together and she'd quietly reach for my hand first. Every time she did, I'd get that stupid happy feeling in my chest.
We weren't perfect, either. Sometimes we'd get annoyed at each other. Sometimes I'd talk when she wanted quiet, and sometimes she'd shut me out when something was bothering her. But we always figured it out. I think that's what made me love her even more. She wasn't some perfect person from a movie, and neither was I. We were just two girls trying to figure things out together.
A few months later, we went back to the café where we'd first met. It was raining again, which made me laugh because apparently rain was just part of our story now. We sat at the same table by the window, and I looked across at Sua.
"Do you remember the first time we met?"
She nodded. "You were soaking wet."
"And you were mean."
"I'm still mean."
I laughed. "You liked me."
"I tolerated you."
"You loved me."
She rolled her eyes, but she was smiling.
I reached across the table and took her hand. "You know, it's kind of crazy that one random day brought us here."
She squeezed my hand. "I think I'd still choose it."
I smiled. "Even the rain?"
"Maybe not the rain."
I laughed and rested my head against her shoulder. Outside, the rain kept falling against the windows, and the whole café felt warm and quiet around us.
I used to think that day was the worst day of my life.
My broken umbrella, my ruined shoes, my forgotten assignment, everything going wrong at once. But if none of that had happened, I wouldn't have walked into that café. I wouldn't have asked a random girl if I could sit at her table. I wouldn't have met my best friend.
And I definitely wouldn't have met the girl who eventually became my girlfriend.
Sometimes I think the universe has a really weird way of giving you exactly what you need.
And for me, somehow, it was Sua.