Page 13 of Only ever you-Ana & Byron
Even when they weren't speaking much in person-when Byron was off training, or moody, or drifting closer to Cathy Liston than Ana liked, they still texted.
Every day.
Most times it was questions about their psych homework, or reminders ("Oi, bring the Freud notes tomorrow. I've lost mine again.").
And sometimes -
Byron:U up?
Ana:It's midnight, moron.
Byron:Can't sleep. Brain won't shut up.
Ana:Want a distraction or honesty?
Byron:Bit of both maybe.
And somewhere between the daily chats and midnight confessions, Ana realised she didn't want a day where he didn't show up on her screen. Even if it was just to say
Byron:Survived PE. Nearly threw up. 10/10 would do again.
Ana:You're so dramatic.
Byron:You like it tho.
She did. More than she wanted to admit.
Later that week, after school, Ana stepped out into the courtyard just in time to see Byron laughing with Cathy Liston. Cathy reached out and tugged lightly on the sleeve of his jacket, her grin white and like a siren. Byron let her, that easy, cocky posture sliding into place.
Ana stopped mid-step.
It was stupid.
She told herself that.
She wasn't with him. There had never been a declaration. Byron flirting was just Byron being Byron. Just study sessions, shared snacks, maybe something soft hiding beneath the sarcasm. Just friends.
But still... it stung.
Cadi appeared beside her like she'd just materialised out of thin air. "You, okay?"
Ana forced a shrug. "Yeah. Just tired."
Cadi looked at her for a long beat, then nodded. "He's being an arse. Doesn't mean you have to let it ruin your day."
Ana smiled, tightly, "You're right. Let's get coffee. Without testosterone."
They walked off together. Ana didn't look back.
The route was beautiful, brutal, and exhausting. They were on the Gold Duke of Edinburgh expedition, just months from graduation. Byron had been extra grumpy of late.
They were on Day 2, dragging their aching limbs from Borrowdale to Grisedale Tarn, the wind cutting across the ridges and mist soaking their hair. Fifteen miles of rough ascent, scree-covered paths, and leg-sapping descents.
Byron walked ahead most of the morning, barely saying a word.
He was tired. She could see it in the slope of his shoulders, in the way he didn't joke, in the shadows under his eyes. The Newcastle contract had come through two weeks earlier. He should have been ecstatic. Instead, he had turned into a grizzly bear.
"Could you, maybe, slow down?" Ana snapped at one point, slipping slightly on a wet stone.
