When I met you

Chloe pushed the cover from over her and sat up. She could not believe Steven's response.

"You do?" Chloe asked, still doubting and believing that she heard his words wrong. Her heart kept beating at an immense speed.

Steven sat down on the edge of his bed and rubbed his face. He knew what he said and meant every word, but he was not thinking it in the way Chloe was.

"Yes, I still love you as a friend," Steven replied. He could hear her soft breathing from the other end of the line, and he felt relieved that she had quieted down.

Upon hearing his response, an intense agony pierced into Chloe's soul. She covers her mouth with her hand and squeaks. Her eyes became watery. 'Don't cry, Chloe! You can't break down now! It doesn't matter how much it hurts.' Chloe thought to herself. Yet, her heart felt like it got crushed by an enormous stone.

"But, is it possible for us to start over?" She calmly asked. However, deep within herself, she did not feel confident. Chloe fears that she might lose control of her emotions.

She started experiencing a rapid heartbeat. Liquids dripped from her skin, and Chloe could not believe she was sweating with her air conditioning at sixteen degrees Celsius. Chloe then tries to wipe away the sweat but begins shivering and feeling chills in her bones.

"Chloe, I am already seeing..." Steven tried to tell her about Julie, but he stopped himself, knowing that she had stopped sobbing, and he did not want to upset her.

"I am sorry. I should not have asked such a silly question." Chloe replied. At this time, Steven could barely understand the words she was saying because of how badly her voice was quivering.

Chloe started undergoing hot flashes. She felt nauseous and had a cramp in her abdomen. Her eyes became dizzy, and her body became numb. Chloe had the phone to her ear, yet she felt like her soul was slipping out of her body slowly.

"Give me time to think it through. For now, you need to rest, okay?" Steven replied. He could sense that his words were breaking her, and what he wanted to say was much preferable to get said face to face.

"Okay!" Chloe replied and dropped the phone. She pressed her face into her pillow and wept bitterly.

"Ahhha, ha ha!" "Bwah! AHA! HA!" Steven listens as Chloe's sobbing sound echoes through his phone. He could not take it anymore and ended the call.

Julie opened her eyes. She stares out of her open room window and admires the moon. The wintry wind blew through it, making her shiver a little.

Julie got up to close her window when her eyes caught the spot where Steven and her fell, and she giggled, then she hugged her pillow tightly. Julie could feel these little butterflies flying in her stomach, and she could not help smiling like a fool.

"Ahhh!" Julie screamed into the pillow out of excitement. She jumped out of bed and ran to her mirror. Julie beamed at her reflection. "He loves me!" She playfully whispers at her image with a cute expression.

However, her smile disappears when she identifies something else. "I am in love...!" Julie said in a bittersweet tone. Reality had sunk in, and she realized that she had opened her heart again, leaving it vulnerable for a man to enter. 'Did I make the right decision?' She wonders before pinching herself out of her negative thinking.

Feeling normal again, Julie left the mirror and headed to her window where she admired the night's magic. However, Julie felt that it would be more appealing if she could see Steven. So she races to the table, grabs her phone, and video calls him.

Steven had his head bent into his hands. Though he did not want to get back together with Chloe, her hurting made him hurt too since they had an extensive history together.

"Buzz!" "Beep!" His phone vibrated. He removes his hand from his face and picks up his phone. Steven's appearance lit up the moment he saw Julie's name bling on his screen. He answered the call, enthusiastically.

"Hello, Jul!" Steven said. He appears confused as Julie covers her eyes with her hand. She did a cute giggle that made him laugh. Her expression reveals that she was blushing.

"Are you shy?" Steven teasingly announces. He drew the camera further away from his face, revealing his upper body.

"Please put a shirt on." Julie mumbles. She did not know why, but seeing him shirtless made her feel uncomfortable.

"Why? Am I too attractive to look at, huh?" Steven replied as he made a goofy pose.

Julie loudly giggles before realizing that it's nighttime, and she needs to tone it down. She wore the cutest smile that made Steven's heart pound faster.

"I love you." He said with an earnest expression. Steven knew that it was too straightforward and abrupt, but he needed to tell her after what just happened between Chloe and him.

"When did you fall in love with me?" Julie awkwardly asked. She recognized it was a naïve question, yet Julie still felt like she needed to know.

"Well, you can call it 'love at first sight.' I don't know if you remember, but you bumped into me one day when I was standing in front of my company, and that day you woke up my heart again. I know it sounds cliché, but it's the truth." Steven explained.

"What? I thought we met at the club?" Julie asked. Then it clicked, and she recognized the time he was speaking about and what he meant.

"Wait, I remember the day I first met Jackson at my parents' bakery was the same day I got a call from a former schoolmate after Jackson left the shop. We were supposed to meet at a particular location, and that was in front of, 'Tech and knowledge'. I knocked into a guy, but I didn't pay close attention to his face because I was in a hurry to get in the taxi. Hahaha, I can't believe that was you." Julie said, feeling astounded over the fact that fate had them met without her knowing.

"Now that you know how I feel about you. I need to tell you something." Steven thought it was the appropriate time to tell her about the lies and tonight's incident with Chloe.