The Space Between Us

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The sound of the door slamming echoed through the apartment, leaving an unsettling silence in its wake. Gemini stood by the window, watching the rain fall in sheets, but his mind was miles away. The argument with Fourth earlier that evening replayed in his head over and over again. It had escalated faster than he anticipated, each word said in anger or frustration slicing through the tension between them. And now, Fourth was gone—gone to stay at his friend's place for the night, leaving Gemini alone to grapple with the weight of everything that had been said.

Gemini rubbed his forehead, exhaling deeply. He wasn't sure if it was relief or regret that he felt. The silence stretched on, filling the room with an uncomfortable void.

The door clicked open, and Avery stepped in, her usual exuberance tempered by the somber mood in the room. She'd been standing outside, hearing the tail end of the argument. Now, seeing Gemini, she knew there was no turning back from this.

"Gem," she said softly, her voice laced with concern. "I'm sorry."

Gemini turned to face her, offering a half-hearted smile. "It's not your fault, Avery. I... I just don't know anymore."

She walked over to him, sitting down beside him on the couch. "Talk to me. What happened?"

Gemini ran a hand through his hair. "It's everything. Fourth and I, we've been... I don't know. Things were so good, but now I feel like everything's falling apart. We got into a stupid argument, and now he's gone. I don't even know where I stand anymore."

Avery studied him, seeing the pain behind his words. "You both care about each other, Gem. That much is obvious. But you're both so stubborn."

Gemini let out a small, bitter laugh. "Yeah, stubborn. That's one way to put it."

Avery's expression softened. "Sometimes, space is necessary. It's hard, but it's not always a bad thing. Maybe this will give you both the clarity you need."

"Clarity?" Gemini scoffed. "More like a chance for me to figure out if this is really something I want—or if I'm just afraid of being alone."

Meanwhile, Fourth sat in the dimly lit living room of his friend Liam's apartment, nursing a drink. His thoughts were as tangled as the emotions swirling inside him. The words he had exchanged with Gemini were still sharp in his mind. Had he said too much? Had he pushed too hard?

Liam and Maya, sitting across from him, exchanged a look before Liam spoke up.

"You know, Fourth," Liam said, his voice light but filled with concern, "you can't keep doing this to yourself. You've got to figure this out, man."

Maya added, "Yeah. I've seen you struggle with this before. You don't want to shut him out, but you can't just sit here moping either."

Fourth ran a hand over his face, clearly frustrated. "I don't know what to do. I'm worried I pushed him too far. Maybe he wasn't ready for... for this. Whatever this is."

"What exactly is 'this'?" Liam asked, leaning forward with genuine curiosity. "Are you guys just... talking, or is this something more serious?"

Fourth hesitated, trying to put his feelings into words. "I don't even know. I thought we were on the same page, but now I feel like I'm chasing something that's never going to happen. I can't be too intense, but I can't keep holding back either. Every time I get close, it's like something's holding him back."

Maya sighed, her eyes softening with sympathy. "Maybe he just needs some time. You know how Gem is. He's not exactly the best at dealing with his feelings, but he's not running from you, Fourth. Don't jump to conclusions."

Fourth looked down at his hands, trying to process her words. "I don't want to lose him. I just... I don't know if he feels the same way."

"You won't know unless you talk to him," Liam pointed out. "The distance between you isn't going to fix anything."

The next few days felt like an eternity. Gemini tried to fill his time with work, but even the most mundane tasks felt meaningless without Fourth's presence. The apartment was quieter than usual, and every room seemed to echo with the unspoken words that had driven them apart. He found himself replaying their last conversation in his mind, each moment, each expression, and each word. What had gone wrong?

He had told Avery earlier that he didn't know if he was ready for a relationship like this. But was that the real reason he pushed Fourth away? Was he afraid to love someone so deeply because it would make him vulnerable? Or was it simply that he wasn't sure if this was the right kind of love for him?

His phone buzzed on the counter. A message from Noah popped up on the screen.

"Hey, how's everything going? You doing okay?"

Gemini stared at the message, unsure of how to respond. Was he okay? Was he ever okay when it came to matters of the heart? Instead of replying, he set the phone down and walked to the window, looking out at the rain that hadn't stopped in days.

He missed Fourth. More than he wanted to admit. He missed the way Fourth's presence made him feel calm, the way his laugh seemed to light up the darkest corners of Gemini's mind. But there was also a part of him that feared what it all meant. What if he let himself fall too hard, only to get hurt? The thought lingered, chilling him to his core.

Fourth was having a similar struggle, though his mind was a bit more cluttered than Gemini's. He tried to focus on work, but the thought of Gemini was a constant companion, like an echo in the back of his mind. Every conversation, every interaction, seemed to come back to the unresolved tension between them. He could hardly bring himself to focus on anything else.

His phone buzzed with a message from Liam.

"You good, bro? You've been awfully quiet lately. Let's grab a drink later if you need to talk."

Fourth stared at the message for a moment, unsure of what to say. He knew his friends were trying to help, but none of them seemed to understand just how complicated this was. He wasn't sure if it was worth reaching out to Gemini now or if he should just let things cool down for a while. But the longer the silence stretched, the more he felt like he was losing his grip on everything.

Back at his apartment, Gemini decided to go for a walk. He needed to clear his head, even if it was just for a little while. The cool air felt refreshing against his skin, but it didn't do much to settle the storm brewing inside him. He passed by the café where he and Fourth had spent their first real afternoon together, and for a moment, he paused, remembering the warmth of their conversation, the ease of being around him.

"I'm an idiot," he muttered to himself, before continuing down the street.

Meanwhile, Fourth found himself walking aimlessly as well. He had ended up near the same café, the one where he and Gemini had spent so much time talking. The memories hit him harder than he expected, and he leaned against the window, staring inside. The place was quiet, but it only made him long for the times when everything had felt simpler, before the distance between them had started to grow.

Later that evening, Gemini met Avery at their favorite diner, hoping that some comfort could be found in the familiar setting. Avery slid into the booth across from him, looking at him carefully.

"Gem," she said, her voice soft but firm, "you're not gonna figure this out by bottling everything up. You need to talk to him."

Gemini sighed, picking at his fries. "I don't know if I can, Avery. What if he doesn't want to hear it? What if I've ruined everything?"

Avery reached across the table, placing her hand on his. "Don't sell yourself short. You're not the only one confused about this. If anything, you owe it to yourself—and to him—to at least try."

"I'm afraid of getting hurt," Gemini admitted, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I get it. But shutting him out isn't the answer. You're both just lost right now. It'll get better."

On the other side of town, Fourth sat with Liam and Maya at a bar, nursing a beer and trying to ignore the guilt gnawing at him. He hadn't heard from Gemini, and the silence was starting to eat at him.

"Dude, you've got to talk to him," Liam said, raising an eyebrow as he glanced at Maya for support.

Maya added, "Yeah, but don't go overboard. Don't be all intense about it. He needs time, but he also needs you to show up."

Fourth looked down at his drink, swirling it around in his glass. "I don't know if I can handle the silence much longer."

Maya shrugged. "Then don't. Send a message. Or just talk to him. Whatever you do, don't wait too long."

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❥TO BE CONTINUED...