Why Not?

Maya sat at her desk, staring at the blinking cursor on her laptop screen. The words she needed to write for her final paper weren't coming to her. She had been trying to focus on her studies, trying to push away the constant knot in her stomach. But every time she tried to ignore it, the weight of the tension between her and Jake seemed to only grow heavier.

It had been a few days since their last conversation-since the fight. And as for Jake, he did't take the flight. She thought seeing him would end her worries, her pain, her anger, her anxiousness, her jealousy, everything that she'd been feeling for the past few days. And even though she had tried to tell herself that everything would be fine, that the distance between them could still be bridged, her heart felt more and more uncertain with each passing hour.

She couldn't shake the feeling that they were slipping away from each other.

The sound of her phone buzzing on her desk startled her. It was Jake. Maya hesitated, staring at the screen. His name had become a mixture of warmth and pain lately. She had promised herself she wouldn't call him, wouldn't text him until she had time to figure everything out. But now? She couldn't deny it. She needed to talk to him. Even if it was just to get closure, to ease the hurt. Or maybe, she thought desperately, maybe it was to make things right.

Her finger hovered over the screen. She bit her lip, heart thumping in her chest. She had always been good at handling difficult situations. But this? This was different. There was something gnawing at her from the inside, something that told her this conversation was going to change everything. Maybe forever.

You can do this, Maya. Just answer. You owe him an explanation.

With a shaky breath, she tapped her screen and answered the call.

"Maya, hey," Jake's voice crackled through the speaker, light but strained. He had always been the upbeat one, the one who made things feel lighter, brighter. But now, there was a hesitation in his voice that made her heart drop. "I've been thinking about what you said... I really want to fix things."

Maya closed her eyes for a second. She wanted to hear that-she really did-but a part of her also feared it. Because deep down, she knew the truth. No matter how much they cared for each other, their relationship had started to crumble, and it wasn't just because of the distance.

It was because of everything that had been left unsaid.

"I... I don't know if we can fix it, Jake," Maya said quietly, her voice shaking slightly. She had never sounded so unsure before. "I don't know if I can fix it."

Jake paused on the other end, the silence between them growing thick. "What do you mean? I thought we were doing okay. We can work through this, Maya. We always do. We're strong."

She swallowed hard, willing herself not to cry. "But we're not, Jake. We're not doing okay. At least, not the way we used to. You didn't even show up the moment I was badly waiting for you." Her voice cracked. "You don't get it. You don't see what's happening. I feel like I'm just watching you slip away, and I can't do anything about it."

She was so close now, so close to saying everything. But the words still felt like a heavy burden on her tongue.

"Maya, stop." Jake's voice softened. "Please don't say that. I know we've had our issues, but... this? We can fix this. We can make it work."

Maya ran a hand through her hair, pacing around her room as the old, familiar ache grew inside her. The ache that came from seeing Jake's name on the screen, his face on her phone-knowing how much she wanted him to understand, but knowing that they had drifted so far apart, and that maybe, just maybe, they didn't fit anymore.

"I don't know, Jake. It's just... I can't keep feeling like this. Like I'm being left behind, like I'm just the girl waiting on the sidelines of your life. You've got your friends, you've got Lila... and I feel like I'm not even part of your world anymore."

The words came out in a rush, almost as if they had been trapped inside her for too long. It wasn't about Lila-well, it was, but it wasn't just that. It was about everything. The small things. The distance. The missed phone calls, the unanswered texts. The silence that had grown between them like an invisible wall.

"Maya..." Jake's voice broke through her thoughts. "I swear, nothing's changed. It's still us. It's always been us. I don't want anyone else. I don't want anyone else, Maya." His words came desperately, pleading. "Why not try to work this out? We can still make it, can't we?"

There it was-the question. His mantra. "Why not?" That phrase that had been his signature, the one he always said when he wanted to push past obstacles, when he wanted to believe that everything was possible. That same question that had once made Maya feel so safe. So sure of him, of them.

But now it felt like a distant echo.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I've been trying, Jake. I've been trying to hold on to this, but I don't think I can anymore." Her words felt like a betrayal, but at the same time, they felt like a release. A freedom she hadn't known she needed.

Jake was silent on the other end of the phone. For a long moment, there was nothing but the sound of his breathing. Maya's heart raced, anxiety and guilt flooding her chest.

"Maya, what do you mean? Please let's fix this." Jake pleaded.

"Let's end things between us." Maya was able to utter those words after gathering the courage to swallow the lump building inside her throat.

"You... you want to break up?" Jake's voice was small now, quieter than it had ever been. He didn't sound angry. He sounded hurt. And Maya realized, with a sinking heart, that he was hurting just as much as she was. Maybe even more.

She nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "I think it's the best thing. For both of us." The words felt too final, but at the same time, they felt like the only option left.

Jake's voice cracked. "Maya, please. Don't do this. Please. We can fix this. I can't lose you. I won't. I love you."

The words hit her like a punch to the gut, and Maya froze. She had heard those words a hundred times before, but now, they felt so far away. "I love you, too," she whispered. "But sometimes love isn't enough. I've been trying so hard to make this work, but I'm not the same person I was when we started. And I'm not sure if you are either. We've changed. We've grown apart."

Jake exhaled sharply. "You don't mean that. Please, Maya, don't go."

Maya's heart ached at his plea, but she knew it had to be done. She couldn't keep dragging them both through this pain. She couldn't keep pretending that everything was okay when it wasn't.

"I'm sorry, Jake," she repeated, the tears finally spilling down her cheeks. "I'm really sorry. I just... I need to let go."

She didn't wait for him to respond. She couldn't. She already knew how it would go. He would try to convince her to stay, to hold on for a little longer, to trust that they could make it work. But the truth was, the trust had already been broken. And no matter how much she loved him, she couldn't ignore that hollow space between them anymore.

With one last, broken breath, Maya ended the call.

For a long time, she sat there, staring at her phone, unable to move. The weight of her decision pressed heavily on her chest. She had just ended something that had meant so much to her, something that had shaped her into who she was. And yet, there was no relief. Only a deep, aching sorrow that she wasn't sure how to shake.

It was over.

But the emptiness lingered, and she wondered if either of them would ever truly move on from this.