The Summer He Noticed Me | TSITP

The days that followed felt like they were stuck in a loop. The tension between Belly and me had reached a point where it felt almost impossible to avoid her, yet it seemed like we were always in the same room. Every glance she threw my way was loaded, like she was trying to make sense of something that didn't sit right with her. But I wasn't sure what that something was. All I knew was that I had become a point of conflict in a way I never intended.

Belly had always been a force of nature — confident, radiant, and secure in her own place among the Fishers and Conklins. But this summer, I saw cracks in that façade, and it wasn't just the obvious distance between her and Conrad. It was in the way she looked at me, like she saw something she didn't quite understand. She knew Conrad was seeking me out, and the jealousy was starting to seep into her actions.

And I? I was caught in the middle of a mess I didn't want to be part of. I didn't know what I was supposed to do anymore. Every time Conrad pulled me closer, I felt a sense of belonging I had never felt before. But with every passing day, I also knew that this connection was fragile, something that could shatter at any moment, especially now that Belly was beginning to see what was happening between us.

It was one of those rare afternoons when the house had finally emptied out. The constant noise had quieted, and I found myself alone on the porch, staring out at the water. I liked these moments of solitude, the rare times when I could let my thoughts wander without the weight of other people's emotions pressing down on me. But today, that peaceful solitude felt more like isolation than calm.

I was scrolling through my phone, lost in my thoughts, when I heard footsteps behind me. I didn't need to look up to know who it was.

Belly.

"Isla," she said, her voice strained. "Can we talk?"

I hadn't expected this. Not now, not after everything that had happened. But I nodded, gesturing for her to sit next to me.

She took a seat, keeping her distance, her body stiff as if she were afraid of getting too close. I didn't blame her. I wasn't sure what I was supposed to do either. This conversation had been a long time coming.

"What's going on with you and Conrad?" Belly asked, her voice low, but there was an edge to it — a rawness that I hadn't heard from her before.

My breath caught in my throat. The question I had been avoiding was finally here. I knew it was only a matter of time before Belly would confront me about it. But how could I answer her? What was I supposed to say?

"I... I don't know," I said, my voice trembling. "I didn't mean for it to happen. I never wanted to hurt you, Belly."

She sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. "It's not just that, Isla. It's the way you've been acting. The way he's been acting. It's like you've replaced me. I don't know if you even realize it, but things are different. You're closer to him than I am. And I don't know how to handle that."

I swallowed hard, guilt settling in the pit of my stomach. I hadn't realized how much my connection with Conrad had affected Belly. I never wanted to take his attention away from her, but somehow, it seemed like that's exactly what had happened.

"I'm not trying to replace you," I said quickly, my heart pounding. "Conrad and I... we've just been talking. It's nothing more than that."

But even as I said the words, I knew they didn't ring true. It was more than just talking. There was something between Conrad and me now, something I couldn't easily explain. And Belly saw it. She wasn't blind.

"You don't get it," she said, her voice cracking slightly. "I don't know what's going on with him. I don't know what he's thinking. But it hurts. And I feel like I'm losing him. Like I'm losing everything that I've had with him. And now... now I'm losing you too."

I reached out instinctively, placing a hand on her arm, wanting to comfort her, but I wasn't sure if I had the right to. I didn't know what to say. How could I explain to her that I was just as lost as she was? That Conrad had confided in me, that I had been the one he turned to when everything else seemed to be falling apart? How could I tell her that I wasn't trying to take his place in her life, but that in some way, I had started to mean something to him?

"I don't want to hurt you," I said softly, my voice barely audible. "I never meant for things to get like this. But Conrad... he's going through something. And I'm just here for him. I didn't ask for this."

Belly pulled away slightly, her eyes narrowing with frustration. "Then what is this? Why does it feel like you're becoming his everything?"

Her words hit harder than I had expected, and for the first time, I felt the weight of her hurt. I wasn't just caught in the middle of something I didn't understand — I was actively contributing to it. My presence in Conrad's life had made things complicated, and now I was losing both Conrad and Belly in the process.

"I don't know what to do," I admitted, my voice small, the guilt suffocating me. "I can't undo what's happened. But I never wanted this to come between us. I didn't want you to feel replaced."

Belly's eyes softened for a moment, but the pain was still there, simmering beneath the surface. "I don't know if I can fix this. I don't know if I can go back to how things were."

The words hung in the air between us, both of us unsure of what would happen next. For the first time, I felt like I was caught in something that was bigger than me — something I didn't know how to navigate.

As the days passed, the tension between Belly and me didn't ease. We walked around each other like strangers, our once-easy interactions replaced with awkward silences and tentative gestures. It was as if everything had shifted, and there was no going back.

And Conrad... well, he had become a quiet storm in the midst of it all. He wasn't the same. His walls were still up, but now they were even harder to climb. He didn't seek me out as often, and when he did, it was fleeting, like he was trying to keep me at arm's length. I couldn't blame him. He was dealing with his own demons, his own family, his own confusion.

But that didn't stop the ache inside me. He had let me in. He had shared things with me that no one else had ever seen, and now, I felt like I was losing him too.

It wasn't until one night, when the moon hung low in the sky and the stars were scattered across the ocean like diamonds, that things finally came to a head.

I was sitting alone on the porch, my mind a thousand miles away, when I saw Conrad walking toward me, his silhouette cutting through the night air. His pace was slow, deliberate, like he was carrying something heavy, something he hadn't been able to let go of.

He stopped in front of me, his eyes meeting mine. The look in them was different now — something darker, more uncertain, like he was searching for something he didn't know how to find.

"I need to tell you something," he said, his voice low but steady.

I nodded, my heart pounding in my chest. I had no idea what was coming next, but I knew it was important.

"I told you I didn't know how to handle this," he continued, his gaze never leaving mine. "But I do know one thing. I trust you, Isla. I don't want to lose that."

The words hung in the air, and for the first time in a long time, I felt like I wasn't alone in all of this. But I also knew that trusting me wasn't enough. Not anymore.

"I don't want to lose you either," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I don't know how to make everything right."

Conrad exhaled sharply, his shoulders tense. "I don't either. But maybe... maybe we can figure it out."

And just like that, everything felt like it was slipping into place, even though it wasn't. We didn't have all the answers. We didn't know where any of this would lead. But for once, we weren't running from it.

We were facing it together.