When Distance Feels Like a Door Closed
The room felt too quiet. Too still.
As if the walls themselves were waiting for me to say something.
But there were no words, just the weight of confusion pressing down on my chest like an anchor.
I had never felt so lost.
I sat on the edge of my bed, still in the clothes I had worn to Daniel's place earlier that day.
My fingers trembled as I scrolled through my call log, hovering over Saraph's name.
She picked up on the second ring.
"Nuella?" Her voice was soft, the kind of softness only best friends use when they already sense something is wrong.
"Can you come over?" I whispered.
"I'm already on my way."
When she arrived, she didn't even knock. She walked straight into my room like she belonged there because she did.
She found me still sitting on the edge of the bed, staring into space like I was waiting for my mind to catch up with my emotions.
Without a word, she sat beside me.
I leaned my head on her shoulder, and for a few long minutes, we didn't speak. Just breathed.
Then, slowly, I began.
"I went to see him today."
"Daniel?" she asked gently.
I nodded. "I just... needed to understand what's been happening.
Why has he been distant? Why he barely texts anymore, or picks up my calls like I'm a stranger interrupting him."
Saraph listened, her hand wrapping gently around mine.
"And how did it go?"
"I don't even know how to explain it, Saraph," I said, voice cracking.
"He wasn't rude. He wasn't cruel. He just wasn't... there. Not the way he used to be.
He looked at me like I was someone he didn't know how to talk to anymore."
She was quiet for a moment before asking, "Did you two argue?"
"No," I replied. "And that's the worst part. It wasn't even a fight.
It was like a wall I couldn't see but kept crashing into. I was standing in front of him, but he felt miles away."
"What did he say?"
I swallowed hard. "He said he's been busy.
That he's tired. That I'm overthinking things. He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes.
He hugged me, but I could feel the coldness in it."
Saraph exhaled slowly, thinking. "That's... strange."
"I know," I whispered. "It felt like he was pretending everything was fine when it wasn't."
"And when you left?" she asked.
"I told him I'd see him later. He said okay, and that was it.
No message since. No, 'Did you get home safe?' Not even a check-in."
I looked up at her, my voice trembling. "Saraph, what did I do wrong?"
She pulled me into a full embrace then, cradling me like I was made of glass.
"Nothing," she said firmly. "You didn't do anything wrong."
"Then why does it feel like I'm the only one still holding on?"
She pulled back just enough to look me in the eye. "Because you are. But that doesn't mean it's your fault."
There was a silence between us, the kind that hurt more than it healed.
Then she said what I had been thinking all along.
"This doesn't feel like him. Not completely. Something's off. Something we're not seeing."
I sniffled. "Do you think there's someone else?"
She paused, visibly thinking it through. "Honestly? I don't know.
But this change... It's too sudden. Too quiet. If he wanted to end things, why not just say it? If he's overwhelmed, why not talk to you?"
"Exactly," I said. "It's like he's closing the door but leaving it cracked open so I won't walk away entirely."
Saraph's eyes narrowed, the protective fire in her gaze burning steadily.
"Then we're going to find out what's going on."
I blinked. "How?"
"We ask questions. We watch. We pay attention to what's not being said.
If Daniel's hiding something, we'll know.
But you're not going to sit here tearing yourself apart while he hides behind vague excuses."
I felt the first flicker of strength return to me, faint, but real.
"Okay," I nodded slowly. "Okay."
"We'll take this one step at a time," Saraph said. "But we're going to get to the bottom of this. Together."
I leaned into her shoulder again, and this time, I let the tears fall freely.
Even though I didn't have answers yet, I wasn't alone in the search.
And that made all the difference.
"We'll Find Out Together"
Saraph held my hand a little tighter, her thumb brushing gently against mine, steady, warm, reassuring.
"I'll help you investigate what this whole shift is about with Daniel," she said softly, her eyes locked on mine, firm with resolve.
"We'll get to the bottom of this. I promise."
Her voice was like a balm to my bleeding heart.
I didn't realize how much I needed to hear those words, how much I needed someone to say, You're not imagining things.
You're not alone in this.
"Okay?" she added, her voice gentler now. "Relax. You're not going through this by yourself anymore."
A shaky breath left my lips, and I nodded slowly.
"But what if it's something I'm not ready to know?" I whispered, my voice cracking with the fear I had buried deep inside.
"Then we'll face it together," she replied without hesitation.
"Even if the truth hurts, it's better than living in confusion and doubt."
Tears welled in my eyes again, but this time they weren't just tears of heartbreak; they were also tears of relief.
Relief that someone believed me. That someone cared enough to help me uncover what I couldn't face alone.
"I just want to understand why he's changed," I said quietly. "I want to know what I did... or if he's hiding something... or if he's just scared."
"And we will," Saraph said with quiet determination.
"We'll take it one step at a time. We'll talk to people if we have to. Watch how he moves.
What he says. What he doesn't. He's your boyfriend, Nuella, and if he's pulling away, you deserve to know why."
I let the silence settle between us, heavy and still, before I finally said, "Thank you."
She pulled me into a long, silent hug.
"No need to thank me," she murmured. "That's what best friends do. They show up.
They fight with you. They stay when things get hard."
As I clung to her, something inside me shifted, not the sadness, not yet, but a flicker of strength, faint but real.
If I had to walk through this storm, at least I had someone holding my hand.
And together, we would find the truth.