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She stops pacing. Sits back down on the couch and stares at the phone for a long time.

Sadie

Why me? Out of everyone… why are you obsessed with me?

I lean forward, elbows on the desk, pizza forgotten and cold beside me.

Miles

Because the first time I saw you, something clicked into place. You’re not like the others. You’re soft in all the places the world tries to make hard. And I knew I was supposed to protect that softness.

Sadie

That’s not love. That’s control.

Miles

Call it whatever you want. But tell me honestly… when you threw the flowers away today, did it feel good? Or did it feel like you were throwing away the only person who actually sees you?

She doesn’t answer for nearly ten minutes. I watch her bite her lip, glance toward the kitchen where the flowers were.

Sadie

I hate that you know me this well.

Miles

You don’t hate it. You’re just scared of how much you don’t.

She reads the message and lets out a shaky breath. On the feed I watch her pull her knees tighter to her chest on the couch, one hand rubbing her temple like she’s trying to push me out of her head. She looks small, vulnerable, but perfect.

The three dots appear. Disappear. Then appear again. She’s fighting herself, and I like the idea of her knowing she shouldn’t want me but is now starting to crave me being around her.

Sadie

Maybe I am scared, but that doesn’t make this okay. You watch me when I’m sleeping. You touch my things. You were in my room after I came… you tasted me on my fingers. That’s not normal. That’s fucked up.

I smile in the dark of my room, leaning closer to the monitor. She’s still typing.

Sadie

I threw the flowers away because I needed to feel like I still have control. Like I can say no to whatever this is. But then I sat there staring at where the flowers were for twenty minutes feeling… empty. I hate that too.

She sets the phone down and buries her face in her hands for a moment. When she looks up again, her eyes are glassy. She glances toward the kitchen, then straight at the hidden camera like she knows exactly where it is.

Sadie

Why can’t you just leave me alone? Why do you have to make me want you when I know this is wrong?

My fingers move across the screen before I can think twice.

Miles

Because you weren’t living before me. You were surviving. Going through the motions, smiling for your friends, carrying your brother’s problems on your back, pretending you’re fine. I give you something real. Something that makes you feel alive. Even if it scares you.

She reads it and shakes her head slowly, but she doesn’t put the phone down.

Sadie