Last Days Of Summer -

Leo didn't look up from the smooth stone he was turning over in his palm. "Different how? We’re still in the same town. Same school. Just more homework and earlier mornings."

: Sneaking out to the back porch to share cold drinks and memorable snacks, whispering about the things they wanted to do before the "cruel month" of September arrived. Last Days of Summer

"Do you think things will be different this year?" Maya asked, her voice barely rising above the rhythmic clicking of the insects. She was braiding a length of tall grass, her fingers moving with the precision of someone who had done this a thousand times. Leo didn't look up from the smooth stone

But they both knew it wasn't just about homework. This was the year before high school—the threshold of a world they weren't sure they were ready to enter. The safety of their childhood, built on bike rides and secret handshakes, felt like it was thinning, as translucent as the dragonfly wings hovering over the reeds. Same school