Part 1
The scent of stale coffee and desperation hung heavy in the air as Maya scrambled to finish her essay. The deadline was midnight, and she hadn't even started. Her phone buzzed, a reminder that her "boyfriend," Ethan, would be calling soon. She sighed. She needed to create a story.
"Hey, Ethan," she whispered into the phone, her voice a practiced whisper. "You wouldn't believe the day I've had! Professor Henderson is making us write a research paper on the history of the universe. Can you believe it? It's like he wants to torture us with boredom."
Ethan, of course, didn't exist. He was a carefully constructed figment of Maya's imagination, born out of a need to fit in. In the sprawling halls of Hawthorne University, where students were constantly paired off, Maya felt like an outsider. So she had invented Ethan, a charming, witty, and impossibly handsome student from the nearby university, whom she claimed was her cousin. Ethan, her creation, lived entirely in her imagination.
He was her shield against the prying eyes of her friends, shielding her from their relentless attempts to set her up on blind dates. Ethan became a convenient excuse to avoid social events and escape awkward moments. He was the perfect boyfriend – always available, never demanding, and always supportive.
The truth, however, was a much more lonely story. Maya was introverted, preferring the comfort of her books to the chaos of social gatherings. She had always struggled to connect with people, her anxiety often paralyzing her in social situations.
But the charade was getting tiring. Each lie spun, each story concocted, was a heavy burden on her heart. The guilt gnawed at her.
Then came the day she met Alex. He was tall, with a shy smile and eyes that held a mischievous glint. He had introduced himself in the library, his voice a gentle melody in the quiet solitude. He was studying literature, a fellow bookworm, and their conversations flowed with an ease she had never experienced before.
Their shared love of literature led to a blossoming friendship, a connection that blossomed from awkward smiles to shared laughter. Maya began to feel a glimmer of hope, a possibility that perhaps a real connection, a real relationship, might be possible.
However, Ethan was still a constant presence, a shadow looming over every moment with Alex. Maya knew she couldn't keep up the facade forever. The question was, how could she tell Alex the truth about Ethan, the boy who never was?
