It had been three weeks since the chaos in Drew's life went down and things were starting to look up for him. He was happier than he had been in such a long time.

Drew was going to therapy twice a week; his dad had pushed him and although he had rejected at first, venting his emotions to someone was something Drew never knew he needed.

His mother hadn't tried to contact him or his father. His friendships were as strong as ever. And much like the flowers blooming outside his dorm, his feelings for Imani were growing day by day.

It was ridiculous actually. Ever since the day he realized he loved her, Drew became even more attached to her. He was like a lost puppy. When she smiled at him, he felt his neck and cheeks heat up. When she laughed at his jokes, Drew told more just so he could hear that magical sound again. He even remembered every detail of her face at this point. He found himself constantly counting the birthmarks on her face; his favorite was the one on her nose. He committed her smile, voice and laugh to memory. Imani had Drew wrapped so tightly around her finger and she didn't even know it.

"Sir, what the fuck? At least let me get up!" Jasper yelled as he hit random buttons on his controller.

Sir laughed at him before finishing him off in the game. "Sorry, bro. It's not my fault you're moving slow as hell."

Drew had been trying to take his afternoon nap but was failing miserably due to the two other guys in his room. Sir and Jasper had dropped by earlier to hang out with him and play some video games on his game counsel, against Drew's wishes. He gave up trying to get rid of them an hour ago and instead laid on his bed with a pillow over his head. Those two were impossibly loud.

"Drew, play against me real quick." Jasper begged for the tenth time in thirty minutes.

"Why? You suck." Drew and Sir laughed at him.

"Shut up!" Jasper whined, "You know, if you guys keep disrespecting me, I'm going to take my company elsewhere assholes."

Drew sat up with a smile. "Really? The door is right there, don't let me stop ya."

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes. Very much actually."

Sir laughed at the ongoing argument between his best friends before feeling his phone buzz in his pocket. He fished the phone out his pockets and his lips pulled into a wide smile at the text.

Jasper turned to his giddy friend. "Oh? And why the hell are you so happy?"

Sir responded to the text, completely ignoring Jasper. Drew smirked at him. "He's probably texting his new girl of the week."

"Are you ever going to stick with one girl?" Jasper shook his head.

Sir flipped them off without looking at either of them. "I'm young and having fun. Why should I settle when I can date everyone?"

"Dude, that's just sick." Jasper looked at him disapprovingly.

"Well it's the truth. I'm not gonna be whipped for no one just yet," Sir looked up and made eye contact with Drew, "Unlike a certain someone." He raised a knowing brow.

The blush that crept up Drew's neck was fierce. He thought he had been slick with hiding his emotions but the way Sir was looking at him let him know otherwise. It was laughable. Did he know? When did he find out? Drew started to rub the back of his neck in an attempt to calm himself down.

He held Sir's smirk with a strained smile. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, so you're just gonna deny the fact that you like Imani?"

Jasper, who had been drinking some soda, went into a coughing fit. Sir laid back in his chair with a smug smile, daring Drew to deny what was said. Drew's face was red as hell as the room settled into silence.

Jasper was the first to speak up after a few minutes. "So... you like Imani?" He was shocked as he pulled his chair closer to Drew.

Drew cleared his throat and looked at the two boys. He did like Imani. He loved her. There was no reason to be ashamed of that.

"Yes, I love Imani." Drew confessed.

Sir sat up at the confession. "Hol' up, wait a damn minute! I said like. You love her, man?"

Both Sir and Jasper were shook at the words coming out of Drew's mouth. Imani? The same Imani that snored when she slept? The one that could talk someone's ear off? The girl with a monstrously loud laugh? He loved her?

Drew smiled fondly before responding, "Yea. I do."

Jasper was quiet for a while. Drew was in love with Imani? Since when? And how come Sir knew about it before he did? He had never once suspected that Drew had feelings for Imani. Sure, Drew was nicer to her compared to anyone else. And he always called her these endearing pet names. And he was always near her. And he was always touching her. And...

Holy shit!

"Damn, Drew! I never thought you'd be so whipped for a girl like Imani. It's kind of cute." Sir got up to sit next to Drew. He put his arm around Drew and pulled him to his side excitedly.

"Yea, yea. I thought I did a good job keeping it to myself. How the fuck did ya find out?" Drew pushed himself away from Sir.

"Jade and I suspected it that day you went on and on about how 'pretty' and 'perfect' Imani was. I still get sick just thinking about it." Sir gagged and laughed when Drew shoved him.

"Wait, Jade knows?" Drew groaned, "That's just great. Now she's really gonna be on my ass."

"Don't worry about it. I mean, she'll still be on your ass but you're a big boy. You can handle it, Pretty Boy."

"Wait so... you actually like Imani?" Jasper couldn't help but to ask again. He was so shocked at the fact that Drew was willing to share something so personal with him and Sir. He hated how all the signs were there and yet he never noticed.

"Yea, what about it?" Drew snarled defensively, obviously not liking the fact that Jasper was so damn surprised. Jasper noted the way that Drew glared in his direction, his shoulders hunched and his breathing harsh. He sort of resembled an angry bull at that moment and Jasper looked at Drew with wide eyes.

Wait, he can't possibly think that I like Imani?

"Nothing man," Jasper shrugged, "I think y'all would be... cute together?" Jasper hadn't meant for it to come out as a question. He genuinely thought they were right together. They were different but also really similar. Jasper was happy for his friends.

Drew eyed Jasper before nodding with a wide smile on his face. "You damn right!"

He was happy that his friends supported him. He hated to admit it but he was kind of scared to tell them. Drew was worried that they would think he wasn't worthy of Imani. And to be honest, he wasn't. She deserved so much more than him. But he was willing to fight for her heart because that's how much he loved her. How much he needed her. From the moment Drew saw Imani again, he knew in his heart that he didn't want to ever live a life without her in it.

Drew turned to stare at Jasper with a small frown on his face. "I thought you would be more upset Jas."

Jasper looked at him with a confused look on his face. "Why the hell would I be upset?"

"I don't know," Drew shrugged, "Don't you, you know, like her too?"

Silence rang throughout the room as Jasper stared wide eyed at Drew. He turned to Sir and the next thing Drew knew, the two were laughing their asses off, clutching onto their stomachs as they doubled over. Drew raised a brow at them and was growing more and more pissed as the seconds went by. Clearly they knew something that he didn't.

"Wait! You thought that I liked..." Jasper couldn't even finish his sentence. It was too ridiculous.

"What's so damn funny?" Drew rolled his eyes at the two.

"Bro, Jasper doesn't like Imani! He's-"

"Dude, I'm gay." Jasper clutched onto his stomach as he continued to laugh.

And suddenly, every interaction Jasper's ever had with Drew over Imani made sense. Whenever Imani was near him, Drew was quick to glare at Jasper and slickly pull Imani closer to him. He would glare at Jasper if Imani even touched him or laughed at his jokes. All this time, Drew felt threatened by him because he didn't even know that Jasper was gay!

Drew's cheeks grew red as the other boys' laughter continued to fill the dorm. "Well shit. How was I supposed to know? You were always so close to Imani so I just thought that you liked her." He grumbled.

Jasper calmed his laughs down and looked at Drew. "I'm so close to Imani because she was actually the first person I came out to." Jasper's eyes glazed over as he recounted the memory.

"She was so supportive of me when I was scared to be myself. She was ready to accept me no matter what, even when I was too afraid of what other people would think of me. She's one of the best people I've ever met. I owe her a lot." Jasper's lips pulled into a small smile. He remembered when he first met Imani in high school and how he had been a shell of who he was now. Because of her, he was able to come out to his family and friends. He couldn't be happier.

Jasper felt Drew's hand squeeze his shoulder in support. Drew smiled widely because he knew the type of impact Imani had on people. If it wasn't for her, he would still be that sad loner he was in the beginning of the semester. She was his first friend; both back in the second grade and even now in college. She was the first person that saw him as something more than just a campus plug. She came back in his life when he needed her the most. She introduced him to the wonderful friends he had now. She cared about him from the beginning and made his life brighter with each passing day. And for that he owed her the world. Or at least, he would die trying to give it to her.

"She's also the reason I got with my boyfriend from back home, Brandon." Jasper smirked at Drew.

"You have a boyfriend?"

"Yup! Two years and counting baby!" Jasper spoke excitedly.

The three guys laughed and smiled at each other before Sir spoke up. "So you love Imani. Are you gonna tell her?"

Drew looked between his two best friends and nodded with a silly grin on his face. "I want to. I just don't know when."

Sir nudged his shoulder, "Don't be a bitch, bro. You gotta tell her soon. Someone else might just whisk her away." Jasper nodded as Sir returned back to his chair.

They turned back to the TV to play their game, leaving Drew with his thoughts. He knew he wanted to tell her. But he couldn't deny that he was scared to confess. What if she didn't see him the same way? What if she rejected him? What if things become awkward between them?

Five minutes later, Drew was pulled out of his thoughts by a knock on his door. Jasper got up to open the door for Jade and Imani. He watched as they both entered; Jade sitting next to the guys and Imani taking off her shoes before making her way towards Drew on his bed. She was wearing one of his hoodies- one that she had begged him for weeks prior- and braids were in a bun on top of her head. She laid her head down on his lap and got comfortable under the blanket as Drew wrapped it around her.

When she finally found the perfect spot, she looked up at him with a smile on her beautiful lips. "Hey."

"Hi." Drew responded breathlessly.

As he peered down at her face, Drew knew he had to tell her. Yes, he was nervous- he was scared shitless! But, he also had to think about the positives. What if there was a chance that she liked him back? What if she said yes? No matter how small that chance was, he was willing to take it.

Because to Drew, Imani Odo would forever and always be it for him. And he had no intention of letting her go.

~*~

The end is near y'all 🤧😭