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The text message arrived as I was sipping my morning coffee, an indulgence I'd picked up despite my mom's warnings about caffeine ruining my skin. The message was from Walker, its simplicity catching me off guard:
Walker: Hey, want to hang out? Low-key family thing. Could be fun.
For a second, I just stared at it. Walker and I weren't exactly best friends. Sure, we'd been spending more time together, mostly because of our scenes, but this felt... personal. I reread the message, trying to decipher any hidden meaning. Was he pitying me? Trying to break the tension between us? Or just being friendly?
My fingers hovered over the screen as I weighed my options. A quiet voice inside me whispered, You could use a break. But the louder voice, the one that had driven me for years, scoffed. You don't have time for distractions.
Still, I found myself typing:
Me: When?
His reply came almost instantly:
Walker: Around noon. My mom makes a mean grilled cheese. Casual vibes. Promise.
I bit my lip, torn.
My schedule was technically free for the dayâa rarity. Usually, I filled every gap with something productive: interviews, script analysis, training. But a small part of me was curious. What did a "low-key family thing" even look like? I'd never experienced one.
Against my better judgment, I typed:
Me: Fine. But only for a little while.
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