There was so much I could tell him, the ghosts of my past that haunted me at night. But I settled for something easier. “I broke my arm when I was little. A boy on the playground said he could go across the monkey bars faster than me, and I told him he couldn’t. Turns out I was right, I just found out the wrong way. I got there way before him and slipped at the last second. My cast got signed by the whole class, and my mom bought me a new Gameboy.”

Finn chuckled. “What color Gameboy did you have?”

“Pink. It matched my cast.”

He laughed again, and I closed my eyes, picturing that sweet smile and bright teeth lighting up a room.

I wasn’t sure how long we stayed on the phone like that, but I enjoyed every second of it. It was like talking to a long-time friend but also something a little more than that.

“I did not!”

“You totally did. You looked like you had steam coming out of your ears.”

I hmphed out a breath. “You made fun of my favorite movie!” I tried my best to sound angry even though I couldn’t stop smiling. “I can’t let you do that and not be upset.”

He laughed back. “It was cute, watching you defend why Prisoner of Azkaban was the best one in the series.”

I blushed, and my cheeks ached from grinning so hard. “Man, I can’t remember the last time I smiled this hard.” The sentence slipped out before I could truly filter it.

“I think you have the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen,” Finn said casually, as if it wasn’t the sweetest admission I’d heard in a long time. I smiled and played with my hair like a schoolgirl.

Finn yawned, and I reactively checked the time. It was half-past four. We had stayed up all night talking, and I didn’t even think twice about it. For once I didn’t second guess myself or overthink everything I was saying. I spoke with Finn like I had known him for years. For some reason, it was easier than being with anyone else I knew. Maybe it was because it had been so long since I had a friend, or maybe it was because he was so understanding. Either way, it was a lot like unbuttoning a pair of too-tight pants. Finn was loosening me slowly but surely, and my walls were slowly falling.

“I didn’t realize how late it was. Do you need to go to sleep?”

He groaned. “Ugh. I guess I should. I’ve got to be up in two hours.”

Guilt trickled over me. “I’m sorry, I guess I shouldn’t have kept you up all night.”

Finn quickly backtracked. “No, Olive. Don’t apologize, I would lose all my sleep just to hear your voice.” Gah, he was too sweet.