Chapter 12

Lunch had never felt this long.

Ethan sat, silently chewing his food as Lily and Miles continued talking opposite him. Every now and then, Lily would call his name, trying to include him in the conversation as she recounted stories from their childhood to Miles. 

He responded with one-word answers.

He aggressively sipped his orange drink, but it was tasteless when it entered his mouth.

His grip on the carton tightened slightly as Miles leaned in to brush something off Lily’s hair.

The sound of the bell put their conversation to an end. 

Finally.

They packed up their bags and headed to class.

Ethan let out a breath of relief and fell into step behind Lily as they walked back to their class.

But just as he entered the class someone bumped into him–Miles.

Ethan’s hands clenched into fists beside him.

Why was he here?

He had assumed Miles was just another one of Lily’s art classmates— someone she’d only hang out with during class and sometimes during lunch. 

But now he was also here. In their class.

For some reason, Ethan didn’t like Miles being around her.

As they took their seats, Miles settled in the corner with them after exchanging seats with someone.

“Hi again,” He said, scooting closer to Lily

Chloe turned to him, grinning.“What a surprise. Welcome to the best corner in class.”

“Thank you,” he replied, turning to Ethan with a smile. “Please take care of me.”

Ethan didn’t say anything. He just opened his textbook and pretended not to hear.

The math teacher walked in and began the lesson. Ethan tried to focus, but out of the corner of his eyes, he noticed something.

Instead of taking notes, Lily, Chloe, and Miles were passing a sheet of paper among themselves–sketching.

Ethan’s jaw tightened.

“Focus.” He snapped, shooting them a sharp look.

 They straightened, and Lily quickly tucked the paper away, flashing him a small smile.

 Ethan turned his face away.

At the end of the class, the teacher announced they had an assignment that was due the next day.

“It’s just the first day of school,” Chloe cried dramatically, dropping her head to the desk. “Why does he have to start  torturing us so soon?”

Lily sighed, leaning backwards. “Hasn’t she always been like this?”

“I hoped for mercy this year.”

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They went to Lily's house after school to do the assignment.

They settled on the large carpet in the centre of the room, their books open in front of them.

“Can’t we just copy yours when you’re done?” Lily asked hopefully.

“Yes, yes, yes,” Chloe added, doodling absently on the back of her notebook.

“No,” Ethan said disapprovingly, flipping open his textbook. “It’s better if you understand, so you can do it yourself.”

They both groaned.

“Let’s start with the 3rd question, it’s the simplest.” Ethan continued.

They sighed but scooted closer to listen. 

Before long, Chloe had already given up and fallen asleep.

Lily, on the other hand, was still trying.

Ethan leaned over, pointing at the equation she had scribbled halfway. “You made a mistake here. You need to find the cos, but you used the formula for sine.”

Lily blinked at him. “Huh? So I have to start over?”

Ethan sighed but repeated the explanation, circling an example in her textbook. 

Lily nodded in understanding, ready to tackle the problem again. “So I just need to fix this part.” She pointed at the spot in the textbook, and her hand brushed over Ethan’s.

For a second, neither of them moved.

She raised her eyes to meet his.

Ethan’s blue eyes seemed to sparkle like gems.

Then her phone buzzed. 

She hurriedly pulled her hand away.

Ethan glanced at the screen as it lit up.

Miles: “The song you recommended is amazing! I listened to it on repeat while I drew this afternoon, thanks.”

Attachment. Attachment.

Lily picked up her phone, smiling as she typed back a response.

His grip on the pen tightened.

It was just a text message.

Why was he so bothered?

She rewrote the expression and turned to him, not noticing the shift in his expression. “Did I get it this time?”

Ethan exhaled sharply and looked at the equation again, but for some reason, his mind had blanked. He couldn’t remember what the question was about.

“Don’t tell me I got it wrong again,” Lily pouted.

Ethan snapped out of it and cleared his throat. “Yeah. Eh, no…you got it right.”

“Yay.” Lily squealed, throwing her arms up and startling Chloe awake.

She groggily sat up from the floor. “Are we done?”

Lily laughed and helped her up. “Come on, stop lazing around.”

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The next morning.

A new face had joined their little group.

Miles was squeezed in the back seat of Chloe’s car, sitting between her and Lily. 

Ethan, sitting in the passenger’s seat, didn’t say anything as he stared out the window.

It seemed like Miles was here to stay.

Throughout the ride, every time he turned to the back, Lily and Chloe were engaged in conversation with Miles.

They were either talking about a particular paint brand, types of charcoal, or an obscure artist he had never heard of. 

Usually, Lily talked to him in the morning. Even when he couldn’t add much to the conversation. She’d rant about her lack of inspiration or how Ivy had run off with her drawing book again.

But today, other than in front of her house, she barely spoke to him.

Ethan’s fingers tightened around his bag strap.

Maybe it was just today.

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That night, Ethan lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.

He replayed the day in his mind—the way he felt like an outsider.

After school, Lily and Chloe had gone to Miles's house to draw. He was the grandson of granny Miller, who lived across the street. 

They had asked him to come along, but he had declined.

Lily hadn’t pushed

She always pushed.

She would keep asking till he agreed.

Why hadn’t she done that today?

Ethan shifted onto his side, exhaling sharply.

Why did it bother him so much?

Lily was allowed to make new friends,

Her meeting a new friend who understood her was a good thing.

But he couldn’t be happy about it.