(Kaia Verene's POV)
I don't look for her.
I just notice things.
There's a difference.
Like how the room feels louder today.
Or how the seat beside me is—
empty.
I sit down like always. Same place. Same routine. Same everything.
I don't look at the door.
Not once.
Not even a little.
Because I already know she's here.
I heard her laugh five minutes ago.
Not close.
Not beside me.
Somewhere else.
Good.
That's… good.
I open my notebook.
Start writing.
Actually writing this time.
Focused.
Undisturbed.
Exactly how it should be.
"Wait, seriously?"
Her voice.
Clear.
Light.
Not for me.
I don't react.
"…you're lying," someone else says, laughing.
"I'm not!" she insists.
She sounds—
happy.
I press my pen down harder.
Still writing.
Still not looking.
"She always does that," another voice adds.
"Oh my God, stop—"
She laughs again.
Louder this time.
Closer than before.
But not close enough.
Not—
I stop writing.
Just for a second.
Then continue.
It doesn't matter.
She's talking to someone else.
Obviously.
Why wouldn't she be?
She has friends.
People she actually—
I flip the page.
Too hard.
The paper crumples slightly.
Annoying.
"Kaia."
I look up.
Lena again.
Of course.
"You're doing that thing."
"What thing."
"That thing," she repeats, pointing vaguely at me. "Where you pretend you don't care but you clearly do."
"I don't."
She glances behind her.
Then back at me.
"…She's over there, you know."
"I know."
Oops.
I pause.
Lena raises an eyebrow.
"You know?"
"I—heard," I correct quickly.
"Mhm."
I glare at her.
"Do you have a point."
"Yes," she says. "She's been talking to that girl for like ten minutes."
I don't respond.
Because—
why would I?
"That girl's from another section," Lena continues, way too interested in this. "And she's been trying to get Elara's attention for weeks."
Still nothing.
I keep my face neutral.
Unbothered.
Uninterested.
Perfect.
"And now she has it," Lena adds.
Silence.
A beat.
"…Okay," I say flatly.
"Okay?"
"Okay."
"That's all?"
"What do you want me to say."
"I don't know," she shrugs. "Something jealous, maybe."
I scoff.
"Why would I be jealous."
Lena smiles.
Slow.
Annoying.
"I didn't say you were."
"I'm not."
"I know."
"You're implying it."
"I'm observing."
"I don't care."
"Mhm."
I look away.
Conversation over.
Or it should be.
But—
my eyes drift.
Just slightly.
Just for a second.
And—
there she is.
Elara.
Standing near the front.
Talking to someone.
A girl.
Laughing.
Close.
Too close.
The girl says something, leaning in a little.
Elara smiles.
That same smile.
The one she—
I look away.
Immediately.
No.
Not doing that.
Not—
"You looked," Lena says.
"I didn't."
"You did."
"I didn't."
"You're doing it again."
"Doing what."
"Lying."
I ignore her.
Completely.
Because this is stupid.
All of it.
She can talk to whoever she wants.
It doesn't matter.
It doesn't affect me.
At all.
I go back to writing.
Again.
Force myself to focus.
Words. Lines. Structure.
Control.
Then—
a chair scrapes.
Beside me.
I don't look.
I won't.
"You're in my seat."
I freeze.
My pen stills.
Slowly—
I turn my head.
Elara.
Of course.
Standing there like she didn't just—
like she wasn't just—
talking to—
I look away.
"You were sitting somewhere else," I say.
"I was."
"And now you're not."
"Correct."
I stare at my notebook.
"You're inconsistent."
"I changed my mind."
"That's annoying."
"I've been told."
I don't respond.
Because if I do, I might say something—
unnecessary.
She sits down.
Like always.
Like nothing changed.
Like she didn't just—
leave.
"Who was that," I ask.
The words come out before I can stop them.
I blink.
Once.
Twice.
Too late.
There's a pause.
Then—
"Elise," she says.
Casual.
Like it doesn't matter.
"She talks a lot."
I nod slightly.
"…Yeah."
Why did I ask that.
Why—
"You were looking," she adds.
I stiffen.
"I wasn't."
"You were."
"I wasn't."
"You stopped writing."
I glance at her.
"…You noticed that."
"I notice a lot of things."
I don't like that.
Not at all.
I look away.
Again.
"You seemed focused," she continues. "Then suddenly, you weren't."
"I was."
"You weren't."
"I was."
She smiles.
I can hear it.
"You're repeating yourself."
"So are you."
"Maybe I learned from you."
I don't answer.
Because—
I don't have one.
Silence settles.
Again.
Familiar now.
But different.
Because this time—
it feels heavier.
"You don't like her," Elara says after a moment.
I frown.
"…Who."
"Elise."
I scoff.
"I don't even know her."
"Exactly."
"That doesn't make sense."
"It does."
"No, it doesn't."
"It does if you think about it."
"I'm not going to."
"You already are."
I turn to her.
"…You're annoying."
"You've said that."
"And I mean it every time."
She laughs.
Soft.
Close.
And then—
"You didn't look away fast enough."
I freeze.
"What."
"When you looked earlier," she says, voice quieter now. "You didn't look away immediately."
My chest tightens slightly.
For no reason.
"There was nothing to look at."
"Mhm."
"There wasn't."
"Okay."
I stare at her.
"…Okay?"
"Okay."
"That's it?"
"That's it."
I don't like that.
At all.
Because it feels like—
she knows something I don't.
Or something I won't admit.
The class starts.
Finally.
A distraction.
I focus.
Try to.
Actually try this time.
But it's harder now.
Because every now and then—
I think about it.
Her.
Talking.
Laughing.
Not here.
Not beside me.
And I hate that.
I hate that I noticed.
I hate that I—
"You're doing it again."
I glare at her.
"I'm literally not doing anything."
"You're thinking."
"That's normal."
"Not like that."
"…Like what."
She doesn't answer immediately.
Just looks at me.
Then—
"Like you care."
I look away.
Fast.
Too fast.
"I don't."
She hums softly.
"Mhm."
"I don't," I repeat.
"Okay."
I tighten my grip on my pen.
Because that—
that's worse.
The way she just—
accepts it.
Like she knows it's not true.
And doesn't need to argue.
The bell rings.
I stand up immediately.
Done.
Over.
Leaving.
"Kaia."
I don't stop.
Not this time.
I keep walking.
Out the door.
Down the hallway.
Away.
Except—
I slow down.
Just slightly.
Because I hear footsteps behind me.
Of course I do.
"Kaia."
Closer now.
I stop.
Just for a second.
Then turn.
"What."
She's right there.
Again.
Like always.
Like she—
"Were you jealous?" she asks.
Straightforward.
No hesitation.
No teasing.
Just—
direct.
I stare at her.
"…No."
Too quick.
Too sharp.
She tilts her head slightly.
Studying me.
Then—
"Okay."
That again.
I frown.
"…Okay?"
"Okay."
"That's your answer?"
"Do you want a different one?"
"Yes."
"No."
I blink.
Annoyed.
Confused.
Both.
"You're impossible."
"And you're still here."
I pause.
Then—
I step back.
Creating distance.
Finally.
"…Don't read into things," I say.
"I'm not."
"You are."
"I'm observing."
"That's the same thing."
"It's not."
"It is."
She smiles.
Soft.
Unfair.
"No," she says. "It's just more honest."
I don't respond.
Because I can't.
Because—
for some reason—
that felt like it meant more than it should.
She steps back slightly.
Giving me space.
For once.
"I'll see you tomorrow, Kaia."
I should say no.
I always say no.
But this time—
I don't.
And that—
that's worse.