Chapter 9:The weight of the words

Rian spoke while rubbing the bridge of his nose. "You were late." I rolled my eyes. "No, it was the ribbons." I pulled one of my braided strands forward so that he could see, as if that proved anything. His eyes turned toward me with amusement before settling back into their usual self. "These school rules are getting ridiculous." "You're telling me," I said. Then, looking between him and Arin, I added, "But what about you two? What's your excuse?" Rian barely hesitated. "We ran into Rei." It was quick.....just a second, a small misstep in my otherwise controlled reaction. But I felt it. That quiet, unwanted pain in my heart. Rei. I forced a smile, shifting my tone like the conversation bored me. "Oh." That was all I allowed myself to say. But inside, it was a different story. Rei. His name had once felt safe, familiar. Now, it was like stepping onto unstable ground, not knowing whether I'd fall or stand Bu but this wasn't the time to think about him. Not here. Not in front of them. I pushed the feeling away, locking it. A rustle of movement happened beside me. I turned my head, and my eyes met Arin's. I wasn't expecting the way his posture stiffened, like I had caught him off guard. His fingers twitched at his sides. For someone who rarely lost his composure, the hesitation was noticeable. His lips parted slightly before he quickly looked away. For a moment, I just stared. Arin. Flustered? That was new. And after seeing him like this, I did not understand what I should say next. I thought it best not to take the matter further, "Let's meet in class," and saying that, I quickly moved towards the class. But even as we walked, something stayed between us, an unspoken shift, a quiet understanding neither of us acknowledged. Just then, the school bell rang, cutting through my thoughts. Everyone started moving toward their classes. I followed, slipping into my seat as the same dull routine began: teacher yelling, assignments being handed out, and the weight of another long school day settling over me. The class was going on, the teacher was explaining something on the blackboard, but my attention was not on that side., At that very moment, Nami wrote something in her notebook and pushed it towards me. "What happened between you and Rei?" she had written, her eyes watching me with curiosity. I hesitated for a moment before picking up my pen and writing back. "What do you mean? Nothing happened between us." I wanted to avoid this conversation. Everyone had their suspicions, their assumptions, but I had never openly admitted anything to anyone. And now, I refuse to even acknowledge it to myself, too. Nami read my response, then quickly wrote again. "You turned him down? I thought you liked him." My grip on the pen tightened, and then I responded. "There was never anything like that. I never liked him." As soon as she read my words, she didn't trust but didn't push further. Instead, she simply wrote, "Oh, I see. Well, if it is like that....I accept it." She did not say anything further and just focused her attention on the teacher, she acted as if we had never said this.. I take a breath softly and my fingers still over the notebook. Even though the discussion had ended, a strange feeling settled in my heart.