The conversation with Charlie hit me like a splash of ice water, pulling me out of my thoughts and right into the line of fire.
"You were paired up with Liam and you didn't tell me?" Charlie stared at me, her expression a mix of genuine betrayal and shock.
I was equally bewildered. "How did you even know?"
It had only been a day since our first session at the library. I hadn't thought it was headline news, and honestly, I wasn't keen on sharing anything that was already draining me emotionally. I knew it made me a bad friend, but the scars from my past ran deep and I had learned the hard way that keeping things to yourself was the only way to stay safe, even from those you loved.
Charlie rolled her eyes as if I'd grown a second head. "Everly, one of my other friends is in your psychology class, remember? Sarah? The one you've greeted a dozen times?"
Right. Sarah. I winced. "What else did she say?"
Charlie raised her eyebrows, her gaze narrowing. "What are you hiding, Eve? Seriously."
"I'm not hiding anything," I lied. It was a bold-faced lie, considering the box under the very bed we were sitting on contained sketches of his face that I couldn't bring myself to burn. "What could I even hide? You know everything."
She eyed me suspiciously, her "best friend radar" clearly pinging, but she didn't push. She was good like that. She knew when to let me breathe. "Okay, okay. So... what's he actually like?"
I paused. The question was a simple one, but the answer was a labyrinth. It dawned on me I didn't actually know him. We'd shared space, shared silence, and shared a few texts, but we'd never had a real conversation.
"I don't know," I said, shaking my head honestly. "He's... cool. But closed off. Really closed off."
Charlie nodded as if that confirmed a theory. "That sounds right. Edd says he doesn't talk much to anyone outside his circle. But you know what else I heard?" She leaned in, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "He can fight. Like, really fight. Apparently, he was a legend for it in high school. Marissa told some girls she was actually proud of him for 'handling' those two guys the other day."
So, Marissa knew him from back then. They had history.
I felt a spark of curiosity ignite in my chest, but I quickly doused it. I had to remember my promise: strictly business. Without making it obvious, I steered the conversation toward Edd and her plans to introduce him to her family. Charlie followed the lead easily, her face lighting up as she talked about her future. She was so clearly in love, her life moving in a straight, uncomplicated line. I was happy for her, but I also envied her. I envied the way she didn't have to overthink every heartbeat.
When she finally left, the silence of the apartment felt heavy. I sat on my bed, my fingers trailing over my wrist the exact spot where his hand had closed around me. Even now, the memory of that contact felt electric, a phantom heat that refused to fade.
I'd read enough books to know what that feeling meant. If I was being honest with myself, painfully, dangerously honest. I was attracted to him. It wasn't the polite, mild interest I'd felt for guys like Adam. This was something visceral, something that felt like an alarm bell ringing in a dark room. And that was the most terrifying realization of all.