Knock. Knock. Knock.
I groaned into my pillow, half-conscious and fully unwilling to move.
Another knock — louder this time, more impatient.
I pried one eye open. The room was still half-dark, a soft wash of daylight creeping through the blinds. My mouth felt like sandpaper. My limbs, like they were glued to the mattress.
"Bella…?" I mumbled without thinking.
A beat of silence.
Then a familiar voice — not hers.
"Uh… not unless Bella suddenly got taller, more handsome, and decided to wear Vans."
I blinked hard and sat up too fast, wincing as the night before came rushing back like a brick to the chest. I stumbled to the door and cracked it open.
Skyler stood there, backpack slung over one shoulder, coffee cup in hand, and one eyebrow arched so high it should've needed clearance.
"You okay, man?" he asked. "Did you seriously call me Bella?"
I hesitated. "I… might have. Sorry. Thought you were someone else."
Sky leaned on the doorframe. "Someone who knocks on your door at seven-forty in the morning?"
I rubbed the back of my neck. "Yeah, she's got a habit."
He looked at me for a second like he wanted to dig deeper, but didn't. Instead, he just said, "Well, whoever she is, she's not here. And we're gonna be late."
He looked at me for a second like he wanted to dig deeper, but didn't. Then, casually — way too casually — he added:
"Well, whoever she is, she's not here. And we're gonna be late."
He started to turn — then paused, like a thought had just landed.
"Wait." He squinted at me. "Did you say Bella?"
I froze.
He turned fully back around, eyebrows climbing. "As in Isabella Lopez? Tactical genius? Queen of cold stares? Actual urban legend who somehow still takes the top spot in chem lab rankings?"
I rubbed the side of my face, sighing. "Drop it, Sky."
"Oh, I will not," he said, grinning now. "Why the hell would you call me Bella? That's not a name you throw around by accident. Especially not when you and her have, like, zero social overlap. That's like a corgi flirting with a falcon."
I gave him a flat look. "Thanks for the metaphor. Very confidence-boosting."
He leaned against the doorframe like he had all morning. "You left the cafeteria with her yesterday, didn't you?"
I didn't answer.
He crossed his arms. "Dude. Everyone noticed. She looked like she was hunting something, and you followed her out like it was nothing. Then you disappeared for the rest of the day. Where'd you go?"
I blinked, forcing my expression to stay neutral. "We had… something to talk about."
Skyler raised a slow, dramatic eyebrow. "Right. Of course. Something top secret and urgent that involved leaving campus and ghosting everyone, including me."
"I didn't ghost you."
"You left me mid-nugget."
"I had things to handle."
"Things," he repeated, squinting at me. "With Isabella freaking Lopez. The girl who hasn't said more than six words to anyone outside of lab since sophomore year. You expect me to believe that?"
I grabbed my backpack and slung it over one shoulder. "Believe whatever makes you feel better."
He followed me as I stepped into the hall, still not letting it go. "Was it a tutoring thing? Are you failing chem? Did she blackmail you into something? Oh my god — blink twice if you're in danger."
I sighed. "I'm not in danger. And no, I'm not failing chem."
He narrowed his eyes. "Then what was it?"
We reached the stairwell. I turned, meeting his look with one of my own.
"It was just… a thing. Don't overthink it."
Sky gave me a long stare, then snorted. "You're the worst liar. Like, pathologically bad."
"I'm not lying."
"You're always lying. You just do it in that quiet 'mysterious hacker guy' way that tricks people into letting it slide."
I shoved the stairwell door open. "You coming or not?"
He followed. "I'm coming. But we're not done."
"Pretty sure we are."
He grinned. "Nope. I'm gonna figure it out. And when I do, I want details. Every last one."
I rolled my eyes but didn't answer. Because the truth?
I didn't even have the words for what last night was.
And if Skyler ever found out I'd flown a drone into a government compound, staged a digital heist, and carried Isabella Lopez away from a firefight…
…he'd probably combust on the spot.