~manchester, united Kingdom~
JONAH POV
The past several days had been calm. Too calm. Almost suspicious. Elijah was now usually at my house, maybe a little too much, I thought. Like he lived here or something. He didn't, but try telling him that. "T-This… this bread is so good!" I heard his muffled voice from the dining area. I groaned from my room. "Would you stop eating everything in the house?! You just got here!" "I skipped lunch!" he yelled back, chewing way too loud for comfort.
I scratched the back of my head, dragging my blanket off. Elijah was a handful. A walking, loud, bottomless handful. And somehow, I didn't mind. Not really. Speaking of handfuls… Dad hadn't been home in a while. Business, I assumed. Not like I cared much, but there was someone who clearly did. "Yo, Jonah!" Elijah called out, already loud even before he got to my door. "Let's play some games, man!" I groaned, deeper this time. The bed under me was unnecessarily big but it was very soft, maybe too soft to leave. But Elijah had a way of dragging people out of things. Beds, moods, boredom. "Five more minutes," I muttered.
"Get your lazy butt up, bro," he said, now already inside my room. "C'monnn, don't make me suffer alone." "You're the one who followed me home." He grinned. "And you didn't kick me out. Which means… fate." "You know, I actually tought You were a creepy guy, but I was wrong You're hella annoying. "You say that, like I would get angry," he said dragging my legs. I rolled my eyes but sat up. "Fine. But don't cry when I beat you."
Thirty minutes later, we were knee-deep in a FIFA match, and I was leading. "Men! How am I losing?! You're using a weak team!" Elijah shouted, slamming the controller into his lap dramatically. I smirked. "You dragged me out of bed. I'm not going easy on you now." "Dude, I let you win the first one." "You did not." I retorted. "I could've! I was just being humble!" he protested. "Right. And I'm secretly an alien." I replied,
We burst out laughing. Elijah was a fun one, I couldn't remember the last time, I had a friend. The last one I tought I had, travelled with her dad and never contacted me again. Quickly snapping of my daze, Elijah pointed at the trash can in the corner of the room. "Yo. Bet I can shoot this tissue ball in from here." I glanced at the tiny balled-up napkin in his hand and raised an eyebrow. "You serious?" He was already squaring his shoulders like he was in the NBA Finals. "Three-pointer. If I make it, you owe me snacks." "Haven't You eaten everything in my house already.
He launched the shot. It bounced off the edge of the bin and hit the floor. "Lemme try," I said, picking up a Doritos bag and crumpling it into a ball. I stepped back dramatically, aimed, and Swish. "Boom." I grinned. "Lucky shot." "That's skill, Elijah." Ten minutes later, we had a full-blown mini basketball match going. Tissue rolls, empty snack bags, paper balls it all turned into makeshift ammo. The trash can was our hoop. The floor was a war zone. "I swear last shot wins," Elijah panted, tossing another napkin. It missed. "Again?" "This time, I mean it." Eventually, we collapsed onto the couch, both out of breath like we'd just run laps. "You're evil," Elijah mumbled. "I came for fun, not to be emotionally wrecked."
I leaned back too, tossing a pillow at him. "I thought you were 'built different'?" "I am built different," he groaned. "I'm built like a guy who's gonna sleep right here on your couch tonight." "Again?" "Yep." I sighed. "You know, For a guy, You're awfully trusting and relaxed." He gave a tired smile. "Thanks. That's the nicest thing anyone's said to me all day." The clock hadn't even hit 6pm yet, but somehow it felt like we'd packed a whole day into that hour. Dumb jokes, mini basketball, loud games, and stupid yelling.
ELIJAH POV
The door creaked open, slow… like it didn't want to interrupt. But it did anyway. Jonah was still talking about something, I think a football analysis or his dad's weird fish obsession, I wasn't even sure but I saw his eyes shift mid-sentence. And then he just froze. Like… full pause. Glitch-in-the-matrix kinda freeze. That's what made me turn. And then I saw her.
She stood just a few steps inside, next to an older man who looked like he owned the room tall, well-built, dark skin with a face that told you he bathes in gold. That had to be Jonah's dad. But my eyes didn't stay there long.
It was her. That girl. Her smile came first. Bright. Effortless. The kind of smile that made the room lively even if she hadn't said a word yet. She looked so comfortable and relaxed like she'd been here her whole life, like nothing about walking into someone else's living room was awkward for her. Like she belonged. She had these big round glasses that made her eyes stand out even more, and those eyes? I was sure they sparkled. Light blue, wide open, curious but calm. Her earrings were pink and dangly, catching the light every time her head moved even a little. There was a choker around her neck with a tiny heart charm in the center, maybe she was a model.
Her top was light beige or maybe cream, a bit oversized with sleeves that hung just right, probably one of those baggy tops. It tucked neatly into a short plaid skirt with dark tones. And then the legs. Long. Pale. One side had this thigh strap thing like a cute little accessory that made no sense but worked on her. Her hair was long, reddish-brown with a soft wave to it, parted slightly to the side. A couple strands framed her face in a way that made me decide, maybe she was actually a model.
I glanced at Jonah. Still frozen. His eyes were wide like he'd just seen a ghost… or someone who wasn't supposed to exist anymore. He opened his mouth, barely got the words out. "Lyim…"