Rose, Ebony & Snow || Farkle Minkus

3

"Maybe we need you more than you think, Snowy."

What did Maya mean by that?

I was probably overthinking it. It was just a silly comment.

But did they need me? Well, likely not. I was just some random girl from class that sat with them at lunch that day. Just some random girl, that happened to resemble a fairy tale character that day. Any other day, I'd be irrelevant. 

Just the girl that was always late for History girl. The girl with the pale skin, dark hair, and green eyes. The girl who smelled like cinnamon because of her odd obsession. I was Neveah Rosenthal. And to everyone else, I was the girl who was simply just there.

They didn't need me. No one did. 

After school, I walked straight over to the bakery. The little bell jingled when I opened the door, releasing the smell of fresh bread.

"Hi Katy."

"Hey Neveah."

Taking over my regular window seat, I took out my laptop to start working on my English essay. I didn't want to listen to music today. I just wanted the muffled conversations of the people around me.

After lounging for 4 hours, I had achieved nothing. I knew what my essay arguments were going to be, but I couldn't bring myself to actually start writing.

"Neveah! Sweetie, you've gotta eat! Whaddya want for dinner?" Katy shouted from the counter.

"Surprise me," I mumbled back.

"Surprise you with what?" I looked over my shoulder to see that Lucas Friar had just walked in. 

"Hey Friar," I greeted him, as he sat down on the bench across from me. 

He just sat there, smiling. I couldn't help but laugh.

"So, you gonna get something to eat, or just sit and stare?" I chucked.

"Katy, could I have what Neveah's having?" Lucas politely asked Katy, who was printing out someone's receipt. "There. Now I can sit and stare." 

"Okay, Lucas what really brings you here?"

"Honestly Neveah, I don't know. How does one handle Riley Matthews and Maya Hart?" he let out a frustrated sigh. I put my laptop in my bag and set it on the ground. 

"Sit," I pointed at the now empty space beside me. Though it probably wasn't my place, I definitely thought that Lucas had to talk about this issue, even if it was with me. Our entire History class knew about their love triangle mess.

"Have you guys talked about New Years yet?" I asked just to make sure.

"Nope."

"Well, how do you feel about all of it? What is Riley to you? What is Maya?" 

Lucas took a deep breath. "In my mind, Riley makes sense. I care about Riley so much that it hurts. I thought it was that simple; we danced, we dated, we kissed. She was the girl. But then suddenly she wasn't."

His voice grew quiet. "She said she was my sister. Why would she tell me that? She told me that she wasn't mine anymore...not that she ever was, but that's what I wanted, and that's how it felt. I felt like it was my duty to protect her from the world, but not as a brotherly figure, as her boyfriend. How could she see me as a brother?"

"You never did much about that, did you? Did you tell her how you felt?" I asked.

"Riley wanted me to be with Maya, so that's what I did," Lucas cleared his throat. "Don't get me wrong, Maya has always been beautiful to me. She's incredible in so many ways, but I have this guilt. I can't lie about the fact that I was with her because Riley decided that it had to happen."

Katy brought over our food. He took a bite of his sandwich before continuing. "I started questioning everything. What if Riley wasn't ever really the girl? What if it was always Maya, but I was just too blind to see it? But then Farkle told everyone one New Years that Riley still liked me. The amount of hope that gave me, the relief I felt...I guess that just shows how much I still wanted to be with Riley. But I'm with Maya."

"Okay, but put Riley aside for a minute. What did it feel like at the camp fire? What were your thoughts when you were told that Maya liked you? Before New Years, how did you feel about Maya?" 

"Does the whole school know about the camp fire?" he asked.

"The whole school knows about everything," I nodded and he continued. 

"When Riley first said 'Maya likes you', it was a whole new perspective. I've always just thought about Riley because she's beautiful, she's sweet and I developed feelings for her. But the thought of Maya liking me opened the possibilities of liking her back. It made me realize how well we fit together."

"But do you like Maya...or do you like the attention?" I said quietly. I don't believe in liking two people at once. I've had a crush on the same guy for 6 years and the little irrelevant crushes the popped up during this 6 year period were only just the thought of them liking me back. I simply loved the idea of being loved. It seems desperate but it's true. I've only truly ever liked Farkle Minkus.

This was the cruel reality.

Lucas was really quiet after my question so I let him have his time. We sat and ate in silence for about 10 minutes until Lucas finally cleared his throat.

"It's Riley isn't it? It was never Maya. It's Riley," he spoke softly, lowering his head.

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*NOTE: Sorry Lucaya shippers but don't lose hope yet. This is NOT a Rucas story.