(REWRITING) The Skylar Experiment : Coveting

Chapter Forty-One - Riley and Miles

RILEY

EMMA'S VOICE trailed off, and concern flooded me. I didn't expect her to sound so... heartsick. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I can't keep up with it. This is so much bigger than any of us, and I have to think of my parents and my friends, too," she clarified. Her lower lip stuck out, like she prevented more words from slipping out. "Please understand that it's for the best."

There was something wrong. Terribly wrong.

Her lowered head, her eyes refusing to look at me, her choked voice...  She worried about something. I got up and moved in front of her.

"Emma, whatever it is, you can tell me. I'm not losing you again... I just got you back." I smiled when she stared at me. "Did he do something or tell you important stuff? Anything at all?"

"No, Riley. I think it's better if I just distance myself. It's not personal, but it's something I have to do on my own."

At first, I thought she was joking. But the last time Emma cracked a joke was well over a month ago.

"I don't get it... What are you saying?"

She breathed through her nose, receding closer to the door. A grim shadow veiled her features. In that second, she was wan and pained and so many things I couldn't name, like she had the weight of the world on her tiny shoulders.

"I'm just a nobody that discovered your secret," she said, her face twisting up. 

I blinked, stunned. In a way, I understood her viewpoint. I wished nothing more than to go back to a normal life where I didn't have to always lie through my teeth.

"I know. I know you don't deserve what you're going through."

"We can't see each other like this. I'll never put you in danger, I swear on it. But this isn't... working. It's not safe."

It felt like someone punched a hole through my chest. For a few seconds, I couldn't find what to to argue with. She didn't want us to be friends?

"Why can't we still talk to each other?" I mumbled weakly.

Her eyes glistened. "Because anything else will hurt all around us. I'm sorry."

My eyes teared up like I hadn't realized before that she was serious. I couldn't be a bitch and protest against her choice. Ultimately, it was better for her and I knew it. She deserved a life with light and happiness, not this one where she was miserable and afraid.

"So am I."

Emma approached the door. She looked back after crossing the threshold, uncertain. "Take care."

The door closed on her way out, and I slumped back on the bench, feeling like my legs couldn't hold me.

  ❖❖❖ 

During lunch, I headed to my trigonometry classroom to study and found it empty save for the teacher. I wanted to skip, but I'd already written my name on the presence board and the period was open. With Emma's words slicing through me, I welcomed the space and quiet. Holding books in my arms, I picked a desk against the windows and buried myself in work.

My head lifted when footsteps shuffled inside. I looked in curiosity. My gut twisted tight and I almost snapped my pen in two. Miles was sauntering casually in the classroom, daring to smile at me, and sat in the middle row after greeting the teacher.