A Suicidal Boy and the Girl Who Could Read His Mind

11| how did you know where i lived?

HOW DID YOU KNOW WHERE I LIVED?

Mercifully, the weekend had arrived at long last. It was bittersweet, because it also meant she had a biology project due on the Monday which she had yet to start. Well, that wasn't exactly true. She'd done the practical aspects, but Oliver hasn't written the report yet, so she couldn't write the script for the presentation.

In hindsight, the weekend wasn't going to be that fun. It was looking like Laura would have to write the report and do the script too, so she was rather pissed. Justifiably, too. To be fair, she knew he didn't understand but it was a touchy subject to bring up, especially because it could lead to confrontation about how she knew. 

Her mom was helping Ethan with his homework, while dad was on a conference call with his business partners in Australia. From the living room, she could hear their funny accents. Laura had always liked the way they spoke, the lack of pronunciation made everything sound less formal. Ethan was drinking a cup of tea while mom was helping him with algebra. She was a professor of mathematics, so it came easily to her which meant she sometimes got frustrated when people didn't understand.

Luckily, Ethan seemed to be fluent in maths. He understood algebra better at thirteen than Laura did in the current moment. On instinct, she rolled her eyes. Despite being four years younger than her, he was already upstaging her in everything. It was obvious by now that her parents favoured him over her. He was the less complicated of the two, to say the least. Not that he knew this, Ethan assumed she was just like any other sister. Little did he know, this was not the case.

Her parents didn't want him to know for fear that he'd slip up and tell someone about her gift. Laura didn't see the problem, it's not like they'd believe him. Telling someone that your sister can read minds is something you'd find a seven-year-old saying while playing superheroes or something.

Within her own family, Laura Summers felt like an outcast. She didn't fit in. Evidently, her parents thought so too. While her parents were busy fawning over her brother and his intelligence, the doorbell rang. She picked herself off the couch and dragged herself to the door.

"Oh," the syllable slipped from her mouth while she comprehended who was standing in front of her, "Oliver, what are you doing here?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but she cut him off.

"Wait, no. How did you know where I lived?"

A smile tugged at his lips, and her eyes unwillingly trailed his body. She hadn't seen him outside of his regular jeans and tee look, but she wasn't complaining. "Tahlia told me."

Laura rubbed her face from exhaustion, "When did you talk to Tahlia?"

"So many questions." He taunted, peering into her house from the doorway. "I'm here to work on the project."

Her eyes shot up, "It's a Friday night, don't ruin it for me! I was just planning on watching Gilmore Girls in my sweats with a bowl of ice cream."

Alright, Laura. Describe the I'm-not-like-other-girls-trope in less words, I dare you.

Laura snickered at his thoughts, narrowing her eyes at his crudeness. Oliver rolled his eyes, "Why am I not surprised?"

"Whatever. Should we go to the library, then?"

"If I wanted to study in the library, I would have told you to meet me at the library." He snapped, before raking his eyes down her appearance. "Nice PJ's, by the way."

"They are, aren't they?" She smiled, "Oh, you were being sarcastic."

"Uh, yeah."

They stood there in silence for a moment before Laura spoke, "Well, come in," she opened the door wide, "I guess."

"Laura!" Her dad called from the kitchen, "Who was it?"

"Dave, we should go out to celebrate with Ethan. He got a ninety on his latest assignment! It's not every day that-" mom came into view and she stopped in her tracks, "Oh, hello. Laura, who's this?"

"Oliver," he greeted, extending his hand, "nice to meet you."

"Cat." She cleared her throat, "Well, we're going out for dinner. Should we bring you something back, Laura?"

"No, I'm good." She muttered.

"Ethan, Dave. Let's go!" She called, "Nice to meet you...Oliver."

Laura led him into the kitchen once her family had vacated the house, leaving a sour imprint on her heart. Not only had they never taken Laura out, they didn't even invite her to join them.

It wasn't a big deal. People were dealing with much more pressing matters than she was, but it just bugged her.

"So," Oliver spoke, "aren't you gonna offer me a drink?"

"No," Laura hummed, leading him upstairs, "so, any exciting plans for the weekend?"

Oliver shrugged from behind, "Eh. I'm hosting a party tomorrow night, should be fun."

Laura nodded, opening her bedroom door. She heard him scoff from the doorway, "Wow."

"What?" She spun around, frowning accusingly.

"Nothing, I just didn't expect you to have so many posters and books." He walked around, observing each individual poster of a range of bands and solo artists. "I've never heard of half of these people."

She shrugged, "You're missing out."

"I don't listen to music much."

"That's a serial killer trait if I ever did hear one. Who doesn't listen to music?" Laura spoke, trying to lighten the mood. By the amused grin on his face, it was working. Laura felt a hint of satisfaction knowing she made him smile, even just once.

He unclipped a photo from her wall and held it carefully in his palms, "You and Kate?"

Laura nodded, "Yeah at her 16th."

Oliver nodded, placing it back on the hook.

"So, what's the party tomorrow night for?"

He shrugs, "Dunno. A house warming, I guess."

"Better put the radiator on then." Laura cleared her throat, "Bad joke. So, project time?"

authors note:

so, who else is playing Mr Perfectly Fine on repeat?

mads 🌻