Lyla James was late.
It was a Saturday afternoon, and Lyla was meant to meet Haiden and his group of friends at Iris's—the local diner that every class of seniors had claimed as their own. However, as she sped down the street, turning into the diner's parking lot, Lyla was met with the terrifying reality of an emotion she had not known was available to someone like her: insecurity.
Walking through the glass doors and staring down at the polished white tiles, Lyla couldn't help picking at her clothes, wondering if her dark jeans and white t-shirt were nice enough for an occasion like this. Sirah had assured Lyla that she looked perfectly fine, and though she trusted her closest friend entirely, Lyla couldn't help feeling anxious.
And she hated it.
She had never felt like this before, especially when it came to first impressions—if only because she'd never really been the "new kid". Lyla had never wanted to be liked, nor had she had to want to be liked. It was still crazy to her that she was at Iris's to join other people. As in, she was meant to meet living, breathing people, and she had come voluntarily—an act that was the first of its kind, surely. Nonetheless, she had told a certain amber-eyed boy she would do this, and it was too late to back out now, considering he'd already spotted her.
"Ly!"
Oh, what had she gotten herself into?
Haiden was standing in a booth to her left, surrounded by several people—four seemed like a lot, right? They were all sitting down, facing each other, which made it hard for Lyla to see their faces or even study their clothing in relation to hers.
After the lunch invitation, Lyla had "finally" done her research on Haiden, according to Sirah. She'd explained to Lyla that Haiden's closest friend was named Amil, and the pair were rather well known around Trellis. Sirah had also said that if Lyla had just bothered to keep track of social rank and status at their school, she would know that Haiden and his group of friends were considered, in a way, the elite—a higher class among an institution composed of peasants. Lyla had then proceeded to explain to Sirah exactly where everyone could shove it if they considered her to be, in any way, a peasant.
Now, standing beside her AP biology partner, Haiden threw an arm around her shoulders. "Everyone, this is Lyla."
It may have said a lot, but Lyla decided not to focus on the secret thrill of joy that ran through her at Haiden's introduction. She only knew that "Ly" was for Haiden and Haiden alone.
As the very same boy ran through a full greeting, Lyla began to feel overwhelmed. For Haiden's best friend, it was just a matter of putting a name to a face; Amil had brown skin and even darker hair, and in that, Lyla was sure she was competent enough to recognize him through the remainder of their session at Iris's. For the rest, however, she had half a mind to pull out her phone and start documenting their faces.
There was Remi, Amil's girlfriend, who had honey-colored hair and a bright smile. She'd greeted Lyla enthusiastically, going so far as to get out of her seat to hug her. Lyla would have liked to say that she had not just stood there rooted to the spot as Remi threw her arms around her, but that was exactly what had happened, and even after the embrace, Lyla was still speechless.
Haiden, sensing her bewilderment, moved right along to the next member of the group. "This is Carver, Ly." The first noticeable feature of the boy was his ice-blue eyes, and not far behind was his wide smirk.
"Heyy," Carver drawled, his eyebrows shooting up momentarily before settling back to their normal height. "Great to meet you." The statement was simple and direct, but never before had Lyla ever felt so exposed.
Haiden threw Carver a look. "I don't think so," he said, but his friend merely chuckled, unphased.
"Hello." The word was curt, and Lyla turned to look at the last member of the group.
"Oh, this"—Haiden blinked, adjusting Lyla and himself to face the girl—"this is Kait."
Kait? Well, Kait had shiny, long, auburn hair and green eyes—she was the type of girl who had most likely never known the meaning of subtle beauty. However, for all her physical allure, it seemed like the girl had problems with her expressions; Kait was smiling...except someone had forgotten to tell her face.
She stood up, holding her hand out to shake. Lyla glanced at it in slight suspicion. When she finally thought it safe, Lyla moved to grasp Kait's hand, but she had hardly met Kait's fingers with hers when Kait said, "I'm Haiden's girlfriend."
"Oh." Lyla's hand wavered as she hesitated. It was only a second, and she got herself together in the next—enough to actually shake Kait's hand—but as the green-eyed beauty daintily carried her arm up and down, Lyla's mind raced at speeds unimaginable.
In the few weeks or so that she and Haiden had known each other, never once had he mentioned a girlfriend, let alone hinted at one. A fucking girlfriend—wow. Lyla was not so much angry at the fact that Haiden was in a relationship as she was at the fact that he had not told her. All those questions, all that probing and investigation into her life, and she realized now that he'd never brought himself into the mix; he'd never offered up a single scrap of information about himself. As Kait pulled away and Haiden's arm slipped from around her shoulders, shame swelled within Lyla, for she abruptly understood that she'd never bothered to ask him.
"Haiden's told me a lot about you," she bullshitted, because she was there as Haiden's friend to meet his other friends, and she really wasn't feeling like much of one.
"He did?" Kait said, in a way that conveyed she was sure Haiden hadn't said anything about her at all.
Still, Lyla nodded, as that was the least she could do for Haiden. "Yep."
Kait sat then, a surly look on her face. When the group scooted over, Lyla sat on the edge of the booth, Haiden's shoulder knocking with hers. On his opposite side, Kait seemed to be silently fuming, but Lyla directed her attention to Amil and Remi, who sat across from her.
"So, Lyla! You and Haiden have biology together?" Remi asked once their server left with their orders.
"We were assigned for the semester." Lyla shrugged.
"How's that working out for you? I once had to partner with him for a project, and it was the worst experience of my life." Amil groaned. At the look Haiden shot him, he shook his head. "Sorry, dude, but it's true; bio isn't your greatest subject."
"I'm actually doing pretty well in bio, for your information," Haiden huffed. "I'm in AP for a reason. Plus, Ly makes everything a lot easier; she's a genius."
"Alexander Tate's number one in our class, so she can't be that smart," Kait muttered. She looked to her boyfriend either in challenge or validation, but Haiden was suddenly very busy examining the scratches on their table.
"Uh, she must be doing something," Carver interrupted. "If Lucas hasn't failed the class already, she's gotta be some kind of Einstein." Sprawled lazily in the center of the booth, he faced Lyla with a wink, his blue eyes piercing.
"I'll second that," Remi added, and the group laughed.
Well, everyone other than Kait, who was too busy rolling her eyes. "Oh, please."
At the moment, Lyla's anxiety was long gone, replaced instead with uneasiness and a twinge of annoyance. What fresh hell had Haiden gotten her into? Kait was not to be placed in the role of the jealous and vicious cheerleader girlfriend, and not just because Lyla doubted she was even a cheerleader at all, but because the girl seemed more insecure and questioning than she did calculating. With the way Kait held on to Haiden as if she were about to lose him, Lyla could understand what might drive her to treat her possible "competition" the way she did. Yet Lyla couldn't help but feel anything more than irritation toward her.
"Okay, okay," Amil said once their snickers faded. "I'm sure you have your own opinion of Haiden's academic abilities, Lyla. What I really want to know, though, is how did you even get him to speak to you?"
Lyla frowned. "What?"
"He's the most antisocial person I know—outside of our group, of course." Amil brought a hand to his face in exasperation.
"If he"—Remi leaned into her boyfriend, gently bumping his shoulder with hers—"hadn't first scoped Haiden out and brought him to meet all of us, he'd probably still be twiddling his thumbs at the back of a classroom somewhere." She smiled, leaning forward as if to share a secret. "But you probably know what I'm talking about."
Lyla's gaze went to the boy next to her, but Haiden avoided her eyes. "I wouldn't know anything about that," she declared finally. "He was the one who approached me."
All eyes turned to Haiden Lucas, who was grinning sheepishly. "It's not like I'm afraid of people, guys!" He laughed uneasily.
Haiden's saving grace proved to be their server. She turned up with their food right at that moment, and with the aroma sharp in the air and a booth full of hungry teenagers, the conversation was put aside in favor of a plentiful array of pizzas, cheeseburgers, and chicken strips.
It was when they began to wind down, the eating frenzy coming to an end, that the interactions resumed. Carver spoke first.
"I would say that that's the closest we'll ever see Lucas come to a lie."
"So we'll enjoy it while we can, then." Remi giggled, wiggling her brows at Lyla. "This you oughta know. Honest H and his reign of truthful terror."
Before Lyla could respond, the eager female jumped into a tale of how she and Kait had once gone on a shopping trip with their boyfriends in tow. The narrative consisted of a few funny moments but ended with Kait asking Haiden what he thought of her in a certain dress. Haiden had failed the test, answering bluntly with a simple, "It kinda makes you look like a potato sack."
The group erupted in a series of howls, whooping and shrieking with laughter. Remi's eyes were watering, and even chiller-than-chill Carver was struggling to breathe. Kait, however, sat back in the booth, a sour look on her face.
In the midst of the ruckus, Lyla couldn't help but regard Haiden's expression.
Haiden laughed with his head thrown back. He laughed with the corners of his eyes crinkled, his nose wrinkled, and his hand on his chest. His breathing was short and shallow as if there wasn't enough oxygen left in the world for him to inhale, and it felt as if time was going to come to a complete halt just to witness his laughter. Yet, even if time refused to pause its pursuit to acknowledge Haiden Lucas, Lyla did, unable to blink in fear of missing out on the sight of him.
Ultimately, the commotion died. Remi wiped her tears as Amil stared at her in adoration, and Carver regained control of his breathing.
"Didn't I tell you that I'd make you smile?" A sudden whisper tickled the skin of Lyla's ear. It was Haiden, who had leaned in close—if only for a moment—and was now watching her carefully.
"I—" She meant to deny it—meant to call him crazy—but then she realized that he was right. The corners of her mouth were upturned, her lips thinned slightly; the smile was faint, but it was real. Lyla had been smiling, and Haiden had noticed.
He grinned at her even as she wiped any expression from her face, his amber eyes glistening. Lyla's heart wriggled within her chest, abrupt vibrations running through her. She glanced down to find Haiden's resting hand just barely touching hers on the seat of their booth.
His smile is...his smile is crooked.
"I didn't know you had a tattoo, Ly."
Kait's voice was like a slap in the face. Lyla jolted where she sat, focusing her attention on the girl staring purposely at the inside of her left wrist.
"It's Lyla, and I don't." Lyla immediately snatched her hand from the table and placed it on her lap. Her right hand was quick to join its sister, migrating from its spot next to Haiden's drumming fingertips.
"If it's not a tattoo, then what is it?" Kait's tone couldn't be described as anything less than venomous.
Lyla glanced around the booth. All eyes were on her; she was cornered. "It's a birthmark."
"Oh! Does it look like anything?" Remi asked, oblivious to Lyla's discomfort. "I've got one that looks like a frog."
"Um, yes? It kind of looks like a bird." She hesitantly exposed her left arm, placing it on the table again for the group to see. Lyla had had it since birth, though it started out as a faint blob. As she grew, it began to take shape and form, darkening until it was clear enough to pinpoint. Perhaps two years ago was when Sirah had first pointed out that it was definitely bird-like.
"Haiden, man, that looks exactly like yours." Amil peered up at his friend with a sharp intake of air.
Lyla's eyes flashed, and she turned to face Haiden.
Kait quickly reached across Haiden's chest and pulled down the neck of his shirt. A wave of fierce annoyance ran through Lyla at the fact that Kait knew where Haiden's birthmark was, as his shirt had previously covered it entirely. However, with the branding exposed, Lyla pushed away her petty thoughts. On his right side, directly under Haiden's collarbone, was a birthmark, an exact replica of Lyla's—an impersonation of the tattoo both of them knew it wasn't.
"What the?" Kait whispered, her green eyes clouding with suspicion as she glanced back and forth between Haiden and Lyla.
Haiden coughed, gently pulling his shirt collar out of his girlfriend's clutches. Lyla withdrew her arm from the table.
"Dessert, anyone?" Haiden offered.