†𝖜𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊𝖉 ∞ ongoing

chapter 7 ∞ masking

Nova

"You can have the rest of that." I point to the now half-eaten apple as Jackson takes it and continues munching on it as if it were his to begin with.

"I was planning on it." He replies a smile plastered on his face. I wish he would stop fucking smiling for no reason. It annoys me because there was no particular laughing matter. Ever.

"You guys going to the party? It's at Tyler's so you already know there's gonna be loads of alcohol." Alex says, asking everyone at the table as he holds Ayra close to his chest. They were always kinda the lovey-dovey couple. Ayra always went to his basketball games and whatnot, that one extroverted and introverted couple that just fit somehow.

Alex played point guard for the school's team — speaking of —I believe Jackson is another crucial player. Possible power forward or shooting guard. Based on his shooting abilities he clearly displayed earlier after hitting my nose, that's the least I could infer.

"Yes sir. You best believe we'll be there." Syrena says proudly.

She directs her next question at Jackson, "You going too, Jack?"

It felt like a sudden gun bullet at been shot. He became dead quiet as he momentarily stopped all his movements. With the apple in midair, close to his mouth but not quite there. I just know something went off in that tiny brain of his. I can literally hear the gears turning. He takes his time to answer, and looks over at Willow with a plain expression — but one with a deeper undertone I can't figure out.

"Jackson. The hell makes you think you can call me anything else?" He states, leaning into the table on his elbows, his head slightly cocked to the side.

Syrena looks a little confused, maybe even frightened. I don't get why Jack is such a big difference from Jackson. But nonetheless, he's turned towards that rude, fuckboy attitude just now, unlike what it was like before.

"Oh... yikes. My bad..." She mumbles, just as confused as I am about the situation. She's taken aback and doesn't know what to say — a rare moment coming from her.

"V — Nova will be going." Willow interrupts, sensing the difference in the air, "As for the rest of us too. We're all going, you know, senior year — what have we got to lose?"

"No, you're right. We discussed this before so everyone's going this time." Ayra continues, smiling at Alex. I can tell she's trying to loosen everything up again. Then turning to Jackson, she asks the same question, "Will you be attending Jackson?"

He finally looks away from Syrena after literally staring into her soul and simply shrugs, "Alex, you got a good estimate of how many other chicks are going?"

I feel a fire start to grow in my stomach. I hope he doesn't go. I don't think I can go through any more of these types of interactions around him — it's unsettling to me because I don't exactly know how to handle them. They're always unpredictable and I like plans. I like when everything is planned out, ready to go, no spontaneous last minute things.

"No clue. I'm assuming a good bunch since school literally just started. People need a break already." Alex responds, seemingly unbothered by the pressure change in the air. It was a different kind of tension Jackson had created and it made me more uncomfortable than usual. Like there was a horse in the room and it had just taken a fat shit in the middle. The smell of it just reeking and not wanting to disappear.

"You going?"

I look up at him and sit in silence. Contemplating whether or not I should lie.

"She's going," Willow says instead for me, flashing both me and him a bright smile. But it doesn't seem to go past Jackson just yet.