✨ A Little Bit of Magic || READER X RAY || The Promised Neverland

✨ Chapter Forty

"Wait, let me get this straight. You saw- You saw our parents, and- and they were elves? Like the ones in the history books? Like the ones the humans purged and forced into hiding?"

I shook my head, my body still shaking from the shock of the event. Emma was obviously excited. Her orange antenna was waving every which way, but she kept her smile and excited squeals at bay. "At least- At least that explains why you're so good at hydro and dendro, even though Professor Lucas said you have a pyro affinity. You could just- You can do it all, y/n." I grit my teeth, a little upset with how Emma was praising my condition. "I don't- I don't want to do it all. I don't want to do anything. I just want to go back. I just want to go back to not knowing Zack. I want to go back to ditching school, and being indifferent. Feeling things- It hurts, Emma. Seeing my parents again, it just- it hurts." My friend frowned, patting my back gently. She was trying her best to comfort me, but I could tell she was hurt by my words. Emma was a lot happier now. She's always been outgoing and friendly, ready to protect those she's close to. All these years I've just been restricting her. And yet, the best thing I can muster up is going to stupid party that ended badly.

"y/n," She whispered my name, pulling me into a gentle hug. "It's- It's okay. Everything is okay." She repeated those words over and over, as if the more she said it the truer it would be. But I think both of us found ourselves to be hurting more and more.

"I felt like I was using him, Emma. He's always been honest in telling me what he hated. He disliked girls who wanted to use him. He disliked that they didn't really care about him as a person. Zack always felt like he had to keep up this half-good half-bad hot jock boy image. And I still went and pretended to be his friend just because I was blinded by my own crush."

"You were pretending, y/n? You were pretending to be his friend?"

"N-No!" I stuttered out, immediately protesting Emma's comment. "I- I really like Zack! Even if he hates me, the time we spent together- That wasn't a lie. That meant the world to me, just being by his side."

The orange haired girl broke into a soft giggle, her small hand patting my head gently. "That's what I thought, y/n." She shuffled closer to my side, resting her head on my shoulder. "I don't want to sound like a mom. Norman does that enough. But I think you need to put what you have right now, in this moment, first. You're finally getting over the accident. I don't want a stupid dream, or some nightmare you had while sleep walking into the bathroom ruin that. You have me. You have Norman. As much as I hate to admit it, you even have Ray. And what should be your priority is getting your friend back. Get your Zack back, y/n."

I've changed so much. I've really crawled out of my shell, thanks to the people I've met. Zack has done so much for me, without him even knowing. This is the least I can do. Explain myself.

"Ray, can we reschedule our tutoring to Saturday? There's something I want to do today." The black haired boy grimaced, as if he could tell what I wanted to do. But his frown quickly turned into a forced grin, as he nudged my elbow a bit harshly. "So you finally mustered up the courage?" He whispered, turning to the next page in the textbook. I nodded my head, following his action. "It took a lot of convincing and mirror pep talks, actually." His voice quickly turned into a more serious tone. "Do you- Do you still like him? Are you still trying to pursue him?" I felt like teasing Ray. It was a bit unusual seeing him so seriously deadpan. "Why do you care, stupid? Is he the one you said you liked?" Ray chuckled, that sad expression lifted. He opened his mouth to respond, before realizing what I said. Shit. He pointed a trembling finger at me, his pale face turning a concerning shade of bright red. "You- You-" I think I was a similar shade, my chest starting to pound with embarrassment. My saving grace was the bell, signifying that dendro was over. "Ahalookslikclassisoverbyeguysimgonnagotakeanap!" I zoomed my way out of the lecture hall, leaving a blushing Ray in the dust. "You- You idiot!" I heard him shout from far behind. I wasn't sure where exactly I was going, so I guess my heart decided for me. I skidded to a stop by the main hall of Grace Field, right next to the door leading to the sport's field. Groups of boys were running on the track, the one I wanted to see most easily catching my eye.

Did I want to pursue Zack? Do I still like him? By the way my heart burns when I look at him, I'm not completely sure. But he's here, right in front of me now, so I guess I'll try to find out.

"Zack!" I shouted, mustering up all the courage inside of me. He was wearing a black hoodie, and gray gym shorts, that trademark headband keeping his spiky black hair in place. He skidded to a stop, the look of pain and confusion in his coal black eyes. "O-Oh, y/n. I'm- I'm kinda busy right now, could you just send me a blink later? I'm pretty busy these days." He fiddled with his gloves, taking the right one off but leaving the left on. Did I startle him? Am I making him uncomfortable? Well, whatever. You never know unless you ask. "It's been a while, hasn't it?" I whispered, a churning other than butterflies settling in the pit of my stomach. This could end very badly. "If you're okay with it, Zack. Can we talk?"