Alive // bxb

Chapter 9

Milo's POV:

I couldn't forget what I heard last night.

I was listening carefully, as I always do before deciding the night is safe enough and relaxing into my bed, content to relax my grip on Bubbles and sleep. Yet, instead of the usual nighttime sounds- an owl, crickets, the whistle of the wind- I heard the unmistakable voice of Liam Cole and I wasn't sure what to think.

All he said was 'goodnight', but wasn't that enough?

Enough to absolutely terrify me for a good hour, at least.

I didn't talk to Adriel about it that night, which I was proud of myself for. I managed to push away my problem on my own, though of course it wasn't truly solved. It probably helped that I took one glance at the bottle of medicine still sitting, not put away, on my dresser and decided to heck with it and swallowed a pill before I could overthink it.

I kept relaying the moment where the mood of my night completely changed while Adriel drove us to school, his eyebrows drawn together as he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, annoyed at the traffic. He seemed to know something was different, but he didn't pry. I was thankful to him for that.

He'd solved my problems for me for way too long. That would have to change.

-

History, the first class of the day, was when things immediately turned different.

I sat in my usual chair, Adriel next to me, and I assumed things would happen as they normally did because, well, it was what normally happened. I would sit quietly as Liam, Sage, and Juliana entered the room, and then they would start up some topic of conversation that was almost as fun to listen to as I was sure it was to have, and I would sit behind them, completely ignored but not in a mean-hearted way.

Instead, they walked into the room and Liam immediately smiled, coming over to his chair where he put his backpack on the floor before gesturing to Juliana, who smiled and waved.

"Milo, this is Julie," he introduced us. "You never actually got to meet on Saturday because-"

"Because Mrs. Peters likes seeing me suffer and likes me to make triple-layer cakes while she watches in amusement," Juliana huffed, crossing her arms in annoyance but still smiling at me. "Sorry I wasn't there to walk around with you guys. It sounded fun."

I could feel Adriel looking at me through his peripheral vision, wondering if I was going to say something or if he should butt in and say something for me. I couldn't let him do that again. So I forced my voice not to shake and said, with as much of a smile as I could muster, said, "Hi."

Small steps, I thought to myself. One word, then two. Then maybe I can graduate to sentences.

Still, both Liam and Juliana beamed and I figured my one-word answers were enough for now.

Adriel was smiling too, but not at me. He was looking at Sage, whose arms were crossed, his fingernails painted a green color with pink on his ring fingers. "Nice fingernails," he said.

Sage huffed and turned away, burying his hands deeper into the folds of his arms. "My sisters wanted to paint them," he muttered.

"They look good."

He blushed. "Thanks, I guess."

The bell rang and Liam groaned. "I hate History."

"It's the most effective form of torture," Juliana agreed.

"I don't think History's that bad," I volunteered, surprising myself along with everyone else, apparently.

Sage was the first to recover, shaking his head sadly as he sat down in his seat. "That's because she likes you, Milo. You and Adriel are her favorites. The rest of us either are her mortal enemies or get caught in the crossfire."