Aces

FOURTEEN

Aiden

"Good morning." I said with a grin on my face as I walked up to Amaya.
"Ew. You guys make me want to throw up. Not that you don't make a cute couple, it's just the whole romance thing that really throws me off."
"Shut up Avery. You're just jealous." I teased.
"What? Why would I be jealous? I don't have a reason to be jealous." There it was again: that same awkwardness and embarrassment shown on her face. What was she hiding?
"It's okay Avery," Amaya took over. "One day, you'll find a man who treats you right and loves you very much."
"And that man is standing right next to you." I added sarcastically. Amaya nudged my side, making me pull a strange face.
"You're not funny. I told you. Axel and I aren't dating, and we never will." Avery seemed annoyed.
"I don't know, I mean I guess you guys would be pretty cute together."
"See, even Amaya agrees with me."
"Dude, just back off." Axel's tone was fierce. What was up with them today? Actually, now I realise that whenever relationships are brought up, Axel and Avery get all snappy and upset. They're hiding something, and I'm determined to work out what it is.

"I need your help." I said, slamming my stuff down on the desk.
"What's up?" Amaya's attention switched from her book to me.
"Have you noticed that Axel and Avery start acting weird whenever the topic of relationships is brought up?"
"What exactly are you implying here?"
"I don't know, I just feel like they know something that we don't."
"We probably shouldn't jump to conclusions, but I suppose you do have a point."
"Avery was out with Axel last night."
"What?"
"She left the house yesterday to go on a walk, and 2 hours had passed so I was getting worried. Then, I got a text from Axel saying that he'd found her and he said he'd bring her home. I know they spent some quality time together too, because she came home smelling of smoke."
"What do you think they did?"
"No clue, but I'm sure they didn't keep their hands to themselves for the whole time. They must have been talking about something emotional and hugged each other for comfort. That's another thing, Avery cried in front of me for the first time ever yesterday."
"Oh no, what happened?" Amaya's mood had suddenly dropped, just as Avery's did when talking about Amaya: weird.
"She was mad when she found out about us."
"We're not even official yet?"
"Do you want to be?" My heart pounded inside my chest as I waited in anticipation for her reply.
"I- um... sure. Why was she mad?" I sat there with a huge smile on my face. "Hello? Earth to Aiden. Why was she mad?" Amaya was waving her hand in front of my face as she spoke.
"She was worried I'm going to break your heart."
"Are you?"
"Of course not. Why would I want to do that?"
"Dunno. She did warn me about you."
"Oh, did she now?"
"Alright, that's enough gossip. Besides, we have approximately 3 minutes and 27 seconds until break is over. I'm going to go find Avery; we always walk to class together." Amaya stood up, gathering her things.
"I'll see you at lunch?"
"Obviously." she said, kissing my cheek before leaving the library. I don't know if it's Avery and Axel, Amaya, or just a weird feeling in my stomach, but today feels really off. I gathered my stuff and made my way down the hall, heading to our classroom. Maybe if I accidentally fell down those stairs, I wouldn't have to do maths.