forever you

[one year and three weeks]

Noah had just stepped foot inside the cafeteria when a voice called out his name: "Yo, Alavarez!" A second later, Bastian appeared in front of him.

To the majority of the student population, he was the tall, dark-skinned defender of the basketball team, all charm and slender muscles that made girls return giddy laughs to his playful winks. To Noah, Bastian was still the same mischievous kid who had tried convincing him of eating worms on their first day of elementary school together. Just a few years older. Now turned teammate and roommate.

"What's up, Bas?" he responded casually while picking up a tray, knowing that would be enough to get his friend going for at least fifteen minutes. And the Puerto-Rican didn't disappoint. Leaving no detail out, from his wild Friday night party to his grocery list and this new brand of canned beans he found. Noah nodded distractedly while selecting his lunch – a plate of chicken breasts and mixed greens along with a green smoothie. It was only when he started walking towards their regular table that he noticed two unusual elements: Bastian had gone ahead of him. And there was a raven-haired girl seated at their table. Whose short stature, slim shoulders and high ponytail reminded him of...

Siobhan?

Just as the thought crossed his mind, Bastian stopped, looked over his shoulder and backtracked to Noah. "I forgot to mention. You remember I'm taking Advanced Mathematics this semester, right? There's this assignment I need to turn in for tomorrow, so I asked the girl I'm doing it with to join us for lunch so we could work together."

At the same moment, the girl turned around. Eyes a shade lighter than obsidian, serious and collected, met his. But the bite in her stare he remembered of their first encounter was nowhere to be found this time, her features loosening as a small smile found her lips when she recognized him. "Hey."

"Hey." His lips would've mirrored hers if the shock of seeing her here wasn't still gripping his face. "I didn't know you two were in the same class?" he asked, eyes travelling back and forth between her and Bas.

To be fair, there was no way he could've known. Remembering everything Bastian told him was an impossible feat: his friend could share the most surprising stories from his childhood like the most random facts about penguins all in the same conversation. Selective memory was a question of survival in this context, the only way Noah could remember the most crucial facts. Though his memory had some slip-ups from time to time, like today.

As for Siobhan, they were on talking basis, much to his surprise. She had reached out, to apologize for her drunken behavior that night, and thank him for taking care of her, driving her home. They had been texting now and then ever since. Noah didn't tell her, but he'd been glad to stumble upon her at the bar. First, so he could get her to safety – who knew what would've happened if ill-intentioned hands had gotten to her. But mostly because he got to get a glimpse beyond the armor she wore like a second skin. Behind the cool, collected façade she showed the world, there was a sister mourning the brother she lost. A daughter struggling to find her footing in her shattered family. Bits and pieces of her history, he picked up and assembled. When she'd told him she apprehended her annual trip back to Korea with her parents. Or sometimes, when he mustered up his courage and asked her for more details, as for her brother – Connor. His name had been Connor.

But their conversation had mostly kept to light, safe topics. Such as his vacation program – spending time with his family back in his hometown of Bakersfield under the Californian sun – or how good of a job they did in Kingston's class. Though, from time to time, a more sensitive topic would roll in without warning. Like that time he mentioned Alena reaching out to him, not knowing what to respond. That had led to Siobhan pushing him all summer to talk to her and ask why she broke up. get the closure, noah. you sound like you need it.

He desperately needed it. But never would he admit it to her face, as his fingers kept hovering over Alena's number all summer, never finding the guts to press the call button.

Nonetheless, Noah hadn't expected to see her much when school started again, given that he was one year ahead of her. Still, their roads crossed in corridors a few times, and he had been glad to see they weren't playing the ignore card. But they hadn't had time for a proper chat, only flashing quick smiles as a greeting.

Which gave him no opportunity to learn that both his friends – could his relationship with Siobhan qualify as friendship? – were taking the same class. Working together.

"How do you know Siobhan?" Bas asked back, surprise shooting his eyebrows high on his forehead.

"I'm a die-hard fan of his, of course." Both men turned their heads towards her. Wide-eyed. Siobhan kept her expression blank, as if pointing out the most obvious of facts. "Go team Lions!" she even added with a little shake of her hands, citing their team's name. That would've been believable if her face didn't wear such a deadpan expression.

A beat of silence hung in the air.

Before Bastian exploded in laughter, loud and powerful.

"Oh my god, you've got the best poker face!" he beamed at her.

The collected expression crumbled to let a satisfied glow peek through, Siobhan sharing an amused look with Noah before looking up at Bastian. "I've been told, thanks."

Chuckles still shook Bastian's athletic body. "How did you meet her, Noah? No way you would've befriended such a loser," the latter addressed to the Korean girl he took a sit next to.

Noah's indignant protest would've erupted if Siobhan didn't cut him off. "We took the same finance class last semester," she offered modestly.

"I'm noticing how you're not refuting the loser statement," Noah grumbled while taking the seat opposite of hers.

"I just said I'm your biggest fan. You couldn't possibly be a loser. I only support the best," she retorted lightly. A small smile started to bloom on his lips. Much like Bastian, he found this version of Siobhan – witty, self-deprecating – delightful. One side to her he would've never suspected one year ago.

"Why are you back in a math class again?" She had revealed that despite her advanced level, she found no joy in numbers and complex equations.

"No choice," she groaned. For once, she looked disgruntled. "For some reason, my freaking pre-law program requires me to take a mathematics class each year. Which would make sense if I was aiming for financial law."

"But you're not," he completed her sentence with a sympathetic grin. A disheartened roll of her eyes was her response. Soon morphing into a scowl when Bas got his textbook on the table between them. Busying the pair in quizzical grunts and tentative debates over incomprehensible formulas for the rest of the lunch, under Noah's amused watch.