The Virgin and the Whore

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Esther and I were walking side by side in silence again.

I was trying to figure out what I should be telling her. Did I need to explain myself and give more context to my friendship with Vanessa and Tyler? I had to admit that Nik-with-the-Gang and Nik all on his own were two very different Nik's and Esther had never been around Nik-with-the-Gang.

We weren't talking and it worried me, and I wondered why I couldn't just calm down and walk in silence beside someone without assuming the worst possible scenario.

And why was I even overthinking this? We were just walking for god's sakes.

You really didn't grow out of being socially awkward, whatever I had been trying to convince myself of.

"So, are you still mad at your roommate? You mentioned it before," Esther eventually said, saving me from my useless internal freaking out.

Also, it kind of made me smile to realized she remembered our conversations, like this was a huge thing. I was really socially awkward. "Oh, yeah, no, we're fine now. We had a talk."

"You're really close with your friends," she said, and it sounded more like a statement then a question. She'd just seen me with Vanessa, so she was probably making up scenarios in her head.

"Yeah, they're more like family than friends really."

She smiled, nodding a little. "That's nice."

"I'm really lucky to have them," I agreed.

I wanted to ask her about her own friends and family. I wanted her to open up to me and talk about herself. She so rarely ever gave anything away.

I didn't ask her though, because I didn't want to pressure her. I was going to let her open up to me in her own time. I was already lucky enough that she wasn't walking ten feet away from me, and jumping anytime I breathed in her direction. I wasn't going to force her into anything.

When we got to the library, we set up our stuff at a table in a corner.

"So, Aeonic," Esther whispered, as she set down her binder with the stuff for our project.

I pressed my lips to keep from laughing. "Aeonic?"

She grinned. "I'm trying to think outside of the box, okay?"

I shook my head with a grin on my lips. "That's a little too outside the box."

"Picnic? Iconic?" she offered, keeping up with the same tactic.

I shook my head at her. I liked this little game of ours a little too much. I was going to be disappointed when it was going to end. "You're really determined."

"I don't have that much time left," she reminded me.

"I respect your determination," I told her softly, nodding.

"I swear if your name ends up just being Nicolas and you've just been screwing with me, I'm gong to be very mad," she warned me.

I grinned. "Okay, that would actually be hilarious."

"It would not."

"Rest assured. My name is not Nicolas. But it's also not as epic as Aeonic."

"If I ever fail one of my classes because I spent too much time trying to figure out your name, I will also by very mad."

"Should I just tell it to you now?" I asked her teasingly.

"NO!" she said loudly, and then her eyes widened, realising her mistake while some people around were staring at us now.