Ephemeral {X.T.}

𝕥𝕨𝕖𝕟𝕥𝕪-𝕗𝕠𝕦𝕣

𝕏𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕖𝕣 𝕋𝕙𝕠𝕣𝕡𝕖

I did as I was asked to do. I gave Ovia space. I didn't text her. I didn't call her. I didnt talk to her; and I avoided her completely.

It felt harder than I expected it would've been at first. I was personally surprised to realize how close we actually were.

I didn't take her off of my wallpaper. I didn't remove her chat. I didn't remove her from my life. I still had her hair tye around my wrist, and I still had some hairclips on my bedside table.

This was only temporary, I reminded myself.

Miss Thornhill had moved everyone's seats in Botanical Sciences. Girls were paired with girls, and boys with boys. She sat on the complete opposite side of the class. It felt scary, honestly; to have her so far away.

The past few days have been like a living hell. I'd skip lunch, and have breakfast and dinner alone.

I haven't spoken to Ajax yet, but I noticed that he and Ovia had made peace. So have her and Enid. They all had started hanging out a lot more.

I'm glad that she was a bit better.

Yet I couldn't keep my eyes off her. Yes, she didn't look as happy as she did in the past, but she seemed healing. As long as she doesn't revert back to how she was before the adoption.

~

Now I sat behind the greenhouse, just before midnight, with a cigarette in between my fingers.

It was finally Friday again. School had been hell, and my room had become boring. Maybe I wanted to go to Jericho for the day. I don't know yet.

For now, I was just smoking.

"Hi..."

My head shot to my side, and my eyes met a half-tired Ovia. I almost shot to my feet, but she insisted I stay seated.

"I, uh... I didn't expect someone to be here," she admitted, a light giggle in her voice, but I knew she was faking it. "I just wanted to sit here. Do you mind?"

I instantly shook my head. "No, no. Not at all. Please..."

She smiled weakly, sitting down two feet from me, holding her legs as she arched them to her chest. She looked at the closed greenhouse windows.

"Why are you up?" I asked, hoping to start a light conversation.

She sighed. "Bad dreams, so I struggled to fall asleep... thought I'd get fresh air here."

I just looked at her. Her hair was messy, yet pulled back into a quickly, carelessly done ponytail. She wore shorts and a large jacket, that took me a while to realize was mine.

She slept in my jacket?

"How are you?" I asked, and she looked at me.

"Tired," she admitted, resting her head on her arms. "I'm really tired."

I couldn't help but chuckle. She smiled softly.

"And you?" she asked. "Why a midnight smoke?"

I sighed. "My room is getting cramped," I admitted.

She scoffed softly. "Please. You have a double room without a roommate. You have so much more space than I do."

I chuckled. "A different type of cramped."

She laughed, looking at the greenhouse again. We fell silent, and part of me just enjoyed her being there. Another part bothered me.

I looked at her, seeing her calm.