THEM

Chapter 15

Aithne hadn't talked to Raph in four days. She knew Isadora missed him, but surprisingly Isadora had stayed by her side, even if that meant spending much less time with Raph. She felt a bit guilty for being responsible for the distance between them, but she had to remind herself it was Isadora's choice. Isadora and her walked into the breakfast hall and Aithne's heart squeezed slightly when Isadora glanced sidelong to where Raphael was sitting with his other friends. He was laughing, his head tossed back, as if he was having the time of his life. He didn't laugh so loudly with them.

They went over to their usual table at the back of the room and Aithne was about to set her tray down when she noticed she was about to cover something laid on the table with it. It was a small square of paper with something on it she couldn't quite make up. She sat down and picked it up gingerly, bringing it closer to her face and felt Isadora's head over her shoulder, as she looked on curiously. On the paper was a short cartoon strip. A strikingly handsomely drawn tall boy with golden hair and a girl with recognisable red hair. There was a speech bubble above the boy with 'I'm sorry' scrawled in it. In the next frame, the girl said: 'You're a jerk'. On the next one: 'A very sorry jerk. Please forgive me, I miss you guys'. On the next panel, a small cloud was drawn next to the girl with the word 'huff' and a speech bubble below: 'You know it's impossible to say no to that gorgeous face'. In the final panel, the two characters were hugging. She could feel Isadora's face break into a smile and she couldn't stop its reflection from emerging on her own. She glanced over to where Rapahael had been when they had walked in and he was staring straight back at them, a hopeful look on his face. He stood up and walked over to their table, taking slow, steady steps as if gauging her reaction to his approach. When he was only a few steps away from her he stopped, his soft lips upturned in a hesitant smile.

"I'm sorry." He said.

Isadora's eyes were bright and full of hope as they all awaited Aithne's answer in breathless silence. Aithne couldn't believe these two best friends had barely talked to each other for the past days out of respect for Aithne's choice. She had never been the priority in anyone's life; even with Jeremiah, they had always given each other space; never stepped over the line from being a pleasant annexe to someone's life into being their entire life.

"You are a jerk." She said, undermining the words with a widening of her smile. She closed the few steps between them and wrapped her arms around Raphael, sinking into his strong hold as he immediately returned the hug. She reveled in the embrace for a few moments, allowing her walls to break down once again, ignoring the voice desperately trying to hold them up, reminding her that if any of the two people next to her ever did something that hurt her again, it would annihilate the stable structure previously protected by those very walls.

A loud clang sounded as someone set down their tray abruptly and Aithne removed herself from Raphael's embrace to see V sitting down next to them, his signature scowl on his face.

"Back to buddies?" He asked dryly. Aithne quickly turned away from him; the ache of his last words to her throbbing once again at the sight of him.

"Oh, look. He is aware of the interactions of the people around him." Isadora snipped back snarkily.

V settled on glaring at her, evidently not coming up with anything to retort back. Raphael and Aithne sat back down at the table next to each other and Isadora clapped her hands together excitedly. "Look at that! The band is back together." She sighed dramatically. "It's been so long."

Aithne chuckled. "It's only been a few days."

"Well, they felt like a long time."

"Hey," Aithne frowned at Isadora. "We spent that time together, if I must remind you."