FINNEAS
••• Claudia •••
I shivered, pulling my Lloyd's hoody tighter around myself. It'd been a month since the start of school and the temperature had been steadily dropping. I was excited for rainy nights in, but the horrid chill of winter was something I wasn't quite so looking forward to.
Naomi sat beside me, trying to warm herself under the heater of the little coffee-book shop that we had decided to meet Claire and Aaliyah at. They had yet to arrive but then again, we ourselves had only just sat down, shaking off the raindrops from the sudden downpour that had caught us on the way there.
"Damn, autumn's pulling no punches with the weather, huh?" Naomi huffed, peeling off her jacket.
"I know," I sighed disappointedly. "Lloyd wanted to go for a hike through the forest on Saturday but if it's like this..."
Naomi pulled a face. "Since when did you like hiking?"
"Since I got a boyfriend who does," I said simply. "I'd never been hiking with someone who actually enjoys it. It changes the whole experience, really."
Naomi shivered suddenly, wringing out her damp, blonde hair. She stared at the water on her hands in disdain.
"I'm just glad that Cole's not out," Naomi murmured. "He hasn't been able to go outside much because of how temperamental the weather's being. I think it's getting to him."
I smiled sympathetically, patting her shoulder in encouragement.
"He's got the best person looking out for him," I reminded with a gentle smile. "Speaking of, are you two official yet? It's driving me crazy!"
"No, not yet," she grinned, watching as I pulled a frustrated face. "How about Lloyd? Has he talked to you about the, uh... possession and Axon stuff?"
I stilled, staring at the pile of books at the end of the table before slowly shaking my head.
"No... not yet," I sighed, repeating her answer.
I wasn't sure if Lloyd could notice it, but I definitely felt something unsavoury swelling between us the longer he kept avoiding the possession/Axon discussions. I'd given him an inch of space and he'd run off with a mile, declining me at every turn when I'd offered an ear and a shoulder. It made my panic grow with each day.
"I'm worried," I murmured, playing with the strings of his hoody. "Everyone's expecting me to help him, but how can I help him if he shuts down every time I ask him about it? And this situation is so delicate, it's not as if I can just force him to tell me."
"He's probably just sorting it out in his own head," Naomi offered an alternative way of thinking. "And once he does that, he'll turn to you."
"But what if he doesn't?" I groaned, dropping my head back against the seat. "What if he just... doesn't want to tell me? What do I do then? Give up?"
"No, of course not-" Naomi went to console but was caught off by Claire and Aaliyah arriving. She patted my knee before turning to the others, knowing that our conversation about our ninjas would have to wait until we were alone again.
"Sorry, we're late!" Aaliyah chimed, shaking out her curly hair and sliding into the seat. Claire wordlessly sat down, typing furiously onto her phone. "What rain, huh? I love it!"
I plastered on a practised grin, nodding along.
"Right?"
Claire placed her phone down and peeled off her coat, shivering a little.
"It's so cold," she mumbled. "I'm not used to the change in temperature yet."
We fell into an easy conversation, talking about anything that crossed our mind - school, the upcoming concert that I didn't plan on going to see, random bits of gossip here and there. And then Aaliyah directed a question at me.
"How's it like being Lloyd's girlfriend?" she asked.
"Aaliyah!" Naomi hissed, sending the brunette a glare. Aaliyah's eyes widened at her tone and she lifted her palms in a placating manner.
"I'm only curious, sorry!" she defended, her brown eyes jumping to me. "It's just that you got detention on the first day because of what somebody said about Lloyd, right? How have you been handling school since then?"
"It's, uh... alright," I shrugged. "People have started calling me Garmagirl which is, erm... not the most creative. But Chen yelled at someone the other day and since then, it's kind of died down a little."
"Chen is a powerhouse, popularity wise," Claire raised a brow. "How'd you become friends with him again? Didn't you slap him?"
I shrugged. "I dunno. It just happened. Guess he had a bit of a revelation over the summer and stopped being mean to Lloyd."
Naomi subtly raised her brows, knowing the true reason.
"More like Chen's trying to be nice and Lloyd gets jealous as all hell," she snickered, elbowing me. I grinned at the blonde, rolling my eyes. "That boy's possessive. Not in a bad way, though. It's sweet."
