BAREFACED

Chapter 54

"What do you mean you aren't Yuki? What are you talking about?" Eli says in a confused tone. Your heart starts racing and your chest begins to hurt.

Why did I tell him that? You think to yourself. You panic trying to think of a way to explain it to him. You take another deep breath and then look back at Eli. He stares at you waiting for an answer.

"Mmm... Well... I randomly woke up one day in this body..."

"You randomly woke up in that body? I don't understand..." He huffs. You furrow your eyebrows and soften your eyes.

"The day the both of us went to Yuki's grandparents house... the same day where I saved you from Toman guys... Was the day I appeared in this body..." You answer. Eli's eyes widen. He slowly looks straight ahead and then down. His eyes relax a bit, and he slightly smiles.

"I had a feeling..." He softly says. Your eyes widen and you quickly look at Eli in shock.

"What? What do you mean?" You question. Eli looks back at you and smiles.

"When you followed me to the art room that day... and asked me to go with you to your grandparents house is when I realized something was different about you..." Eli implies. You raise an eyebrows and look at him confused.

"I don't think I understand... You realized that fast?" You ask. Eli softly chuckles and then takes a deep breath.

"I didn't think you were someone else... but I did believe you were different. It was like a sudden switch- a very random switch." He picks the can back up and shakes it a bit before taking a sip. He slowly looks out at the street and rests his arm on his thigh. You tilt your head to look at him, your hair falls to the side as you do. "You know... the Yuki I met or knew before... she was very- quiet and... obedient... If that's the word for it... She would always follow Hana around and would do anything anyone told her. She wasn't much of a talker and was mainly a follower. So, when you followed me into the art room to invite me to come with you to your grandparents it surprised me." He places the can down and looks back at you. "Everyone else noticed it too..."

"Noticed me being different?" You ask. Eli slowly nods.

"Hana was the first one to point it out... At first, she seemed very weird about it but lately she had told me you weren't Yuki... she thinks Mikey tainted you... I thought the same thing. But I didn't really think you were a different person." Eli chuckles. You furrow your eyebrows, looking at Eli confused.

"Why are you laughing about this... Do you think I'm joking?" 

"No. I don't think you're joking. I do believe you... It actually makes sense... a lot of sense in a way. You have a completely different personality than Yuki does. You're the complete opposite than she was..." He laughs. You feel very off in this situation. His responses feel unreal and strange... Why does it feel like he isn't taking any of this seriously?

"You're laughing about it... but doesn't this upset you? I'm not the friend you met... I'm-" Your eyes widen, and you look away feeling a sense of confusion and shock.

"You're?" Eli leans towards you waiting for you to speak.

"I- I can't remember..." 

"What do you mean?" He questions.

"I can't remember who I was before I had became Yuki..." You softly say. Eli stares at you and looks out at the street again.

"I question... If you're in Yuki's body... then where is Yuki?" He asks. You slowly look at him with a sad look on your face, he looks back at you waiting for an answer.

"That's the complicated part..." You sadly say.

"What do you mean?" He questions. You scratch your head and rest your hands on your thighs.