"Come on, Emma, this is the last question," Reina said, leaning her head against her hand. Emma let out a sigh beside her, looking at the notes on the kitchen table. They had been in this same position for at least two hours, first finishing their homework and now studying different problems. This was their third study session, and surprisingly, it hadn't been completely awful. Reina wasn't being a total nightmare, and she was actually really good at math.
Reina picked up her pen and slid a piece of paper in front of Emma. "Look, all we're doing is proving the 3x+1 conjecture. I'll explain it again. You start with a positive number. If it's even, divide by 2. If it's odd, you multiply by 3 and add 1. It's a simple pattern, but you keep getting stuck."
She started writing down a series of numbers and arrows, and as she talked, Emma just stared at her, completely lost. It was as if Reina was speaking some unknown language "Lost you again, didn't I?" Reina asked, looking up from the paper and laughing softly. Emma simply nodded, unable to hide her confusion.
Reina slid the paper in front of her. "Yeah, I get that a lot when I explain math to people. Don't worry, you'll get it. Everything takes time." She picked up her tumbler bottle and took a long sip.
Emma looked at the paper before looking back at her. "Why are you suddenly being so nice to me, Reina?" It was a question that had been on her mind since Reina offered to help her, and she just couldn't let it go. "Really, what's the real reason?" Reina swallowed a big gulp of water before setting the tumbler down. She played with the lid of the bottle, turning to face Emma. "Can't I just help an old friend?"
Emma let out a dry snort, looking away while crossing her arms. "That's not your style. You're more of the abandoning type."
Reina pressed her lips together, nodding slowly. She let out a small, fake laugh, hanging her head and whispering, "That's fair. I guess moving away a week before catching my mother cheating on my dad in their bedroom, and telling my father just for him to kick her out and become an alcoholic, can do that to some kids."
Emma's eyes snapped back to her. She slowly lifted her head to meet Reina's watery eyes. Emma stared, speechless, shocked by the sudden confession. She never knew any of those things had happened to Reina.
At the time, Reina would have only been around seven or eight. That's a traumatic thing for a kid to go through. If she had known back then, she would have been there for her. But when they met again after the summer, Reina had completely cut her out.
And though she felt bad for her, it didn't change the fact that... "I still didn't deserve the way you treated me," Emma whispered, no longer able to stay quiet.
All these years, Emma had held back how she felt, acting like their friendship never existed because Reina had made it clear she didn't want Emma's friendship. She never said a word to anyone about their past, never told their secrets, or tried to spread lies, while Reina did anything and everything to push her away. Emma had enough.
"If you didn't cut me out, I would have been there for you like I always was, a call or a text would have been all it took but you cut me out of your life! And I was your best fucking friend!" Emma yelled, almost in disbelief, as she stood up abruptly. The room fell into a thick silence, and Emma was practically shaking with emotion. Reina kept her eyes glued to the ground, holding a hand to her chest as if the words had physically hit her.
Suddenly, the front door opened. Emma turned, seeing her parents walk into the kitchen. Her parents looked between them, confused. "Are we interrupting something?" her mother asked while setting her files on the counter. Her father took off his jacket, hanging it up.
Swallowing hard, Emma glanced at Reina, who was looking over at her parents "No... nothing at all. She was just leaving," Emma said. Reina's watery eyes snapped toward her. Emma clenched and unclenched her fists.
"Now, don't be rude, Emma. If this is a friend of yours, she could stay for dinner. How about it, dear? Would you stay for dinner?" her mother asked before taking off her own jacket.
Emma glared at Reina, as if telling her not to dare say yes. She wanted her out of her house and her life this minute.
"I... I... would love to stay for dinner," Reina said.
Emma looked at her like she was crazy. Her father smiled before making his way upstairs to prepare for dinner. "Why the hell would you say that?" Emma said, unable to hold back her words.
Her mother glared at her for a moment, wanting to scold her, but she was working on being more lenient. She just said, "I'll change quickly and come back down to start dinner. It will be ready in a few minutes. So go ahead and continue what you're doing." She walked upstairs, her heels tapping along the way.
Emma fell back into her seat, crossing her arms tightly. "Well, I was expecting your mother to chew your head off for cussing. At least she would have when we were kids."
Emma glared at her before pushing her chair back under the table. "Time changes people. You should know that better than anyone." She picked up her pen.
Reina sighed, not having a response.
Emma clicked the pen on the table. "Why didn't you just leave? Why are you going to stay for dinner?" she asked, drawing random swirls on the paper.
"I want to change, Emma," Reina whispered, looking over at her.
"Why? Because you have no friends and were kicked off your cheer team?" Emma said harshly, looking at Reina with a bitter smile.
Reina flinched before shaking her head. "No. For her," she said, looking down and rubbing her stomach. Emma's eyes widened. "I want to be better for her. I want to be a better person... a better role model for her than my whore of a mother was. I just... want to be better, Emma."
What Reina said left Emma completely speechless. She didn't know if Reina was being serious or just searching for sympathy. All she could do was watch as a stray tear streamed down Reina's cheeks.
Mia note- Would you forgive Reina? Do you think Emma's being harsh? 🤔
YOU ARE READING
It Started With Hello
Romance***** Emma Pear knew she wasn't the most popular girl in high school. Her nose was usually buried in a textbook, and her grades were as spotless as her reputation for always following the rules. "Nerd" was a label she'd long since embraced. Her pare...
