Fading Echoes

Chapter 16

"Good morning," I greeted Daisy as she dumped her bag on the table and took her seat next to me in physics class.

"Good morning," she replied, offering a tired smile before spreading her arms over her bag and resting her head on it.

"You seem exhausted," I observed, noting the weariness in her expression.

"Yeah," she sighed heavily. "I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Why not?" I asked, curious. As I spoke, I reached into my bag and pulled out my physics notebook. The girl behind me had been asking to copy the previous day's homework, so I handed it over to her.

"La Llorona," Daisy said, her voice muffled against her bag.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"I was watching 'The Curse of La Llorona.' You know, the movie," she explained, lifting her head slightly to look at me.

"What genre is it?" I inquired, though I had a sinking feeling I already knew.

"Horror," she confirmed.

As soon as she said "horror," my interest immediately waned.

"Never heard of it," I admitted.

She looked at me, eyes wide with surprise. "Never?"

I shook my head. "You don't like horror?" she asked, genuine curiosity in her tone.

"No."

"What's your favorite genre in movies, then?" she asked, leaning forward slightly, clearly intrigued.

I thought for a moment, trying to recall the last time I had felt passionate about a movie. Nothing came to mind immediately. I rarely watched movies and never really felt strongly about any genre in particular. I frowned slightly. "I don't know. I never really thought about it."

"I see," she said, nodding slowly. She shifted her attention to the window, watching the world outside with a distant expression.

I watched her for a moment, feeling a knot form in my stomach.

Did I say something wrong? Maybe I should have shown more interest in her movie choice. Maybe then she would have talked more with me.

I glanced at my notebook and bit my lip. Daisy had seemed excited to talk about the movie, and I had shut her down. Why couldn't I have just pretended to be interested?

As the teacher began the lecture, I noticed Daisy groan softly, her face contorting in pain as she tried to write down notes.

“Are you okay?” I whispered, leaning closer to her.

Daisy sighed, shaking her head slightly. “I burnt my finger this morning while making breakfast. My mom's been sick, so I've been handling everything.”

“Oh no, that sounds terrible,” I said, genuinely concerned. “Do you want me to help with your notes?”

Daisy looked at me, her eyes widening in surprise. “Really? But what about your notes?”

“I can manage both,” I assured her with a smile. “Just pass me your notebook.”

Daisy hesitated for a moment, then handed over her notebook. “Thank you, Eva. That’s really nice of you.”

I placed Daisy's notebook next to mine and began to write notes for both of us, alternating between the two pages. It was tricky to keep up, and I had to write faster than usual to get everything down.

The minutes ticked by, and I could feel the strain in my hand, but I pushed through. By the time the class ended, I hadn’t managed to finish all the notes in my own notebook.