𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 & 𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄 ━ girl meets world²

11│SEMI-FORMAL SETBACKS

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❛ ʟᴇᴀᴛʜᴇʀ & ʟᴀᴄᴇ​​​​​​​​​​. ❜ ° . ༄
- ͙۪۪˚   ▎❛ 𝐄𝐋𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍 ❜   ▎˚ ͙۪۪̥◌
»»————- ꒰ sᴇᴍɪ-ғᴏʀᴍᴀʟ
sᴇᴛʙᴀᴄᴋs ꒱


❝ TELL [ SHAWN ] I STILL
THINK HE SUCKS FOR DITCHING
MY MOM AND THAT I HOPE HE
AND HIS COMMITMENT ISSUES
ARE VERY HAPPY TOGETHER ❞

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"Mom!" Miya exclaimed as Juliet and Jonah walked off the jetway. She ran forward and threw her arms around the older woman. One of the many nice things about taking a private jet was that they got an entirely different terminal than the other travelers so she could wait at the gate to meet them. Farkle had waited with her, though he'd been far less enthusiastic about this whole ordeal than she was.

Juliet let go of her luggage and hugged her daughter in return. "It's good to see you, honey. You know, you've been in America so long you've completely lost your British accent."

The brunette rolled her eyes and pulled away, smiling. "I never had a British accent in the first place."

"Oh, right. My mistake," the dark-haired woman teased her. She went to go greet Farkle, who welcomed her warmly.

"What, no hug for your best friend?" Jonah asked, his words laced with a faint but genuine British accent. Miya had never thought of him having one, but he did; since her mom had been American through and through— and that's what she grew up hearing the most— she never got to speak like her peers. Jonah, however, actually had an English mother, though his accent wasn't as strong as some of her other classmates'.

She hugged him as well and looked up at him. He'd had another growth spurt so now he was almost a full head taller than her. It simply wasn't fair. When she released him, he went over to her other best friend and stuck his hand out. "Hey, mate. It's great to finally meet Miya's other best friend. I've heard a lot about you."

Farkle looked down at Jonah's outstretched hand, then at his face, then back at his hand again. Other best friend? Oh, no. No, no, no. He was Miya's best friend. Jonah was the other one.

He forced a smile as he clasped Jonah's hand, but instead of a polite shake, he squeezed— hard. Hard enough that he hoped Jonah would wince, maybe even pull away. Unfortunately, the guy barely reacted. If anything, he seemed amused.

"Yeah, I guess it's nice to meet you, too," Farkle said, his voice just a little too sharp. "Though for the record, I'm not Miya's other best friend. You are." He squeezed a little harder for emphasis.

Jonah's lips twitched. "Oh? Is that so?"

Miya blinked between them, confused by Farkle's uncharacteristically unfriendly tone. "Uh, what?"

Juliet, meanwhile, simply watched with an expression that suggested she had seen a similar scene play out before.

Farkle finally let go, resisting the urge to shake out his hand. Jonah was stronger than he looked. And taller. Unfair. "Yeah," he continued, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I mean, Miya and I have been best friends for years now."

"So I've heard," the British teen responded pleasantly as they began to walk towards the doors. "We have, too. We grew up next door to each other— maybe you heard about that? Actually, I think that means that Miya and I have known each other longer than she's known you."

Farkle scoffed, crossing his arms. "Yeah, but that doesn't count."

Jonah raised an eyebrow. "It doesn't?"