Nova's Universe

Chapter 17 (2015)

Luna Dora

Exhausted but determined, I quickened my pace when I spotted Vicky in the Great Hall, sitting alone at the Ravenclaw table. Today was the day I'd get some answers from my best friend. We barely spoke in the past two months, and I had to know why.

"There you are! Finally!" I exclaimed, sitting down next to her. But just like every other time recently, she flinched and seemed ready to flee.

"Hold on," I said firmly. "You're not going anywhere until we talk. What's going on with you?"

Vicky rolled her eyes and brushed a stray hair from her face. "What do you mean?" she sighed, finally settling back down.

"Don't play dumb, Vicky. You've been avoiding me since our fifth year started. Are you mad about something?"

"No, of course not," she replied, sounding genuine. My frown deepened. If she wasn't mad, then what was it?

"Then what is it?" I pressed.

"Dora, it's nothing," she mumbled, looking flustered. My mind raced with possibilities, and then it hit me. No, it couldn't be...

"Is it because of what I told you over the summer?" My voice trembled slightly. It would crush me if my best friend couldn't be friends with me because of my sexuality.

"What?" Her eyes finally met mine. "Luna Dora, absolutely not!" Her gaze softened. "Dominique has a crush on a girl now, and she liked a boy last year. It doesn't change anything between us. You're still my best friend, and I completely support you." She pulled me into a side hug, and a genuine smile bloomed on my face. I knew she was sincere.

"Thanks, Vicky. But I still don't understand why you've been distant."

"I haven't been avoiding you," she insisted, but this time, the conviction was missing.

"Yes, you have," I countered, frowning. "We barely see each other anymore. You leave whenever I find you in the Great Hall, and you refuse to hang out after classes. The only time we interact is during lessons, and even then, you disappear the second the class is over."

"As I said, Dora. I am not avoiding you." Her cheeks burned a bright red, and she bit her lower lip.

"What do you mean?" A long pause followed, thick with unspoken words. Vicky seemed to be wrestling with something, debating how to reveal the secret she'd been hiding for months.

"I'm avoiding Teddy," she blurted out finally.

"Teddy? Why?" Confusion clouded my face. "And what does that have to do with me? What do I have to do with Teddy?"

"Everything, Dora," she explained. "You and Teddy are always together. If I'm avoiding him, I can't exactly be around you either, can I?"

"Oh, okay. That makes sense." It was true, Teddy and I were practically inseparable. No wonder I mistook my proximity to him for avoidance.

"But why are you avoiding Teddy in the first place?"

Vicky crossed her arms on the table and rested her head on them, avoiding my gaze. "It doesn't matter," she mumbled.

"Yes, it does," I countered, placing a gentle squeeze on her shoulder. "Whatever it is, it clearly matters to you. Tell me, Vicky, why?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she mumbled again.

"But we tell each other everything, remember? Did Teddy do something to upset you?"

Vicky shook her head. "I can't tell you, Dora. It'll ruin everything."