Echoes of a Silent Beat

Chapter 14: Just Friends...

"Why don't we call Gab? Let's finish this paper!" Angel suggested, her gaze locked on her laptop screen.

"Yeah, I'm not even your groupmate, but I'm the one here with you guys," Mina added, her fingers typing furiously.

"I know, you should be asking your own groupmates for help!" I retorted.

"I'm just kidding! I need you guys!" Mina said dramatically, clasping her hands together.

We decided to call Gab, who gladly joined us. But as we all gathered, our focus on the paper quickly dissolved. Instead, our conversation meandered into a mix of random gossip.

"Did you hear about the music students?" Mina asked with a smirk. "Apparently, they've been giving everyone attitude. They don't want anyone near their building unless they're a music student. It's like they think they own the place!"

"No way!" Angel exclaimed. "Seriously, who do they think they are?"

"Thank god Lexie shifted her course," I said, rolling my eyes. "People there are the worst. I can't even imagine dealing with that kind of attitude every day."

Mina giggled. "Yeah, she definitely dodged a bullet."

Our laughter faded as we tried to refocus, but the conversation shifted again.

"Honestly, some of our classmates are really struggling with their theses," Mina said, shaking her head. "I heard they're barely writing anything. It's like they're not even trying."

"Yeah, we're not doing too hot ourselves," I admitted, glancing at our half-finished paper. "The first half was easy, but now we're stuck. It's like the words just won't come."

Angel sighed. "It's because we're not connecting well as a group. And someone's been really busy lately."

I felt the heat rise to my cheeks. "I'm just trying to keep everything on track, okay? It's not easy balancing everything."

Angel gave me a knowing look. "Or maybe you're just a little distracted."

"What are you trying to say?" I shot back, pretending to be clueless. "You see how hard I'm trying here."

Angel just shrugged, still grinning. "Well, now that we're almost done with our internship, maybe we can finally focus and finish this, right?"

I nodded, trying to steer the conversation back to the task. "Yeah, let's wrap this up and finally get some peace."

But Gab, ever the conversation diverter, had other ideas. "So... Lexie was here? How are you guys doing?" she asked, casually changing the topic.

I paused, trying to keep my tone light and easy. "Oh yeah, we're doing pretty well. We're good friends now."

"Really? Are you completely over her now?" Mina asked, leaning in with curiosity.

"Yeah, we're cool," I said, attempting to sound casual.

Angel raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "Pfft, friends," she muttered, her tone dripping with disbelief.

I rolled my eyes. "What now, Angel?"

"You keep doing things for her that you don't usually do for your so-called friends. You're acting different around her," she said, crossing her arms like she was presenting a case in court.

I smirked, trying to keep the mood light. "What makes you say that? I obviously don't have any favoritism here."

Angel scoffed. "Really? Giggling over her pictures, bringing her meals, saying 'Noelle~ I miss youu~'—should I go on?" She leaned back, raising an eyebrow, looking like she was about to pull out a whole list of receipts.