The player and the shy girl (english version)

Mixed Signals and Broken Trust

LUCAS POV

"Where am I sleeping tonight?" she asks me, looking worried.

"Right next to my room, there's a bedroom over there."

She smiles at me and looks relieved.

"Lucas, can we go together to Scott's tomorrow?"

"You've decided?"

"If Mia wants to go, I can't say no."

Here's the thing, if they see me with Emma at the party, everyone's going to start talking. I don't want anything to happen that'll piss me off, so I'd prefer we go separately. But at the same time, I can't just leave her alone.

I look at her, unsure what to say.

"I already arranged to go early to Scott's," I answer, trying to sound casual.

Her expression changes, and she gives me a faint, forced smile.

"Will you mind if I bring Mia here?"

"No, bring her."

"Thanks," she says and walks to the living room.

I just stand there in the kitchen, staring into the empty space.

The doorbell rings in the living room. Emma looks at me and signals that she'll get it. I nod and follow her to the living room.

She opens the door, and it's Scott.

Shit. Shit. Fuck.

Scott looks at her, then at me, confused.

Emma steps aside, giving us space to talk.

"What's going on, Lucas? You've got a girl here at your house now?" Scott says, raising an eyebrow.

"Shut up, idiot. She's only here because her aunt knows my mom, and she needed a place to stay."

"So, nothing's going on? You don't even want her here, and it's just because you had to?"

"What the hell, man?" I respond, irritated.

Emma looks at me, surprised.

"Hi, Scott," she says as she grabs her bag and heads straight to her room.

EMMA POV

What the hell did I just hear? Am I really just a burden to him? Sorry for the inconvenience, I won't bother you again.

I grab my bag, say goodbye to Scott, and head to the room Lucas mentioned earlier.

I'm so pissed off right now. They're still downstairs talking.

I hear the front door close, and then Lucas coming upstairs.

I get up quickly and lock the door.

LUCAS POV

As soon as Scott leaves, I rush upstairs. I could see she was upset.

I hear her lock the door. I run to stop her, but she gets to it first.

Damn it!

"Emma, open the door!" I knock, but she doesn't respond.

"Emma, stop messing around, open it!"

"Go away!" she shouts back.

"Emma, open the door so we can talk, damn it!"

"There's nothing to talk about. You already said everything."

"And you think I was telling the truth?"

"How should I know anymore? I can't tell if anything you say is real."

"What the hell are you talking about? Just open the damn door!"

"Oh, does it bother you that you say one thing and do another? If I'm such a bother, you could've been honest!"

"Emma, open the door right now, or I'll break it down!" I shout, furious.

"There's nothing to say, Lucas. I'm done with you."

"Emma, don't make me mad!"

"Goodnight, Lucas," she says, and I hear her turn off the light in the room.

I punch the wall out of frustration and head to my room, turning off all the lights in the living room as I go.

EMMA POV

I've got nothing left to say to him. I'm done.

I don't know how I'm going to survive these next few days, but I hope they pass quickly. I had a feeling I shouldn't have come here in the first place.

The only good thing is that now I know we don't fit together at all, and I don't think we'll ever be more than just acquaintances. And honestly, I don't even want that to happen anymore. It's better this way.

From now on, I'll talk to him like we're just strangers.

I sit here, lost in thought, replaying his words, his actions...

It can't all be random, can it? The sweet words, the kisses, everything...

He's just playing with you, Emma. That's all there is to it. Just remember how things started this year. There's no way you two can end up as friends. It's impossible