Next Door || HAMZAH THE FANTSATIC

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝟏𝟎

Y/N

▶︎ •၊၊||၊|။||||| 0:10

I watch as Mandy's expression slowly goes from excited and pleased to see me— to disgusted and annoyed when she sees Hamzah perk up from behind me. 

"You were literally here yesterday," Mandy furrows her eyebrows together once Hamzah is more present. 

Hamzah glances at me briefly before walking past her and inside, shrugging nonchalantly. "Y/N wanted to come," he says simply, offering no further explanation.

Mandy turned her attention to me, raising an eyebrow as if silently asking what I was thinking, her body language questioning why I brought him along.

"Anyways..." She says in a sceptical tone as she watches Hamzah go over to Martin, his face also somewhat confused when he sees that we came together. 

"The place is a bit messy because we're packing." She explains as she leads me upstairs. I nod in response as I look around. 

"Right, New York," I remind myself, and she hums along. 

"Happy Anniversary," I quickly add, stepping over to where she sits on the floor, surrounded by neatly folded clothes and an array of travel essentials. She looks up at me with a smile, pausing in her packing.

"Thanks," she says, her voice warm but distracted.

"It'll be good to get away for a little while, with work and everything, and Martin's really... excited about the trip" She adds on with a faint smile. 

"Yeah, it's like he's always planning something," I say, half-teasing to the idea of him proposing, she lets out a small sigh but I can see the corner of her lips turning upwards at the thought of it. 

I can't help but notice how much they seem to balance each other out. Mandy's organised, and Martin's a bit more... spontaneous, but they make it work.

There's a slight pause as Mandy finishes folding a shirt, and she looks up at me, raising an eyebrow. "How's it going with Hamzah?"

The question catches me off guard, and I shift awkwardly. "Hamzah?" I try to keep my voice casual. "He's... fine. He's been picking me up for school and stuff."

She gives me a sceptical look before softly smiling at me. 

"You guys seem closer," She continues. 

I scoff, trying to hide the heat creeping up my neck. "We're just neighbour—friends" I say almost hesitant to choose a label. 

But as soon as I say the words, I can't ignore the way my heart does a small flip.

"Neighbour friends?" She lets out a small laugh.

I pause, thinking carefully. "I don't know," I admit almost in defeat, letting out a breath. 

"It's just... I don't get it. Why is he so nice to me? I mean, he doesn't even know me that well. It feels like he's always doing stuff for me, like picking me up for school or getting me stuff when I don't ask. Like today he got me a pepsi after my class, I didn't even process it at the time—" I instinctively stop myself from ranting any longer. 

Mandy doesn't say anything for a moment, just watches me with a quiet understanding. "Do you like him?" she asks softly, her voice teasing but not mocking.

I immediately feel the heat rise in my cheeks, but I try to cover it with a light laugh. "No," I say quickly, a little too quickly. "No, I mean, yeah but not like that." I unnecessarily add on.