Nadine's Stuck.

THIRTY

Nadine's POV

A singular open window brushes the wind through the dorm, sending goosebumps across my uncovered arms. Morning sun beams through, casting a golden glow over everything.

Akiko hasn't looked at my scars.

Noah has.

Akiko's on her phone, scrolling through social media apps. I'm peeking over her shoulder, watching as she passes models with hair slicked back in tight buns, short clothes clung to their bodies.

"I'm not going to be here next year," she says suddenly, her thumb freezing against the screen. She places the phone on the floor next to her, face up.

I glance anxiously around the room. Noah's on his bed, leaning against the wall; leg pulled up, elbow on his knee as his chin rests in his hand. His eyes droop down and his head dips, but quickly shoots back up as if surprised. 

He's watching us with so much intensity, I almost debate talking to Akiko. But my heart gets the better of me as I lean closer and whisper in her ear, "Why? Are you going back to Japan?"

She's the only person I've talked to since the day of the Valentine's party. A part of me wishes the person I could murmur to would be Cade, but embarrassment clouds my throat every time I see him.

I back up, and she shakes her head. "No. I'm going to America," she takes a deep breath through her nose, "to model."

My eyes widen slightly, though the revelation isn't very surprising. Akiko's tall, slim, with slick, long black hair - the kind of natural beauty any modeling agency would gravitate towards. 

Modeling? I mouth.

"Yeah." She's about to say more when one glance at her phone crashes her train of thought immediately. "Shit - I mean - shoot!" She whisper-yells, careful not to cause another startled awakening to Noah, who, despite his efforts, has drifted to sleep.

Her body blurs with fastness I thought no human could ever achieve. In barely a second, her phone is in her hands, and she's scrolling in the comment section of a post. 

She breaths a bit faster than before, angling the screen to be blocked from my eyeline. "Um...Cade just texted me. He wants you back at the dorm."

I nod, my legs stretching out as I take my discarded sweater from the floor beside me and slip it over my shoulders, my arms masked again.

She stands as well. "Do you want me to walk you to your dorm?"

I shake my head. We're on the same floor. Only a few doors away. A few big and small steps.

Aki walks me to the door, opening it for me. She flashes me a smile, though the slight backwards arch in her eyebrows screams her worry. She side-hugs me. "Love you, Bunine."

A smile back, nodding. When she releases me, I walk out of the dorm. The door clicks shut behind me.

Corridors always seem longer than they are.

Breathe and put one foot in front of the other. Those are the rules.

Laughter echoes through the hall. Boys. 

I stop in my tracks.

It had to be around lunchtime by now. It was most likely a group of friends who had just come back from Dalia's Diner for lunch. It's a known meeting ground for the more popular upperclassmen.

Breathe, Nadia. One foot ahead of the other. Big or small steps, it didn't matter.

I glance ahead. The group of boys - four of them - sauntering past dorm rooms. They took up most of the hall, one of the middle guys? Riley.