The Styles Triplets

Chapter 25

We had barely settled into our seats when I caught myself glancing at Eleanor again.

It wasn't intentional. She just had that kind of presence—effortless, composed, the kind of beauty that didn't feel like it was trying to be noticed, yet somehow always was.

"Are you going to introduce us?" I asked lightly, nudging Louis.

He blinked like he'd been pulled out of his thoughts. "Oh—right. Yeah." Louis gave a small, slightly nervous laugh as he gestured between us. "Eleanor, this is Alex and Marcel. Alex, Marcel—this is Eleanor."

Eleanor smiled warmly and extended her hand. "Hi. It's nice to meet you both."

"You too," I said, shaking her hand.

Marcel followed suit, polite and steady as always, before we all sat down properly.

For a second, there was that awkward settling moment—chairs scraping, menus shifting, everyone figuring out where to place their attention.

I broke the silence first. "What a day, honestly."

Eleanor let out a small breath of agreement. "Tell me about it. That whole situation with John... it's just... a lot."

Her expression tightened slightly.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

She hesitated like she wasn't sure how much detail to give. "I just don't understand how someone can say things like that about people. Especially not in school."

Louis leaned back in his chair. "What things, exactly?"

Eleanor looked between us, confused. "Wait... were you guys there?"

We all nodded.

"Oh." She exhaled softly. "Okay. So you know it started with John talking about Harry giving you guys pills, right?"

Marcel shifted slightly beside me, his hand instinctively brushing closer to mine under the table.

"He thought Harry was dealing?" I asked.

Eleanor nodded. "Yeah. But Harry said they were antidepressants—for you."

Her eyes flicked briefly to Marcel as she said it, more careful now.

"John started mocking him," she continued. "Just... being himself, honestly. Making it into a joke."

I frowned. "And Harry didn't take that well."

"Not at all," she said. "He told him off, things escalated fast. Then John started threatening him."

Marcel leaned forward slightly. "What kind of threats?"

Eleanor hesitated. "He said he could ruin Harry. Take away his reputation, turn people against him... all that typical John stuff."

A quiet tension settled at the table.

"Harry didn't care about any of that," she added quickly. "He kept saying it didn't matter."

Louis exhaled under his breath. "That sounds like Harry."

Eleanor nodded. "And then John... shifted it. He started talking about Marcel."

My stomach tightened instantly.

"What did he say?" Marcel asked, his voice lower now.

Eleanor pressed her lips together for a moment. "I'd rather not repeat it word for word."

That was enough.

I reached for Marcel's hand under the table without thinking. "Let's just... not go there."