Diamond Names (ON HOLD//EDITING)

Ten

The next day at breakfast was eerily quiet. Julia sat with Eva and Miles as always, but none of them had said a word the entire time.

Julia picked around at her slice of French toast. She wasn't really sure why she got it; she didn't feel hungry.

"So what did you guys do after...you know?"

Miles shrugged. "Not much. We just kinda hung out, played Halo a bit over at my place."

Julia nodded. "Cool."

This whole meal was growing more and more awkward by the minute.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Eva asked. "You were kind of a mess yesterday."

"Yeah, I'm fine." Julia ran a hand through her fiery hair, trying to play it cool. The table dissolved into silence once again. Miles and Eva exchanged awkward glances. Julia pretended not to notice them. She rested her chin in her hand and stared off into space...

"Julia."

Seeing Eva's hand waving in front of her made Julia jump. "What?"

"I don't know if you really care, but Tyler just walked in, and it looks like he's headed this way."

Julia looked up wildly, trying to find Tyler's recognizable hair. She locked eyes with him towards the center of the cafeteria, and sure enough, he started walking towards her.

In a panic, Julia grabbed her backpack and slung it over one shoulder. "I don't want to talk to him." She shoved her near empty tray towards the center of the table and pushed in her chair. "Cover for me?" she pleaded.

"Julia, he's already seen you," Eva protested. "He's gonna follow you."

But Julia had already started walking away. "Not if I get far enough."

Once she had left the safety of the cafeteria, she took off, sprinting as far away from the building as she could. Up ahead she spotted a small square of grass in the middle of campus, with a wooden bench and a rather tall tree behind it. Julia ran the last few steps before reaching the patch. Panting, she sat down on the bench and removed her shoes. All she needed was a couple of minutes of peace and quiet.

"You've gotten a lot faster since I last saw you."

Julia jumped at the sound of Tyler's voice. She whirled around and found him standing up against the tree, his trademark smirk spreading across his face. "Well, I didn't run track freshman year for nothing," she retorted.

He smiled, genuinely this time, at her sarcasm. "So you still run, then? You thought about joining the track team? You could easily make varsity."

Honestly, Julia had no idea the school had a track team. Then again, whenever Keaton Academy came up in a conversation at home, the sports were not usually a topic of conversation.

Tyler walked over to the bench. "May I?" he asked. Julia shrugged. 

He snorted. "Well, I'll take that as a yes." He sat down next to her. "So how are you?"

"I'm good." Julia still didn't want to talk to him.

It was silent for the next couple of minutes. Tyler sat awkwardly with his hands resting in his lap, staring off into space. Julia began to feel uncomfortable.

"Hey, listen," Tyler began, "I'm sorry about last night. I didn't mean to make you run off."

"No, you're fine, really," Julia said quickly. "I had just had a rough day, and that whole...whatever it was at your place just really weirded me out, and I was just frustrated, that's all."

He looked over at her. "Yeah, about that...what do you think?"

"About what?"

He laughed. "The meeting. For the project?"

"Oh." Julia wasn't sure what to say. Of course, she had no interest in any of the Reject to Royal project, but if Tyler was one of the leaders, then he obviously wanted her there for a reason.

"You don't want to do it." Tyler sighed, looking down at his feet.

"I never said that."

"Julia, you have an incredible gift, and that is when you don't think highly of something, you have a way of telling people without saying a word." He laughed and started to get up.

"I just don't understand what the point of it is," Julia argued. She got up and followed him. "The letter promised popularity, but why? And at what price? I'm not so sure I even want to be popular, anyway."

"Everybody wants to be popular, Julia," Tyler said.  His voice sounded sad. "I'll tell you what - why don't you come to at least one more meeting? That way, you can get a better idea of what we do. And if you still don't want to be a part of our group, then you can leave, and I'll never mention it to you again. Okay?"

"I don't know..." Julia nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"C'mon." Tyler cupped Julia's cheek in his hand, making her look up at him. His smirk had returned. She just about melted at his sudden touch. "For me?"

She couldn't refuse him now. He knew it, too. Julia sighed. "Fine. One more meeting."

Tyler smiled, removing his hand. "Pleasure doing business with you, Julia. Meet me in my room on Sunday, okay?"

Julia nodded, returning his smile. "Okay."

As Tyler walked away, Julia sat down again, suddenly becoming aware of the goofy smile on her face. She buried her head in her hands. How could she be so stupid? Tyler had held more power over her than ever in those past five minutes. She hated feeling smitten any time she passed him in the halls. But then again, she hadn't seen him for a year. Maybe he's changed...

She would go to this meeting. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad.

Author's Note:

Is it just me, or was this a very awkward chapter? I guess I passed my social anxiety onto Julia...whoops. 

Anyway, now we have a slightly better look into Tyler and Julia's relationship. Do you think there's chance they could get back together? Julia probably wouldn't mind...

Next couple chapters will give us more details about the Light's Men and the members behind it. 

Song: Clocks by Coldplay