The Elusive Heart of Nova Hart ✔

43// flavour of the month

FLAVOUR OF THE MONTH

    "You've been spending an awful amount of time with Graham lately," Adelaide commented as she paid for her lunch.

    "So?" Nova asked, making sure her tone didn't sound defensive. She didn't want to give anything away.

    Then again, what was it that Nova didn't want to give away exactly?

    "So nothing," Addy said, eyes lingering on Nova for a few more seconds longer before she turned away and they both walked towards their table.

    It was fifteen minutes later, when Addy was discussing a change in their usual cheer routine with Aubrey and when Nova was laughing along to Piper's story of how she'd hid a cockroach in her brother's shelf of boxers, when Nova heard one of the guys speak to Graham.

    "Hey, isn't that your flavour of the month?" The guy with the buzz cut clapped Graham on the back, nodding towards where Monica was seated with her group of friends.

    Much to Nova's bewilderment, Graham's mouth morphed into a scowl and Tyler covered his eyes like he knew what was coming.

    "Shut the hell up," Graham hissed, eyes aflame with anger, his stance almost... defensive? "She's not a piece of cake. Flavour of the month, my foot."

    "Dude, chill. Relax." Buzz-cut raised his hands in surrender, eyebrows lifted. "No need to get prissy about it."

    Graham's scowl only hardened. "Oh, I'm sorry, would you enjoy being sexualised? How would you like it if you were referred to by the length of your dick?"

    Buzz-cut's cheek reddened and Tyler snorted, eventually leading him to have a coughing fit as he choked on his fizzy drink.

    Graham shot his best friend a dirty look, then grudgingly started patting him on the back, easing his splutters and hacks.

    Nova watched as Graham gave Tyler a roll of the eyes.

    Nova listened as Graham muttered a subtle 'moron' under his breath.

    And Nova froze as Graham raised his head to meet her watching eyes.

    She looked away, consuming a spoonful of pasta like it was any other day.

    And it should have been just any other day, really.  So why did Nova feel otherwise?

×××

    "Really, you should have seen him defend you," Nova told Monica as she wiped the sweat from her face after badminton practises that afternoon.

    "I'm really not surprised he did," Monica smiled, "that's Graham Miller for you."

    Nova sat down on the bench where both her school bag and sports bag were placed on. She began removing her sports shoes, her thoughts running wild.

    "Must be nice huh?" She found herself saying. "Getting to see that chivalrous side of him often?"

    Monica stopped what she was doing and looked at Nova long and hard. Nova wanted to squirm, but she held her own.

    Nova Hart did not squirm.

    "I didn't really," she eventually said, "like I said, we'd never really hung out at all. Didn't invite each other into our personal lives."

    "You use the past tense," Nova commented, frowning slightly.

    "Because it is past," Monica smiled gently.

    Nova's heartbeats picked up its pace. THUD. THUD. THUD. "What?"

    "Yeah, we called it off."

    "Why?" The question was out of a shocked Nova's mouth before she could stop it.

    Monica seemed to falter, as if there was a struggle in her head that Nova didn't know about. "Graham didn't want to continue with it anymore," she said slowly, as if they were addressing a delicate issue here.

    Nova nodded, though Monica's answer only raised up more questions.

Why did he call it off?

Did he finally find someone he liked enough to want a relationship with?

Or did he just want a change in the girl?

Did he perhaps —

    "I've got to get going," Monica's voice pierced her messy thought-stream. "See you, Nova."

    "Yeah... Yeah, bye..." But even Monica could tell Nova's mind was not in that locker room.

    Then again, Nova's mind hasn't been particularly characteristic the past week.

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