Genesis || ✔

[ 2 ] Winter

Eventually, Seth and I got acquainted, and I daresay we were good friends. It started with small interactions, like short conversations in the common room between classes and during Elusive gatherings. And then he was eating lunch and going over Color Study with us. Next thing I knew, he was keeping me company when Z was busy doing boyfriend duty and surprise, surprise, Seth and I actually had a lot in common.

Like reading. Both of us absolutely adored reading, especially the classics (his favorite was Little Women while mine was basically anything Jane Austen). And music. Seth was a God-sent when it came to music. He could play practically every instrument you could name (but he favored a guitar) and Z would joke and say that I was finally out-matched (I only played the guitar, piano, violin and a little bit of clarinet).

"I still don't get why you're not writing music anymore," Seth was saying over one of our lunches without Z and June. "From what I had heard, they sound awesome."

"Well," I glanced around, looking at everywhere but him. "It's just something I did when my life spiraled out of control. Now that it's back in my grasp, I don't know, I just don't get inspired much to write." I hadn't told Seth much about my past, and I intended to keep it that way. I didn't want to be constantly judged for what I did and didn't do, especially since it was Seth. And that was why I had my fingers crossed that he would just drop the subject and leave it at that.

Whelp, not with my luck.

"But you should, you know, continue. Don't stop doing what you like and all that. I mean, you're really good at it too."

"Thanks," I smiled. "Actually, it's not that I like writing music all that much, it's just a channel for me to release my emotions. Like some people write in their diaries, well, I write songs."

"Cools," Seth's smile mirrored my own. "So you're like Taylor Swift."

I chuckled. "In a way, I guess."

"I still think –"

Thankfully, I didn't get to hear what Seth thought as Switchfoot's hit song Dare You to Move filled the tiny burger joint.

"Sorry," Seth apologized before answering his phone. "Hello? Yeah... yeah..." He gave me a fleeting look, "Yeah, I'm with Gen... uh huh, alright, I'll ask her. Yeah, see you girls. Bye."

I arched an eyebrow. "Sisters?"

He nodded. "Yeah, they were reminding me about our dinner date tonight. I'm supposed to cook something fancy. It's a weekly thing."

"And my name came up because?"

He cleared his throat, looking a little nervous all of a sudden. "They were wondering if you wanted to join us."

I was sure my eyes were really wide at this point. "Wow, I'm flattered that you tell your sisters about me."

"Yeah, it's uhm –" He paused and scratched the back of his head. Awkwardness suited him well. He looked so adorable that I had to resist reaching over to pinch his cheeks. "They kind of saw us together the other day when we were driving around town and decided that they liked you. They had been bugging me to take you home ever since then, but, you know, it'll be really weird if I asked you because that's what couples in a relationship do. And we're not a couple."

Yet, I added mentally. God, I hoped we'd get together so I could lean over and kiss his cute scrunched up face.

"Aw, I'd love to go. I wanna be able to finally meet the girls after listening to all the stories about them."

"Oh no, please don't tell Kat that I told you about her peeing incident. She'd kill me."

I laughed. "I'd like to see that."

And that was, possibly, how it started – genuine, easy-going friendship. Friendship that held the potential to bloom into something so much more.