[completed] Nova Carter knows exactly what the next few years of her life will look like: she will work harder than anyone else (as she didn't get into New York University to slack off); she'll be keeping her head down and prioritizing getting her a...
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Chapter Fifteen | Awake
♫Awake by Electric Guest
I wake up to mumbling and the smell of blueberry pancakes, and it transports me back to my parents' house.
My Dad, in particular, always knew Flynn, Sofia and I didn't like waking up to grey skies. Usually the weather we woke up to determined what kind of moods we started the days with, and knowing we'd have to go through the cold and the fog and the rain to get to school didn't exactly excite us.
So, he started what he called 'good mornings'. On the coldest, greyest, foggiest, ugliest days, the house would smell like pancakes and the table would be set and the stereo in the living room would blast some jazzy Norah Jones or calming Amos Lee or, if my mother hijacked it before we got downstairs, some Colbie Callait or Alicia Keys.
It's why, when I smell the pancakes and blink to see Elle's living room come into focus, I fully expect it to rain outside.
But it's sunny. Rainclouds are approaching slowly, but for now the apartment is drenched in a slow golden light, casting long, faint-blue shadows across the furniture. I pat the top of my head to fix my hair and sit upright, glancing at the kitchen.
Right around the corner, I can see Elle and Flynn stand hip to hip at the kitchen counter. They're swaying side to side as they speak quietly, in opposite directions, so that every other second their hips softly bump together.
"Maybe call Katherine and Gregory first," Flynn suggests.
I perk up at the mention of Elle and Logan's parents. For a blissful few minutes, yesterday's events completely slipped my mind. I forgot about the pills I found in Logan's bag, the note that came with them ("do better"), and later the comments on his Instagram post.
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He's been gaining muscle mass and the team's been hyping him up. Now that I know what seems to be going on behind the scenes, it isn't as sweet as it is sickening.
Could it be possible to make such a switch when going from high school to college? From cafeteria king, star of the field, to victim of the team?
I can't even imagine what this must be doing to him, mentally. Them giving him those pills means they don't think he's good enough. And them convincing him to take them means he doesn't think so, either.
