best friends | e.d. ✔️

f o r t y - o n e

nova's pov :

"she's my best friend alison! my best friend! nothing more! nothing less!"

i rub my arm for comfort and feel tears brimming at the top of my eyes. grayson rubs the back of my hand to calm down and perla plays with my hair to prevent me from having a panic attack.

i fall onto the hallway carpet of the hotel and push myself into a corner of the wall. grayson and perla also join me on the floor and go back to what they were doing before.

"i was tired. i didn't mean to come off that way-"

perla shakes her head, indicating for me to stop talking and i bury my head into grayson's shoulder, letting my salty tears fall onto his white shirt. he runs his hands through my hair and perla holds onto my hand, playing with my bangle.

"you don't need to apologize for anything novs. alison is just being a jealous bitch." perla breaks the silence

"i mean... i was being touchy-"

"ethan is always touchy with you. he's protective. if she doesn't understand that, she can fuck off." grayson scoffs

perla chuckles quietly and i see grayson give her a stern look.

"stop!" he mouths

she starts laughing even louder and i chuckle into grayson's shoulder.

"i told you, i laugh when i don't know what to say in a situation!" perla chuckles

i wipe away my tears and look at grayson's stained white shirt. chuckling to myself, i try to brush off any remaining tears and he chuckles at my attempt to fix up his shirt.

"nova, it's fine. it's just a shirt."

i smile and help myself up, grabbing onto the railing along the way. grayson and perla follow my actions and they stretch their arms.

"can we go to our room before ethan and alison see us?" i ask anxiously

they nod immediately and i practically run to our room, not wanting to risk anything. grayson pulls out our key card and i let them walk in first. when i'm about to walk in, i hear ethan's room door slam shut and i watch as he tugs at the roots of his hair.

something he does when he's frustrated and doesn't know what to do in a situation like this.

"you can't just kick me out alison! that's my fucking room!" ethan yells

hearing no answer, he kicks the wall of the hallway and slides down it. he buries his face into his knees and sighs deeply. i look back at grayson and perla and they slouch onto the bed, turning on the tv. i shut the door quietly and sit down with ethan. not noticing my presence i kick his shoe gently and his head shoots up, giving me a sad smile.

"i'm sorry. i didn't know she would-"

"you don't have to apologize. she's just being bitchy and jealous. i've never even seen her like this." ethan says

i nod and set my head on the wall, staring up at the ceiling lights.

"wanna go on a walk? i know that's always calmed you down?" i ask

not answering me, he grabs my hand and pulls me up with him. he runs to the elevator and i suddenly stop.

"ethan! my phone is still-"

"my phone is still in my room too. c'mon n."

i smile and nod, running into the elevator with him still holding onto my hand.