His lips are swollen and pink. Because I’m a teenager, I jump to conclusions, and my eyes fall. He notices and twists his body away.
My mouth hangs open. Ten seconds pass.
“Eve.” My voice smashes the silence.
“What?”
“My name is Eve, not Eva.”
“What are you doing here?” His voice is accusatory.
“What areyoudoing here?” I snap.
I close the door of the shed until a sliver of light remains. Not to lock us both in here, but to afford us privacy.
“I saw you—”
“So you followed me?” he demands.
“No! Well—”
“So you did.”
“Let me speak, Noah. I wanted to talk to you, and I saw my chance, and trust me, I’m aware of how weird that sounds. I wanted to say…” my voice garbles, and I sound nervous, like I’m lying. I clear my throat. “I know you were cheating off my maths test this morning. Don’t do it again.”
He blinks.
“The maths test?” I say. “Remember?”
“I remember,” he says, scratching the back of his head. “I can’t believe this is what we’re talking about.”
“Well,” I nod my head, “admittedly, the timing isn’t the best but — the point is, don’t cheat off my test again. Okay?”
He stares at me as if I have a third head. “Fine. Is that all?”
“Yes.” I prepare to leave. “Also, I’m sorry for … choosing the wrong time, and walking in here and—”
“It’s fine,” he says gruffly.
“I thought you were alone — not that you aren’t alone now…”
He coughs. “You saw I wasn’t alone?”
“Um. Yeah, I saw someone leave.”
He hesitates. “Someone?”
“Yes. I saw who left the shed.”
A flash of something run through his eyes. I feel guilty even though it’s an honest mistake. “It’s fine. It’s fine. I…” he straightens up and heads towards the door. “I should head back to class…”
Before he leaves, I call out. “Wait!” I say.
He looks at me, and the light behind him blinds me. I can’t see his expression, but I can guess how he looks.
“I won’t to say anything, I know it’s your own business—”
“Okay, great,” he mutters, and the next second, he’s gone.
