The school day proceeded as usual, though Elias noticed that Lila was acting somewhat… different.

  She wasn’t avoiding him outright—she still talked to him, still sat next to him in class, still poked his arm whenever she wanted his attention. But there was a certain hesitation in her movements, like she was thinking too much about them.

  That was unusual for Lila.

  At lunch, she sat across from him in the cafeteria, resting her chin in her hand as she played with her food. Normally, she would launch into some random conversation or complain about the amount of homework they had.

  Today, she was quiet.

  Elias observed her for a moment before speaking. “You are behaving differently.”

  Lila immediately choked on her drink. She coughed violently, grabbing a napkin as she turned away.

  “Elias!” she wheezed. “You cannot just drop things like that out of nowhere!”

  “But it is true,” he said.

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  She let out a strangled groan before burying her face in her arms. “You are soimpossible.”

  “You say that often.”

  “Because it’s true!” she cried.

  Elias waited patiently as she dramatically flopped onto the table, refusing to meet his eyes.

  After a moment, she peeked at him from under her arms. “Why do you care if I’m acting different?”

  “Because I am trying to understand you.”

  Her fingers tightened slightly around the fabric of her sleeve. “You really don’t get it, do you?”

  “I do not,” he admitted.

  Lila sighed, sitting up straight again. She tapped her fingers against the table, clearly debating something in her head.

  Then, finally, she asked, “Elias, have you ever liked someone before?”

  “Yes,” he answered without hesitation.

  Lila’s eyes widened slightly. “What?”

  “You are my friend,” he said. “I like you.”

  Lila stared at him for a long time before groaning into her hands. “Not like that, you idiot!”

  Elias blinked. “Then clarify.”

  Lila mumbled something under her breath.

  “I did not hear that.”

  She let out a deep sigh, dropping her hands onto the table. “I mean like romantically. Like when someone has a crush on someone else.”

  He thought about it. “No. I have never experienced that.”

  Lila stared at him again, her expression unreadable. Then she leaned back in her chair and muttered, “Of course you haven’t.”

  Elias tilted his head. “Does that upset you?”

  Her grip on her drink tightened. “It shouldn’t.”

  “But it does.”

  She refused to answer.

  Elias watched her carefully, taking in every detail—the way her fingers trembled slightly, the way she wouldn’t meet his gaze, the way her face had been turning red more frequently lately.

  Lila was feeling something.

  And for some reason, it had to do with him.