Chapter 1
Felix
The three of us sit in a row against the counter on our barstools. Millie, one of my best friends on my left, and Laney, my other best friend on the right. We all each have a few pieces of paper in front of us, all with the same numbers and letters scattered across the page. The light floats in from the large glass doors behind us, and crumbs sit on the plates in front of us. We’re all in Year Ten, although I’ve heard some of the teachers thinking about moving Millie up a year and doing her GCSEs early.
She’s already ahead of us in her working, although she’s been working on it for a shorter time than us. She’s on the third page, staring blankly at it in front of her. She's the smartest person I've ever met, and has one the 'Academic Achievement' award at our school three years in a row. Me and Laney are still only on the first page. I sit between the two. In the background, I hear the music Millie chose playing quietly. I recognise it from TikTok- 'Cardigan', by Taylor Swift. She has a new obsession with 'Folklore'. Although I understand why she loves this album, listening to it on repeat day after day gets a bit tiresome. Her head bobs up and down non-committedly to the beat. She seems to refocus on her work again, as her eyes flit almost fitfully over the page. She seems to understand, as she scribbles down some notes and starts doing some working out. I don't understand how her brain computes maths so quickly. I can barely do 3x3 without a calculator.
We’re recapping bearings and angles for the 1800th time. Our maths teacher, Miss Johnson (also our drama teacher and the Year 7 biology teacher) sent people out of the class using bearings. She sent one boy out the class who didn’t return. Our lessons with her are always very chaotic, but we're getting a new teacher soon. Millie likes her, but I find her a bit annoying, and doesn’t always explain things in the best way to us. Probably why we're so behind. Laney doesn’t mind her. She always splits us up, which annoys him, but he works better in quiet conditions. Both me and Millie need a second stimuli while working- music, some podcast, any background noise. Hers is always Taylor Swift, whereas I prefer to listen to True Crime podcasts. I like the music she plays though, so I don't mind.
Millie’s really pretty. Currently, she has her bark-brown hair swept up into a messy bun. Her hair has come loose and fallen to frame her face and skimming her jawline. A pair of honey-brown eyes stare intently at the page before her. She’s currently wearing a pair of tight black leggings, and a cropped white t-shirt, along with a baggy chunky cardigan. I'm surprised she doesn't have a boyfriend already. She's got boys falling for her left and right. She smells like she always does- musty, but also a bit sweet. A hint of baked goods. It's one of my favourite smells, other than the smell of the sea and rain.
On the other side of me sits Laney. If I didn’t like Millie so much, I’d definitely date him. His hair is blonde and messy and sticks up a bit at the back. He has blue eyes and is currently wearing rainbow eyeshadow and purple mascara and eyeliner. He looks amazing, and the colours make his eyes look more green than blue. He wears a light purple hoodie, soft and comfortable (I should know, I’ve borrowed it) and white cargos that look amazing on him. I could never wear his current outfit. Beneath the chair he sits on is a pair of platforms, hastily thrown off, and a kraken bag. He’s frowning at his work, his pencil tapping evenly against the island. He doesn't understand math anymore than I do. We should get Millie to tutor us.
Personally, I don’t think I’m that bad looking. My hairs pretty dark, and curly. It falls past my eyes, but springs enough that I can see properly. My eyes are a dark brown. They’re normally pretty unremarkable, and only look good in the sunlight. Millie and Laney always call the sun ’Nature’s filter’. I’m starting to agree more and more. I wear my usual- a white vest that I found on the floor, and a pair of black jeans. As I look back at my paper, I look at the underside of my wrist again. Everyone, for as long as anyone knows, has always had three tattoos, forming a triangle. At the top is my own, a rather plain and boring eye. Underneath on the left is a flower, kind of artsy, belonging to Millie. We’ve known this ever since we met on the way to school in EYFS. The other one I don’t know who it belongs to, but one is my soulmate and the other is my mortal enemy. Millie’s definitely my soulmate and not my mortal enemy, but we haven't talked about it. The feelings will come. I'm sure of it. She's sure of it.
Tomorrow will be our first day back at school, and it couldn’t come any slower.
“Who’s that?” Millie asks. She's got that look in her eye she gets anytime Taylor Swift plays.
We’re inside for breaktime as its dumping buckets of water outside. There’s a guy standing in a corner, where two bookshelves stand at a right angle with a space between them. He’s holding a book, but clearly isn’t reading it. He stands straight, his shoulders back. His hair is close cropped, showing off his sharp jawline and high cheekbones. He's objectively very attractive, but he looks dangerous. His eyes are bright and blue, staring straight at Millie, and I feel a sick feeling in my stomach, and a pounding in my ears. I feel a heat in my stomach as he smiles at her, and she smiles back.
“Let’s steer clear of him.” I say. ‘He looks like trouble.’ Laney’s gone to book club, so I have no one to back me up. I know Millie would have loved to go, but she can never bring herself to. She ignores my comment, however, and walks over to him. He glances at me behind her and gives a smirk which he quenches quickly.
The start talking, and they start to get closer and closer together. I start to feel a lump clog up my throat and a heat in my stomach I haven't felt in ages. Before I can do anything rash, though, the bell rings and we line up for our next lesson. In the rush, me and Millie don’t manage to find each other until we stand in the line. “So, how’s the new boyfriend?” I ask her, without thinking.
“We only talked for like, five minutes. It’s nothing.” She replies. I see a flush start up her cheeks and her mouth twitches, but she keeps a stern face. Her tells are too easy.
“But you like him?” I ask, flatly. I know the answer, whether she says it or not.
“Well, he seems nice. He’s got good taste in books and has a good sense of humour. Other than that, he’s just another teenage boy.” Oh great, we've found crush number- wait, what number are we on?
“So, I heard ‘he’s just another teenage boy’? Who are we talking about, Taylor Swift’s first ex or Millie’s thirteenth crush of the week?” Laney jumps up behind us, as though from no-where. Millie looks scandalized at the mention of her idol, and I give him the death stare. “What? Either is as likely.” He widens his eyes in innocence.
“Millie’s got a new boyfriend.” Millie squeaks and slaps me across the chest. I feel the burn creeping back in my stomach.
“So, you two broke up?” Laney says smirking. He receives a punch to the arm and I smile.
“One, he’s not my boyfriend! We only talked for five minutes!” She insists. "And second, me and Felix never dated!" She aims this statement at Laney.
Despite what she says, I know from both personal and second-hand experience that five minutes is all it takes to fall in love. Especially for her. Me and Laney share a look, expressing the same thing.
Before I can mull over it too long, the teacher calls us into the lesson.
It’s maths. I can't do this at 11.15 am.
