Chapter 87 – Confusion

I slowly awaken to the sound of my digital alarm clock beeping with all the subtlety of an air raid siren. Both my sisters are wrapped around me like I'm a body pillow, and I'm pretty sure I'm actively cooking alive.

"Mmm..." Bianca murmurs into my shoulder, her voice thick with sleep. "Turn it off..."

"Noo... five more minutes..." Selene complains from my right, somehow managing to sound cute even while half-asleep.

So even the perpetually cheerful morning person has a weakness: Early mornings. I file that information away for future reference.

I manage to disentangle myself from the tangle of limbs, and sit up, reaching over Bianca to slam my hand down on the alarm clock. Blessed silence.

I stare down at Bianca, taking in her adorable sleeping face. Her black and green hair is splayed across my pillow, slightly messed up in that way that somehow makes her look even more attractive.

Then yesterday's memories come crashing back like a freight train.

She kissed my neck.

My gaze drifts down to her lips. They're small and plump and soft-looking and incredibly, dangerously kissable—

Okay. Nope. I need to get out of here before I do something monumentally stupid.

I practically vault out of bed, my brain screaming at me to put distance between myself and wherever the hell that train of thought was heading. I drop to the floor and start my morning workout routine.

Push-ups. One, two, three... Did Bianca actually kiss my neck? Four, five, six... Or was I imagining it? Seven, eight... No, that definitely happened. I felt it. Nine, ten... So what does that mean?

Does Bianca like me? When did this happen? How... how am I supposed to act around her now?

I shake my head, trying to physically dislodge the thoughts. Squats now. One, two, three... This is fine. Everything is fine. Four, five, six... I'm just going to pretend it never happened. Seven, eight... That's a healthy coping mechanism, right?

By the time I finish my workout and shower, I've successfully thought myself in circles about seventeen times and arrived exactly nowhere. Fantastic.

Breakfast is, surprisingly, and somewhat disappointingly, exactly the same as usual. Mom's in full mother hen mode, asking about homework and reminding us about chores. Selene is bouncing around the kitchen with her usual morning energy. And Bianca is collapsed against my shoulder like a life-sized gothic doll, barely conscious.

"Bianca, honey, you need to eat something," Mom says, sliding a plate of scrambled eggs in front of her.

"Mmmph," Bianca responds, which I'm choosing to interpret as "thank you, mother, you're the best."

I glance at her out of the corner of my eye. She looks completely normal. Well, normal for Bianca, which means three seconds from spontaneously falling asleep. There's no sign that anything weird happened last night. No secret smiles, no meaningful looks, nothing.

Maybe I really did imagine it?

No. No, that definitely happened. My neck still tingles when I think about it.

"Adam, are you feeling alright?" Mom asks, pulling me from my thoughts. "You look distracted."

"I'm fine," I say, maybe a bit too quickly. "Just tired."

Mom gives me one of those mom looks that suggests she doesn't believe me for a second, but thankfully she doesn't push.

School is no different. Bianca walks me to my first class like usual, still quieter than normal. I'm chalking it up to period cramps, but part of me wonders if she's avoiding the topic too.

We're halfway to my classroom when I decide to just rip the band-aid off.

"So... about yesterday," I begin. "I wanted to ask about—"

"The cake was really good," Bianca cuts me off smoothly, not looking at me.

I blink. "Yeah, it was. Chocolate's definitely your thing, huh?"

"Chocolate’s my favorite." She nods, like this is a perfectly normal conversation and she definitely didn't just dodge my question.

Okay, one more try. "Anyways, I was more talking about—"

"Didn’t finish that stupid English essay last night," She adjusts her backpack strap, still not looking at me. "Think you could help me with it later?"

...Alright. I get it. She really doesn't want to talk about it right now.

Which just makes me more confused about what happened, but sure. Fine. We're doing this.

I decide to drop the topic. For now. "...Yeah, sure. I don't mind." I chuckle, falling back into our normal rhythm. "The essay was really kicking your ass yesterday, wasn't it?"

"Fuck English," she replies simply, and the sheer deadpan delivery makes me laugh. "I hate school."

"Pretty sure that's a universal sentiment." I say as we reach my classroom.

She gives me a small nod, then turns to head to her own class. I watch her go, still completely mystified.

What the hell is happening?

I try my best to focus on my classes while not thinking about the Bianca situation. I'm mildly successful, which is to say I only think about it every five minutes instead of constantly.

But fourth period finally gives me something else to think about. Luna time!

She's already at our usual spot when I arrive, and seeing her makes some of the weirdness from this morning fade a bit.

"Hey Luna!" I say, sliding into the seat next to her.

"Hi Adam..." she replies softly, a small smile on her face.

We fall into our usual comfortable rhythm, flowing between conversation topics.

"So... I downloaded Minecraft... last night..." she says after a moment, and there's this barely contained excitement in her voice that makes her even more adorable.

"Oh yeah? That's awesome!" I lean forward, genuinely interested. I've been spending all my spare time working out or grinding away at my side project, trying to finish it as soon as possible. It's been forever since I've spent any time with Luna outside of school. "You wanna play today?"

Her face brightens. "Really?... I'd really like that... if you're not too busy..."

"I'll make time! Wait, have you ever beaten it before?"

She shakes her head, her purple hair swaying with the motion. “No... I usually just... build things…”

I laugh. "That's literally the opposite of how I play." I grin at her. "I just punch my way through everything and live in a dirt hole. But hey, this works out perfect, you can make us a cool house and I'll go kill stuff."

"I don't know if... my builds are that good..." She looks down, a slight blush on her cheeks.

"I'm gonna hold you to mega mansion standards," I tease. "If you can't build me a castle by tomorrow, you're getting banned from the server."

"That's so mean..." But she's smiling, and there's mischief in her eyes now. "I'll just... make your house… out of dirt blocks then..."

I gasp, clutching my chest dramatically. "You wouldn't dare!"

"I would... and you wouldn't even... get a bed..." She delivers this with such deadpan seriousness that it takes me a second to realize she's joking.

We both break, laughing together.

The rest of the period passes way too quickly, filled with us planning out our Minecraft strategy and debating the merits of different building materials. Her whole face lights up when she talks about building techniques and color palettes, and it's honestly adorable.

When lunch time rolls around, I'm actually feeling pretty good. The Bianca situation is still lurking in the back of my mind, but my conversation with Luna has put me in a better mood.

After a week of being escorted to all my classes by either Selene or Bianca, the murmurs and stares around me have gradually died down.

It's becoming a normal sight, seeing me walk with two of the most attractive girls in school. People aren't making a huge fuss about it anymore. Plus, I've been consistently turning down anyone who tries to start a conversation with me, so people have stopped paying as much attention to me.

Which means the cafeteria is finally safe again.

Luna and I make our way to our usual spot, and the moment we sit down, I can feel eyes on us.

I look up and immediately spot my sisters across the cafeteria. Oh no.

A moment later, my phone starts vibrating.

And vibrating.

And vibrating.

I pull it out and see the group chat absolutely exploding.

Selene: ADAM

Selene: ADAM OH MY GOD

Selene: IT’S LUNA!

Selene: SHE'S SO CUTE

Selene: can we come say hi????

Selene: pleaaaase???

Selene: I can see you reading these!!

Selene: ADAM!!!

Selene: Adam don't ignore me!!

Selene: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE

Bianca: holy shit ur annoying

I look up and watch in real-time as Selene slaps Bianca on the shoulder.

Bianca: ow

Luna has stopped eating, glancing up at me with those big violet eyes of hers. "Is... everything okay...?"

I laugh and tilt my phone so she can see the screen. "Sorry. My sisters are, uh... really excited about meeting you, I guess."

She might as well learn what she'd be getting herself into, right? Whenever she decides to meet my sisters, she needs to be prepared for the personification of golden retriever energy that is Selene Holloway.

Luna leans in, reading through the messages quickly, and I watch her cheeks turn progressively pinker.

I glance up at Selene, who's now staring at me with the most betrayed expression I've ever seen on her face. She mouths "RUDE" with the indignation of someone who's just been stabbed in the back by their closest ally.

Oops. I guess I exposed her by showing Luna the group chat.

Luna looks up soon after, and Selene instantly transforms. She gives us the brightest, friendliest smile I've ever seen from her. She's practically radiating good vibes across the cafeteria, and she throws in a little wave.

Even Bianca tries to look approachable, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly in what might generously be called a smile.

Luna immediately looks back down, blushing harder.

But I wait. This is her decision. I'm not going to push her.

The seconds tick by. I can feel Selene's desperate, hopeful energy from across the cafeteria.

Then, quietly, Luna speaks.

"I guess... it's okay... if they want to say hi..."

Wait.

What?

Really?

Holy shit, that was not what I expected to hear from her. At all.

"You sure?" I ask, because I need to make absolutely certain she's not just doing this because she feels pressured. "Luna, they'll totally understand if you're not ready. There's no rush."

She nods, still looking down at her lunch. "I know but... They seem… nice… I want to… meet them too…”

Okay. This is happening. This is really happening.

I look up, catching Selene's gaze. She's giving me the most intense puppy-dog eyes, her pink eyes wide and full of desperate hope. It's actually impressive how much pleading she can convey in a single look.

I pull out my phone, not quite believing this is real.

Adam: she said it's okay

Adam: you can come over

I hit send and wait for the chaos to unfold.