“Why don’t I walk with you? And you can tell me everything you’ve been up to.”
“Seth -”
An uncertainty eclipsed over Nina’s expression. Seth swallowed, and held her stare.
“I’ve missed you so much. More than you can eve-” he exhaled slowly, because if he didn’t pause, he might just confess too much, “Please, tell me everything. I want to know it all.”
It was the truth, and Nina was certainly shocked by it. Her lips parted, before closing. Her face twitched in the slightest, as if trying to decide on what to feel. What to reveal.
Seth held her gaze, He wouldn’t look away this time.
That’s when her mouth curled into a small smile.
“Okay, I’ll let you walk with me. But you have to promise that after today, you’re not gonna like, block me for a year or something.”
Her tone was lighthearted, though something in her eyes betrayed a serious truth. Seth nodded, reigning a smile of his own.
“I promise.”
Seth continued down the pathway of the field beside Nina, as she began her recount of everything that had happened over the past couple of weeks. Nothing drastic had changed, except that she enjoyed the latest episodes of the recent kdrama she started. She also gushed about a couple of movies she rewatched. Nina mentioned nothing about Carlos.
Seth was curious, incredibly curious about him. He wanted to know more about her feelings, about how deep they ran. Whether it was a surface crush, or something more.
But, for now, Seth let himself bask in her company. He let himself enjoy what he’d foolishly denied himself of, because the absence of her hurt more than he’d ever known.
20
Then
— An excerpt from Nina Mendez’s diary, February 17, 2016
There was only one time that Seth could remember Nina liking someone else that wasn’t him.
Or at least, rumours of such floated around.
It was early into Year 10, when relationships were sprouting more, and whispers of lost virginities were being exchanged in locker bays. Scandals of cheating over the summer holidays, of relationships that weren’t exclusive, and a group that swapped partners was the talk of the cohort.
Yet, one certain whisper seemed to slither its way into Seth’s ears, and rewire everything in his brain.
It was during lunch-time. Seth was engaged in a game of soccer with another group of boys from across different classes. He was sweaty, heated, and in need of rehydration. He made his way toward his water bottle, strewn carelessly on the pavement, and sat down.
That’s when, across the field, just past the soccer game, he spotted them.
Nina and Ethan, a boy from her elective art class, walking side-by-side across the grass. They weren’t holding hands or anything. Just talking. But they were smiling, and clearly happy to be in each other’s company.
“Did you hear?”
A group of girls from his cohort were seated behind him. His ears perked up, as their voices rose in that gossiping manner.
“That Nina and Ethan, I think they like each other!”
Dawn, a friend of Nina's, spoke.
“I hope so, they look so cute together.”
That was Kaley, a girl from Nina’s art class, he believed.
“They better be. Ethan’s so much better than Seth, ugh.”
