[Nicole's POV]
"Hi," I finally answered.
Michael smiled again before sitting next to me, his shoulder brushing mine. My breath caught—completely gone for what felt like forever. Okay, fine, maybe ten seconds, but still. Who forgets how to breathe because someone sits too close? Apparently, me.
"Apparently those two are neighbors," Jay said, pointing at Riley and Samantha, who were sitting so close you'd think they were conjoined or something. His tone was light and teasing, but it made me snort anyway.
"How did I not know?" Jay said, genuinely confused.
"I come to your house all the time," both Jay and Laura said at once, grinning.
"Jinx!" Laura laughed, nudging his arm. Jay grinned and ran his hand through her hair, muttering something about "touching wood." I didn't even know what that meant, but Laura laughed anyway, and suddenly it was like they were in their own little world.
Sus.
"Is there something going on between them?" Michael asked, eyes lingering on Jay and Laura.
I followed his gaze, still tangled in Jay and Laura's weird inside joke. "No," I said. "Not that I know of."
I wasn't sure either. I knew they talked, but I didn't know if it went beyond that. After finding out Samantha and Riley knew each other? Yeah, I wasn't sure about anything anymore.
"But still… there's something going on between them, maybe even if they don't realize it yet," I said.
I watched Michael for a second, trying to read his expression. He didn't answer immediately—just tilted his head, eyes following Jay and Laura, like he was analyzing them… or maybe lost in thought.
"People surprise you sometimes," he said finally, soft, almost to himself.
"Yeah… like when someone randomly knows more about everyone than I do," I said, shrugging.
"Who are we talking about here?" Michael asked, tilting his head. "Because I know I don't know everything, and I'm not random."
"Relax, Michael, I'm not talking about you," I said, nudging him lightly. "If anything, you're mysterious."
He grinned, leaning back a little. "Mysterious? Me? That's a first."
"First? Definitely not," I teased, smirking. "You've got that 'I might be hiding secret missions or just really bad at math' vibe."
He laughed, shaking his head. "Wow. Thanks. I think? But I'm not bad at maths, and I don't think I'm on a secret mission."
"Colour me surprised, but you are mysterious," I said, nudging him again. "Not in a shady way, but in a… nice, don't-break-down-my-walls kind of way."
Michael blinked, caught off guard, then gave a small, lopsided smile. "That's… oddly specific."
"And I'm not that mysterious," he protested, laughing again.
"You are. End of discussion."
"And here I thought I perfected the nice-guy act," he said, smirking. "Not knowing someone already noticed my… 'mysterious smile.' Uh, no."
I laughed, shaking my head. "Mysterious smile? Please. You're more like… quietly plotting your next snack raid in the cafeteria."
He grinned, pretending to jot notes in the air. "Ah, so my secret is out. I'll have to be more careful next time."
"Good luck with that," I teased. "Jay's probably already onto it."
We both laughed, and for a moment, the cafeteria noise faded into the background.
"So… really, why weren't you in school yesterday?" I asked, trying to keep it casual.
"Had some stuff to take care of," he said vaguely, shrugging. "Nothing major."
But the way he said it… I just got the feeling it was more than that. Something heavier, something he wasn't saying, and I couldn't seem to forget about it—maybe because I didn't want to.
"Mysterious, as always," I said with a grin.
He rolled his eyes, laughing. "Yeah, yeah. Don't act like you're not curious."
"Maybe a little," I admitted. "But only because it's suspicious when someone disappears for a day and doesn't get eaten by a zombie apocalypse."
I was making jokes now! But seriously… how many things could staring at a boy this fine really do to you?
"Fair point," he said, laughing again. "Next time, I'll send a postcard."
At this point, we were both laughing—too caught up to notice our friends staring at us like we'd grown extra heads.
"So… um," Jay started, glancing between us. "Is there—?"
"Nicole—" Laura began, her tone teasing.
"I was just saying how Michael is so mysterious, that's all," I cut in quickly before she could say more.
"You are mysterious," Laura agreed.
"Told ya," I squealed, thrilled to be right. If I had been paying attention—and not lost in my little victory—I might have noticed the way Michael was looking at me, like he was seeing me in a way that made my heart skip a beat, and maybe… just maybe.