For the next few days, there was no sign of Troy. Evelyn figured he still wasn't too happy with her, but it didn't matter to her. She was enjoying every minute she spent without him.

Evelyn was finally able to get the stitches out of her chin. She'd almost fainted when getting them out. When she got home, she looked in the mirror and was horrified to see the scar it'd left. It was a rough reminder of what she had to go through for just existing.

     So there evelyn was, bundled up in her favorite blanket while laying on her side. Her room was completely silent. She was all alone with her hopeless thoughts. When she felt somewhat at ease, she began to doze off. She was really enjoying the quiet and comfort when she heard her door open. Thinking it was one of her family members, Evelyn pretended to be asleep, hoping they'd go away, but they didn't.

     "Wake up, Ev," spoke a familiar voice. Evelyn's eyes shot open.

     "Leave me alone," she groggily complained.

     "Not happening!" she felt the bed sink beside her. Troy took off his shoes and laid down.

     "i just want to be alone right now," she said, growing agitated with the situation.

     "Why are you being so depressing?" Troy asked curiously, head turning to where she was cuddled up.

     "I'm not being depressing!"

     "Yes you are. Why?" he countered.

     Evelyn sighed. "It scarred."

     "What scarred?" Troy questioned obliviously.

     "My chin!"

     "Show me."

     Evelyn furrowed her eyebrows. "No."

     "Why not?"

     "It's ugly," she frowned, growing upset at her own words. People at school had already given her weird looks for the stitches, she couldn't even imagine what their faces were going to look like when she showed up with a huge, ugly, pink scar.

     "Show me, Evelyn."

     "Ugh," she fought the urge to roll her eyes as she slowly turned over to face him. His eyes immediately drifted to the tissue.

     "Gnarly," he scrunched up his face. This set Evelyn off.

     "Shut up," she huffed angrily, tossing herself back over to face the wall. "I hate it."

     "Aw," he faked sympathy. "Want me to kiss it away for you?"

     "Never that."

     "Never say never," Troy trailed teasingly. She remembered him saying this when she told him that they'd never be best friends. Now he was insinuating something different, and she hated it.

     "Enough," Evelyn shot her left hand up. She didn't ever want to think about being intimate with Troy. Yuck.

     "You can never get enough of me, nobody can," he joked, pinching her side. She jumped, making a noise of annoyance. She just wanted to sleep.

     "Whatever, Troy. Sure."

     It got quiet for a while after this. Evelyn felt her body get tired again, and she was getting sleepier by the minute. She tried to fight it, not wanting to fall asleep with Troy still in her bed, but she couldn't win. Soon enough, she was out cold.

     A few hours later, her eyes had reopened. The sun had almost set completely, making her room appear too dark for her liking. When she got up to turn on her lights, she noticed she wasn't alone. Troy was still in her bed. Right beside her. He must've fallen asleep with her.

     "What are you still doing here?" she shook his shoulders rapidly. It was nearly impossible for Troy to not wake up.

     "Good morning to you too," his raspy voice letting her know he was awake. His slender fingers wrapped around her wrists, making her stop.

     "You're still here."

     "Yes I am," he raised his eyebrows, annoyed at the way she'd woken him up.

     "Why?"

     "You fell asleep and I got bored, so I fell asleep too," he stretched, finally letting go of his companion's wrists. "Your bed is really comfortable."

     "Well you can leave now," Troy sat up with her, making eye contact. Evelyn could tell he wasn't listening to her. "I've had enough of you for today."

     "Don't lie. I told you, nobody can get enough of me," he sneered.

     Evelyn's shoulders dropped, "You are so annoying."

     Troy shrugged. "You know you love it."

     "No, I really don't."

     "Whatever you say," he winked, his calculated charisma showing. Evelyn rolled her eyes.

     "Why can't you just go home?" she groaned, throwing her head back.

     "I don't want to go home," Troy blurted. Evelyn raised her eyebrow at his uncharacteristically quick response. Usually his replies were snarky and thought out. This one was rushed and felt too natural. She was concerned for a moment. Did he have a fever or something? "You're just so fun to be around," he paused, trying to fix his mistake. "After all, you are my best friend."

     Evelyn glared at him. "You are so full of it," Troy grinned, knowing things had gone back to normal.

     "Stop lying to yourself and admit it, Ev. You love me."

     "Yeah, whatever."

a/n
guysss!!!!
i know this chapter seems
like it's pointless af but i promise
it's not we are making the teensiest
amount of progress yas i'm excited!!
sorry for any mistakes btw i was
like half asleep when i was writing
this LMAO
hope y'all enjoyeddd
vote and commenttt
wc: 870
01.06.22