Page 21 of Noah

If I played my cards right, I could make it to the other side without being stopped.

But luck, as usual, wasn’t on my side.

“Noah, wait up!”

That voice.

I tightened my grip on the binder in my hand and kept walking. Maybe if I pretended not to hear?—

“Noah!” Jackson called again.

I forced myself to slow down, my shoulders stiff as he caught up. “What’s up?” I asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

“Where are you headed?” Jackson asked, his long strides easily matching mine as he fell into step beside me.

I scrambled for an answer, something that would sound plausible without inviting more questions.

“I, um, need to help Ethan prep for the roundtable later.” It wasn’t entirely untrue—Ethan had mentioned needing help, and I’d said I’d help if I had time.

Jackson nodded. He didn’t seem convinced, but he didn’t press either. “I see,” he said.

I hoped he could take the hint and leave, but he kept walking beside me.

The silence between us stretched, but Jackson didn’t seem bothered. Then he spoke again, his tone light and familiar.

“That talk earlier reminded me of something. Do you remember when we tried to sneak onto the training field at Silvercrest after dark? Back when the summit was held there?”

I kept my gaze forward, the memory pushing at the edges of my mind. I bit the inside of my cheek. “Not really.”

He let out a low chuckle. “You’re lying.”

I didn’t respond, but the corner of his mouth twitched in that way it always did when he knew he was right. It used to drive me crazy.

“We thought we wouldn’t get caught,” he continued, undeterred. “But Hudson spotted us before we even made it halfway across the field. What did he call us again?”

Despite myself, my lips twitched. I pressed them together and forced my expression to stay neutral.

Jackson laughed softly, clearly enjoying himself. “You have to remember. He yelled so loud, my dad came outside to see what was going on.”

I shrugged, keeping my tone as indifferent as I could. “Maybe.”

Jackson bumped my shoulder lightly. “Come on, wasn’t it your idea to hide in the storage shed?”

I shot him a glare. “No.”

“Pretty sure it was,” he said, grinning.

“It wasn’t.”

“Then where did we hide?” He tilted his head as if trying to recall. “Oh, wait—was it under that old truck near the edge of the field?”

I stopped walking and turned to face him, narrowing my eyes. “We didn’t hide anywhere because you tripped over a rake and gave us away before we even had the chance.”

Jackson blinked at me for a moment before he burst out laughing, throwing his head back.

The sound caught me off guard. I hadn’t heard that carefree laugh of his in years.

“Oh, right!” he said between breaths. “I completely forgot about that.”

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