Page 27 of The Secret Of Us

“Izzy, are you sure you’re okay?” Noah asks, and this time his hand does come up to my shoulder. His fingers trail gently down until he’s grazing my upper arm, and it sends shivers down my spine.

His eyebrows are creased, worry in his eyes, and there’s so much sincerity in his question that I tell him the truth.

“I’m not,” I confess and a tear escapes before I can stop it.

More people flood into the entryway to make their way out of the building, and Noah must see something in my eyes because he guides me toward a small alcove, hiding us away from everyone else.

“You don’t have to tell me what’s wrong, but I’ll listen if you want to talk,” he whispers.

We’re standing so close that he doesn’t need to speak any louder. I stare down at our feet, his placed on either side of mine like he’s creating a shield around me. I clench my jaw, trying to figure out a way I can explain why I’m upset without exposing everything to him.

“My parents didn’t show up tonight,” I tell him, hiding the reasonwhythey didn’t. I sniffle, wiping at my eyes and nose and shaking my head. “I’ll be fine, I’m just being dramatic.”

I look up at him, hoping he’ll see the fake smile on my face and think that it’s real. He tips his head to the side, focusing his eyes on mine, and I know he doesn’t.

“You’re not being dramatic,” he says softly. “I’m sorry they weren’t here for you tonight.”

“Thank you,” I say, and his fingers squeeze my arm gently before he lets go of me. I want his hand there again, I want him to ground me so I don’t feel like I’m floating away.

“Do you want me to walk you to your room?” he asks, and my heart skips a beat at how lovely he is. This boy who barely knows me, and who I keep forcing into conversations and a friendship, might actually care about me.

“I’ll be okay,” I reassure him and myself.

He nods, moving closer to the wall and giving me space to leave. I step past him, my arm brushing his. He hooks his pinky into mine and I stop in my tracks, my heart racing. I don’t look up at him, a heavy exhale leaving me at the small contact. I close my eyes as he drags his finger down slowly, letting go of me.

“See you tomorrow, Izzy,” he whispers.

I step away from him, exiting the building and leaving him behind before I do something stupid like telling all of my secrets to the boy with beautifully sad eyes.

10

IZZY / NOAH

IZZY

“When willyou understand I don’t want to talk to you?”

We’re a few weeks into the school year now, but Ryan is still relentless in trying to have a conversation with me. I’ve done my best to avoid him. I get to homeroom right before the bell rings so there’s no time for him to hound me. I can easily dodge him in the corridors or at all meal times. I’ve done everything I can but today he’s caught me.

It’s Friday, and he hasn’t bothered me yet this week, so I figured he’d given up and I was safe. I came to homeroom a little earlier to see if I could talk to Noah about yesterday, but he’s not here.

I want to thank him properly for being so kind to me during a weak moment when he could have easily continued speaking to his parents and ignored me. I wonder what he said to them before he came to my side. Luke knows Korean because of his girlfriend Jinhee so maybe I can ask them to teach me some.

I also want to check if he’s okay. The rumours about him still haven’t died down. I think they’ve gotten worse, actually but I can’t be too sure. Whenever I hear people mention him, I get as far away from the conversation as possible. It’s been bothering me from the start, but I don’t know how to stop them.

“I think you owe me some kind of explanation.”

I almost forgot that Ryan was standing in front of me. He’s got his palms pressed flat on my desk, staring down at me in a way that he probably thinks is intimidating but he just looks ridiculous.

“I don’t owe you anything,” I tell him, shoving my finger into the crease of his arm so that it buckles.

He loses his balance but catches himself just in time before his face collides with the desk. The laugh I let out is so loud that everyone turns to look at us. Ryan pockets his hand and I can see his jaw clench as his face starts turning bright red.

“Isabelle, you’re just being silly now,” he hisses.

“I’mbeing silly?” I repeat, wanting to make sure that he knows who he’s actually talking to.

“Yes, you are. I don’t know what game you’re playing with that new guy, but it’s not a sensible one.” He bends at the waist, bringing his face closer to mine, and I push my chair back. “People have started talking about you now, too. Did you know that?”

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