Page 92 of Chasing Infinity

The same thing happens later when I run into him right before lunch. He’s with his friends, but they scatter when they see me. They each give Noah a cheesy look and then walk into the cafeteria.

“Hey,” I say. “Why did you hit Eli on the head earlier?”

Noah grips the straps of his backpack and shrugs his shoulders. “He probably deserved it.”

“You need to be nicer to him,” I tell him.

He just gives me a wry grin. “Why?”

“Because he’s my friend.”

“And? I’m your friend too, aren’t I?”

I think back to all the moments Noah and I have had together over the last year, ever since we’ve called our truce, and I reluctantly agree. “I suppose so.”

“So? I get a free pass then.”

“How does that work?”

“You extend Monty and Sully an unlimited number of free passes every day, but you can’t give me one just this once?” he teases me, his bright blue eyes sparkling.

“I think you probably get more free passes than you think. You’re always up to something you shouldn’t be.”

He shrugs his shoulders again. “Maybe so. It’s part of my charm.”

Am I going crazy, or is Noahflirtingwith me? That can’t be right, so I shake my head and squash that notion. “Is that what they’re calling being a pain in the ass these days?”

“Absolutely.” He winks at me, and then his lips pull into a smirk as he says, “I’ll catch you later, Parks.”

Despite my best efforts, I feel the corners of my mouth twitch with a smile at him. He makes it a few paces away before stopping and turning back to me. “You gonna be at the bridge later today?” he asks, a strain of hope lingering in his tone.

“Oh.” Surprise courses through me. “I’m not sure. I’ll need to check-in at the café first to ensure they don’t need help, but I might be.”

He watches me for a moment and then dips his chin. “Well, maybe I’ll see you there, then.”

“Maybe,” I respond, a smile forming on my lips. Noah raises a hand in a wave, then leaves for class.

I’m still smiling when I walk over to the table my friends are sitting at. They all look at me as if I’m from outer space when I approach.

“What?” I ask. “Is there something on my shirt?” My eyes rove over my clothing but I don’t notice any stain.

“What’s up with you and Noah?” Charlie gets the gall to ask. Eli frowns at his food, but I notice a familiar vein in his neck twitch.

“Nothing,” I respond too quickly. “What do you mean?”

“It’s just you two have been almost… cordial with each other. You all always used to be at each other’s throats. Now you can exist together in the same room without casualties,” Charlie replies. “It’s kind of crazy.”

I shrug. “I don’t know. We’ve just had a change of heart, I guess. He’s not actually that bad.”

Now Eli laughs out loud. “That’s where you’re wrong. He’s probably got you right where he wants you. Luring you in, pretending to be a good person until the perfect moment when he’ll strike. If I were you, I’d stay far, far away from him.”

“Good thing she’s not you then,” Grace adds, coming to defend me. “If Addison wants to talk to Noah, I don’t see the big problem.”

“Of course, you wouldn’t,” Eli growls back. “You’ve been trying to get them to hook up ever since you got here.”

Now, Grace glowers at Eli. “Can you blame me? They’d be like a supernova together.”

“I wish you would stop with that. Noah’s not interested in me like that.”

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