Page 4 of One Lovely Lie

There’s a long beat of silence and then a bark of laughter erupts from the phone, so loud I fear that even my sleeping parents must hear it.

“You’re kidding, right?” he asks. His voice sounds incredulous and I wonder if I should have said anything at all.

“Don’t make fun of me, you dick!”

Another beat of silence and then his voice comes through as a timid whisper.

“This is really making you sad, isn’t it? Not being in the same hall? Not being allowed to see each other?”

I sniffle and brush away the invisible tears I didn’t let fall. It’s so stupid to cry over this shit. But I’m so fucking in love with him that it feels like a part of me is missing. “Yes, you asshole.”

Moments pass in silence and I begin to wonder if I’ve driven Magnus away with my overwhelming clinginess.

So what?

So what that Magnus and I have grown up together? What does it matter that we’re no longer attached at the hip? Making new friends is a part of growing up.

Right?

“Daniel, you still there?”

“Yes.”

“Come to your window. I’ve got a surprise for you.”

I smile cheekily at the mischievous amusement in his voice as I comply with his request and hop off the bed.

“This better not be some sort of prank. Let’s see, what?”

I look out my second-story window, and clinging to the sill—his lithe and scrawny body holding on to the frame for dear life, his messy black hair covered with snow—is none other than Magnus Black.

“Are you crazy?” I shout in a hushed tone as I throw the window open. “What are you doing here?”

Magnus shrugs and sends me a crooked grin. “Maybe I’m a bit crazy, what with the generations of brainwashing, but I wanted to come see you. You sounded sad.”

I blush and can’t hide my excitement at seeing Magnus for the first time since we left school for the holidays.

Truthfully, I can’t remember if there was ever a time in our lives when we haven’t seen each other every day.

“Well,” he says, shivering as his fingers threaten to slip off the frame. “Are you going to let me in?”

My jaw drops. Magnus knows no restraint. I cross my arms over my chest in an attempt to dissuade him. “Again, are you crazy? What if my parents catch you?”

“I promise they won’t. I’ll leave early before they’re up,” he insists. “Have I ever let you down?”

No. No, he never has. I can’t say no to him. I extend my hand out and help pull him through the opening and into my room.

“Come on, let’s sit. I didn’t just climb two stories to not cheer you up,” he says, purposefully shaking his head wildly, causing droplets of water to hit my face.

I wipe the dampness off with my sleeve and we plop down on the edge of my bed next to one another. I immediately look down at my hands, trying to ignore how anxious I feel under my best friend’s stare.

“Talk.” He doesn’t pose this as a question. I know that even if he did, I can only give him one answer.

I nibble my bottom lip and refuse to look up. “You’re going to forget about me. You have Ozymandias and Carter, and I’m sure as hell, a bunch of other new friends I don’t know about.”

“Hey,” he whispers, hooking his finger under my chin and tipping my head up to look at him. “Because of a few weeks without seeing each other? Now you’re the one that sounds crazy.”

“Things are going to change,” I insist, not objecting when he grabs my hand and laces our fingers together. His touch is calming and soothing, and it’s all I ever want to feel.

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