Chapter Thirteen: Bruises, Boards, and Bad Timing
(Zaria's POV)
A week had passed since The Football Incident, and I still couldn't walk past the field without my forehead tingling in memory.
Emma wouldn't stop teasing me.
Maya wouldn't stop glaring at Emma.
Not in a mean way — just… the kind of glare that said you're new here; I was here first.
I got it.
Change had a way of shifting everything, even the small, safe parts of friendship you thought would never move.
Still, Maya stuck close to me like always — sitting beside me in English, walking me to lunch, swapping snacks we'd packed from home.
Sometimes, though, when Emma joined us and laughed a little too easily, I'd catch Maya's smile stiffen.
And I knew she missed the version of me that didn't have to split time between then and now.
---
The day of the skateboard disaster started off fine.
The autumn air was crisp, the sky pale blue, and I had convinced myself that the universe had run out of ways to embarrass me.
Spoiler: it hadn't.
Maya and I were cutting across the courtyard when a shout rang out—
"Move!"
I turned just in time to see a blur of motion — wheels, sneakers, panic — before a skateboard shot past me and clattered against the bench.
I stumbled back.
Someone grabbed my arm to steady me, warm fingers wrapping around my wrist.
"Oh no," a voice groaned. "Not you again."
Miles Patel.Of course it was fate has a funny humor.
Helmet half on, hoodie hanging off one shoulder, eyes shining like he'd just walked out of a music video and knew it.
I yanked my arm free. "You have something against my face or what?"
He grinned. "Nah, I think your face has something against gravity."
Maya snorted. "Wow. Original."
He glanced at her. "You must be the best friend. The one who glares like she's doing algebra in her head."
Maya's smile was razor-sharp. "And you must be the reason Ria owns half the nurse's ice packs."
Emma, who appeared out of nowhere, laughed. "You two have history already?"
Miles smirked. "More like a medical file."
I rolled my eyes and bent to pick up the skateboard. "Here. Try not to aim at people next time."
He took it from me, fingers brushing mine.
The touch was brief, but my pulse tripped anyway — stupid, unpredictable heartbeat.
His smile softened for half a second before he masked it with cocky confidence again. "You sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine."
"You always say that when you're not."
"Are you a doctor now?"
"No, but I've got good instincts."
Maya tugged at my sleeve, muttering, "Let's go before he almost kills you again."
We walked off, and I swore I could feel his gaze follow me — the kind that made my stomach feel like it had swallowed electricity.
---
Later that week, I met Ethan Rivera.
New transfer student.
Quiet. Kind smile. Sat next to me in History.
He had this calm energy, the kind that steadied the chaos around him. When I dropped my pen, he picked it up before I could reach. When I got lost in a maze of class schedules, he walked me to the right room without asking too many questions.
"Zaria, right?" he said one afternoon. "You're in my physics class too."
"Ria," I corrected with a small smile. "And yeah. Lucky you."
He laughed softly. "Guess we'll both survive this place together."
Maya adored him immediately. "Finally," she whispered, "a guy who doesn't come with a helmet or a football."
I pretended to agree.
But my eyes still drifted to the window — where, outside on the field, Miles Patel was spinning his football in one hand, laughing with his teammates.
He caught me looking once.
Our eyes met for just a second.
He tilted his head, smirked, and mouthed something I couldn't quite hear.
But I could guess.
Show-off.
---
That night, during my usual call home, Ma asked, "So, how are the boys there?"
I choked on my tea. "Ma!"
She laughed. "I'm only asking! Any nice ones?"
Maya, overhearing, burst out laughing. "Tell her about your accidents, Ria!"
"Accidents?More ones?" Ma repeated.
I groaned. "Long story, Ma. I'll tell you later."
But when I hung up and lay in bed, staring at the fairy lights on my wall, I couldn't stop replaying it — the way Miles had looked at me like he knew exactly how to get under my skin.
And the way, somehow, I didn't entirely hate it.
---
End of Chapter Thirteen.