The moment Ella got home, she went straight to her room and shut the door behind her.
"Ella, aren't you hungry?" her mom called from downstairs. "You just went straight up."
"I'm not hungry, Mom!" Ella shouted back. "Thanks anyway!"
Her heart was already racing as she pulled out her phone and texted Cyril.
Hey.
Almost immediately, a reply popped up.
You're back early. I thought you'd hang around school for a bit.
Ella smiled nervously and typed back.
I just felt like coming home early today. How was your day?
Pretty chill, Cyril replied. I slept a lot. For some reason, I was really tired today.
Ella laughed softly.
Lol, my bad. I can't believe we actually stayed up all night chatting. It was fun though.
Yeah… it was okay, he replied.
There was a pause.
Then another message came through.
It's the weekend tomorrow. Think we can hang out?
Ella's cheeks burned the moment she read it. Her fingers hovered over the screen, her heart pounding—
And then her phone went black.
"No… no, no, no!" she groaned. "Seriously?!"
She scrambled around her room, searching everywhere for her charger. Under the bed. On her desk. In her bag. Nothing.
"Oh man… he's going to think I'm ignoring him," she muttered.
Frustrated, she rushed out of her room and asked her mom if she had seen her charger.
"No, I haven't," her mom replied. "Try asking your brother. Ethan might have it."
Ella stormed straight into Ethan's room.
"Do you have my charger?" she demanded.
Ethan looked up calmly. "Yeah. I do. So?"
"Give it to me! My phone is dead!" she snapped.
"Relax," he said, rolling his eyes. "I just borrowed it. Mine wasn't charging well."
He tossed the charger at her. Ella caught it easily.
"I hate you," she muttered, storming out.
Back in her room, she plugged in her phone and rushed to take a shower, her mind spinning the entire time. By the time she was done, her phone had powered on.
The first thing she did was open Cyril's chat.
It's the weekend tomorrow. Think we can hang out?
She replied quickly.
Yeah, definitely. Why not?
Five minutes later, another message appeared.
I thought you were ignoring me.
Ella's heart skipped.
She explained immediately that her phone had died before she could reply.
Oh, okay. That's fine, Cyril said. So… are we hanging out tomorrow or?
Yeah, sure, Ella typed back.
Then came the message that made her breath hitch.
So it's a date, huh?
Ella's cheeks turned scarlet. She stared at the screen, biting her lip, a shy smile forming.
Maybe… she replied.
Okay then. It's settled, Cyril texted. I've got a few things to take care of. See you tomorrow, okay?
Okay. No problem, Ella replied.
She dropped her phone onto the bed and stared at the ceiling, her heart racing.