Both Sides | ✓

Chapter 16

A/N:

Just a heads up!! The next few chapters will be from Olivia's POV. Enjoy! 🤍

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I woke up to an empty bed, just like that morning at Cleo's. The morning that felt like years ago. Light flooded in past my curtains onto the space Cleo had slept the night before. I wondered if she had woken in my arms and got freaked out. Maybe I scared her off. But, before my mind could wander any further, the bathroom door creaked open and in stepped Cleo Roberts, dressed in my clothes and smiling back at me.

"Oh, hey. You're up," she said, and I nervously began to occupy my hands with the comforter.

"Morning," I said. "How'd you sleep?"

Cleo pressed her back against my doorway. "Fine. But, I've got to get going soon. You know... Work."

She's lying. She just wants to get away from you.

"Oh, " I said. "That's cool."

Why did you think Cleo would want to settle for you again?

"Yeah, " she said.

I looked at the alarm clock, trying to break eye contact with the girl in front of me. 10:49 AM.

"Oh, god, I slept in. I'm sorry, how long have you been up?"

"Ummm, " Cleo hummed, thinking for a moment. "Since 8."

My eyes widened. "What? Cleo, why didn't you wake me?"

"Well, you look really peaceful. I didn't want to bother you, " she gave me a grin that I returned with a frown.

"So you just hung out alone for almost 3 hours?"

"Uh... Not exactly-"

"CLEO!" a voice called before swinging open my bedroom door. "Oh, hey Ollie, " Allison teased before swinging her gaze back onto Cleo. "Ready to get back?"

I gave Cleo a puzzled look from my bed. "We, uh... We were playing Minecraft, " Cleo said through a chuckle.

"Cleo's really good too. And since you didn't bother waking up..."

"Don't you have your own friends, Ally? I'm sure Cleo doesn't want to hang in that cave you call a bedroom for any longer, " I retorted. Allison looked toward Cleo, awaiting her response.

"Uh, it's been fun, Allison. But now that Via's up..."

She shrugged and gave Cleo a grin. "It's cool. I'll be in my room if she starts boring you to death," Ally joked, backing up. Before closing my door, she mouthed to me, "she's so much cooler than you."

I grumbled something under my breath and fell back onto my bed. Cleo sat beside me, pulling her phone in front of her. "I'm sorry you had to hang with my sister for 2 hours."

"Sorry?" Cleo responded, her eyes still glued to her phone. "Allison's cool."

I scoffed. "She is not cool. She's a pest."

"I think she's cool."

I glanced at Cleo who was vacantly swiping on her phone. She got like this the morning after our last sleepover too. I remembered her house, how maybe if I had said something everything would be different. If I hadn't brushed off her silence, we might be more than friends right now.

"Cleo, " I said. "Are you okay?"

She blinked up at me. "What do you mean? Of course, I'm okay."

"I don't know..." I gulped back my hesitation and looked her in the eyes for the first time in a while. "You haven't been acting like yourself. Ever since... Well, our last sleepover. You've seemed different. Maybe it's just me.."