𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐘𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐇 𖤓 - 𝐒𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧.

DEKAENNÉA.

"Chauffeurs just messaged me, he's fifteen minutes away," Lyssa sighed as she sat cross-legged on Felix's bed, shutting off her phone.

"-Hurry up and complete this question so I can help you on the next!"

Felix, who was propped up against the headboard of his bed, twisted a biro pen that he was holding against his lips in concentration as he studied the textbook in his lap.

"I don't understand." He flatly concluded, slamming the book dramatically shut and looking upwards to Lyssa, who huffed hopelessly at his short-fused reaction.

"It's not that difficult, Fe." She reassured, shuffling closer beside him to reach the book discarded in his lap.

"I'm feeling pretty stupid for an Oxford student." Felix chuckled, dragging an exasperated hand over his face as Lyssa skimmed over the glossary in hopes it'd inform him better.

"-Maybe I should ask Ollie for help?,"

Lyssa swallowed so hard she could've sworn she felt her oesophagus sprain at the sheer amount of force.

"What? What's wrong?,"

Felix read her expression immediately, sitting up to provide an aid.

He placed a supportive hand on the small of Lyssa's back, adjusting his body to face opposite her instead of beside her on the large king sized poster bed.

"Nothing."

Lyssa cleared her throat dismissively, continuing to flick through the pages of the textbook, hoping Felix would withdraw his frantic concern.

"No, Lyss." He asserted, "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"It's just-,"

Lyssa couldn't quite find an appropriate way to phrase her concerns, but she thought Felix was entitled to know the truth about his guest of honour.

"I think Oliver's been watching us, Fe." Lyssa lowered her voice cautiously, even glancing towards the shared bathroom the boys had, as if she were expecting Oliver be there.

"What? Lyssa-," Felix let out a bitter chuckle of disbelief, "That's insane."

"Why-," He stammered at the shocking allegation she'd pinned against his friend, a hand frantically combing through his hair.

"Why would he do such a thing?"

"I don't know, Felix!"

Lyssa raised her voice - sitting up abruptly from his bed, starting to pace in short lengths repeatedly in the middle of his room.

"He's your mate!"

"Lyssa, calm down." Felix descended his voice a great handful of octaves lower, "I'm sure that's not what he's been doing."

"I know that's what he's being doing."

Lyssa retorted in a now defensive, prickled tone - for Oliver's sweetheart demeanour had fooled Felix, but it had never fooled her.

"And how do you know this?" He sighed, also sitting up from his bed to meet her where she had stopped pacing, and stood.

He placed a hand comfortingly on each of her shoulder blades, as if he were grounding her.

"He-," She hesitated, her teeth beginning to peel away the flesh on the inside of her cheek from the anxiousness this situation bestowed upon her.

"He told me."

An agonising silence bestowed itself upon the room - the distance between the two, now more unnerved - teenagers was filled with a shared feeling of nausea.