Our Destiny

8. Hey Black

Alex waved with a gentle smile to her younger brother as he crossed the threshold of his school. The boy looked at her, his eyes sparkling with joy. Throughout the journey, he told his sister about how he spent yesterday with their parents at the amusement park. For the first time in a long while, at the mention of their mom and dad, he was genuinely happy, and that was the best confirmation for her that her decision was indeed the right one. The brunette truly enjoyed seeing the wide smile on his face, but inwardly she knew that it was the first and last time she managed to persuade their parents to any outing. Besides, they had already warned her to ask next time if they had time. Only, they never did. And probably never will.

Walker hurried towards her school, pulling her phone out of her pocket and dialing the last number she called, which belonged to her best friend.

"What does your soul desire?" Katie's voice came through just as the first ring ended. It was evident that she was in a good mood that day.

"How soon will you be at school?" the dark-eyed girl asked, glancing at the clock on the wall of the café nearby. It showed 8:05, meaning she had less than half an hour until classes.

"About five minutes, and you?" she asked, and right after, the sound of a passing motorbike could be heard through the receiver.

"If I hurry, I'll be there in ten. Wait for me in front of the building," she said and immediately hung up, tucking her phone away and picking up her pace.

The sun that day only occasionally peeked through the dark clouds. Colorful leaves danced in the wind as they fell from the trees. It seemed like autumn had arrived much sooner than anyone expected. The girl walked so fast that in no time she stood before the school, greeting her friend. Katie immediately began talking to her about today's test, which was really important to her. Alex, hearing how many hours the girl spent with her books, was glad she had no written work awaiting her today. After a few minutes of conversation, the girls noticed three familiar faces among the crowd surrounding them. Logan, Mike, and Chris walked ahead, chatting as usual. This time, almost no one paid them much attention, unlike at the beginning of the school year. Everyone had gotten used to their presence and the fact that they were just ordinary students. Despite the constant rumors swirling around them and articles constantly appearing online about them, people, by observing them daily, realized they were just ordinary, slightly hyper teenagers.

They approached the girls standing to the side, immediately greeting them, and smiles appeared on their faces. Of course, Katie responded to every word directed at her, while Alex, unlike her, just nodded in the direction of the blonde and the brunette. The brown-eyed boy stood next to her, glancing at her for a moment. He still remembered their last, not very pleasant conversation, and he knew he wouldn't be speaking to her at all now.

"Hey, Black," he suddenly heard to his surprise. He looked at the brunette, who was looking at him as if indifferently, although he could see her biting her cheek from the inside. Right after that, he smiled slyly, looking straight into her eyes.

"Excuse me, are you talking to me? Did I mishear by any chance?" he asked sarcastically, though in reality, he felt a strange euphoria that she greeted him, of all people. It was also shocking that after over a month of knowing each other, he finally heard the first words from her that weren't dripping with venom. The girl theatrically rolled her eyes, turning away. Seeing this, Logan smiled to himself, lightly shaking his head. "Hey, Walker."

The rest of their friends didn't even notice their brief exchange, which couldn't even be called a conversation. The others were reminiscing about the bonfire they had yesterday, saying how much fun they had together and insisting they must do it again. Alex was the only one not convinced by the idea; she just stood there among them, feeling completely alien. She didn't want to be here, didn't want to intrude, and, most of all, didn't want to be a part of this.