Game Theory × NH

096 | curium

× Mercury

"Who's Hazel?" Chloe asked.

I looked up from my phone. She was lying in bed, the covers up to her chin, watching me. We had turned the lights off an hour ago after Jace and I got back to the room after sitting in one of the lounges talking about what happened. Now he was sleeping on the floor next to my bed. His roommate was out for the night and he didn't want to be alone. I was happy to let him crash at my place. I didn't give Chloe the option to refuse.

"She was a friend of his," I explained as simply as I could.

When Jace and I were talking in the lounge, I had asked him why he didn't stay at Niall's. There was more room there and the Lee House was closer to Niall's then mine, not to mention the two of them were closer than the two of us.

"After I got the news, I called Jamie," Jace had confessed. "She told me to go spend the night in your room, so here I am. Maybe because you're female and naturally have mothering instincts, I don't know..."

He ended up trailing off, but he didn't need to continue. I knew Jace and Niall were really close, but there was something about men crying in front of each other that they didn't do. Like it was in the Official Bro Code or something. Either way, I was happy to comfort him since I knew he put up with a lot of mine and Niall's drama these past few months. It was the least I could do.

I looked down at the sleeping boy on the floor. It was strange to see him so peaceful when only an hour ago he was clinging to me, balling his eyes out. It made me sad, too, seeing him broken like that. Jace was one of the nicest, purest guys I knew and he didn't deserve for a friend of his to die.

"I don't know Jace that well," Chloe started. "But I've heard some really nice things about him. Is all that true?"

"Jace would take a bullet for a rat," I confirmed.

Chloe nodded and pulled the covers up further, covering half her face. She looked drowsy with her slow movements and droopy eyes. But I wasn't ready to go to sleep yet; I had some questions for her.

We were on rough waters because of her snooping through my things, but Chloe was never one to give an answer just to make you feel better. She was completely honest and upfront about things, which is why a lot of people call her a bitch. She might have a lot of issues, but that blunt attitude was the one thing I liked most about her.

"Do you think I'm conceited?" I asked her.

She looked at me oddly, brows furrowed. "No," she answered simply. "I mean, you're letting a boy sleep in our room because he didn't want to be alone. That doesn't say conceited to me."

I looked at Jace's sleeping body and then back at Chloe. "Am I a slut?"

"Jesus, Lynn. Where are these questions coming from?"

"Just answer them. Please."

Chloe sighed and rolled over on her back, running her hands down her face. "No, you're not a slut. I thought you didn't like those kinds of words, so why would you even think that?"

I shrugged but didn't say anything. I knew that girl in the bathroom was only saying those things because she was jealous, or maybe she honest to God really thought of me as a slut, but either way I knew better then to takes those words to heart. I've been called worse, so I had no idea why this was affecting me more than usual.