Broken

• Chapter 12 •

"Well... This is it."

I scan the courtyard full of teenagers and already regret my decision.

"Can I run?" I turn my pleading eyes to Eric.

"Too late for that, sweetheart," he grins. "You're one of us, now."

I see Aya spot me and tug Hana towards us. "Hi, Eric!" she says in a flirty tone of voice that I realize isn't meant to be taken seriously.

"Hey, Aya, Hana," Eric responds politely.

Aya looks at me and grins, "Hi. Clary, right?"

"It's Clementine," I sigh in exasperation.

She shrugs sheepishly. "Sorry, I suck at names. Especially complicated ones like..." she shuts her mouth and scrunches up her face in confusion.

It's evident she's not the brains of this group, I let out a snort. "You forgot my name again, didn't you?"

"Noooo!"

Eric and I start laughing and she sighs deeply. "Do you have a nickname?" she whines.

I'm hesitant for a second and steal a glance at Eric despite myself. "Call me Clem," I settle.

Minty is reserved for special people in my life. One of them being Eric.

"That works. You ready for your first day of school?" she asks me.

"I am," Hana cuts in. "We look so hot in these skirts!" she waggles her eyebrows.

Eric laughs and Aya sighs in defeat. "I'll leave you guys to it, see you later?" he turns to me.

"Kay..." I feel uneasy being left alone in this unfamiliar setting with these unfamiliar people.

He smirks, "Don't give me that look. I'll catch up with you at lunch. Besides, we have the first period together," he tells me.

I roll my eyes at him, "You suck."

"You love me."

I blush and my heart skips a beat at his words. Of course, I love him, he's my best friend. But knowing it and saying it are two very different things. He seems surprised, too as a blush spreads on his cheeks. His eyes widen slowly and he clears his throat, giving me an awkward half-wave before walking off towards a group of people.

"How do you guys know each other?"

I snap my gaze away from Eric to meet Aya's, "Childhood friends."

"Aww, luckyyyyy!" Aya turns to Hana. "Hana, can we be as cute as them?" she whines, then immediately regrets her decision realizing Hana's going to ruin it.

"Sure! Here, tease me!" Hana jumps in excitedly, I bite my tongue to keep from laughing.

"Fine, I'll say something cute," Hana continues when Aya remains quiet. "You love me," Hana imitates Eric, causing me yet another mild heart attack.

"Just... Stop," Aya sighs.

"You asked," Hana shrugs.

Aya's attention returns to me, a curious look in her eyes. "Have you guys ever..?"

"No, not yet..." I admit sheepishly.

Aya's eyebrows knit together at my suggestion and Hana frowns. "What do you mean, yet? He's in a relationsh—"

Aya nudges her.

"W-What?" my eyes dart from Hana and Aya, what did she say? I could've sworn—

"Eric... You know he's in a relationship, right?"