Chapter Text
North couldn’t help but glance sideways at the boy sitting next to her, Simon. He had a way of drawing attention without even trying. Friendly and thoughtful, with a quiet charm that almost felt out of place here. And as much as she hated to admit, he was undeniably pretty. But right now he was anything but cheerful.
Suddenly Simon spoke with a vulnerability that disarmed her.
“All I can hope for,” he began with a low voice, “is that I’ll get better, because all I can take is no more.” He looked down at his hands, fidgeting with something invisible. “I’ll win him back again. We’ll be...” He paused, almost saying the word ‘lovers’ before correcting himself with a quiet sigh,“Best friends.”
North felt a pang in her chest at the sheer weight of his words. She nodded, trying to offer some small comfort, though her own thoughts swirled. Was this how it always went? Loving someone who might never love you back the same way?
Simon broke the silence, his voice distant but steady. “He needed more than me.”
“What?” North asked, surprised at the sudden confession.
He turned to her, his lips curling into the saddest excuse for a smile she’d ever seen. “I’m friendly and thoughtful and... quite awfully pretty,” he said with a faint edge of pitiful humor softening his self-deprecation, “But he needed more than me.”
The ache in his tone lingered in the air. North stayed quiet, unsure of what to say, but somehow she knew words wouldn’t fix this. For now, she let the silence between them carry the weight they both seemed too tired to hold alone.