CHAPTER 3

Since their school was just close to the subdivision where they lived, Zeph and Finn usually walked home together. Finn didn't go straight home either since his mom often came home late from her stall in another town. Even though Finn's dad was rich, his mom never accepted anything from him except for the monthly child support—which wasn't even that much because she was the one who set the amount she'd agree to receive for Finn.

Zeph was also mostly alone at home because her mom was a public school teacher at a school quite far from their place, so she often got home late too. Her dad had long left. He was a seaman and one day, he just suddenly stopped communicating and stopped sending support. They later found out he was already living with his mistress.

Her mom didn't go after him anymore. Sure, she was hurt and cried, but she moved on quickly because, even when Zeph was young, he was never really around. He only visited once a year at most. And even when he was on vacation, he only stayed for a few weeks. Her dad was a known ladies' man—handsome and charismatic. Her mom was beautiful too, which was probably why Finn often teased her about who she inherited her looks from. She hated that, though Finn had no idea—because to her, it was like him saying she was ugly, even if it wasn't direct.

Since Finn felt so at home in their place, he went straight to their kitchen once they got to the house. He grabbed the food her mom had prepared, knowing full well there would always be snacks waiting in the fridge since Finn usually dropped by.

While he devoured the food, Zeph headed straight to her room for a quick shower. She had been feeling sticky since their game earlier—it was intramurals week at school, and both she and Finn were players.

She showered and dressed in under five minutes, wearing just a t-shirt and shorts when she came back down. She found him still eating at the kitchen, still in his baseball uniform and cap.

She walked over and grabbed some food for herself.

"Wow, weren't you starving or anything?" she asked, noticing he was already close to finishing what her mom had prepared.

He just laughed.

"And go take a shower! You smell like the sun already!" she mock-complained, though deep down, she thought he still smelled better than she did—even after her shower.

"Oh yeah? And what about you, do you smell good now?"

She didn't expect him to suddenly come close and sniff her hair. She froze. And before she could die of a heart attack, he quickly pulled away.

"You still smell sour," he teased.

Without thinking, she smelled her hair and then her shirt. It smelled like a fabric conditioner.

He burst into loud laughter at her reaction.

She just rolled her eyes and continued eating.

He finished quickly and stood up to leave.

"I'll head home for a quick shower—don't want to embarrass myself around you now that you're all fragrant," he teased again.

She stood up to smack him, but he dashed out of the house laughing.

She just shook her head, chewing and smiling to herself.

After cleaning up their plates, Zeph sat in front of the TV. A little while later, Finn came back. He never knocked anymore. His face looked fresh and clean, and she could smell his soap and shampoo from where she sat. She pretended not to notice.

He sat beside her and grabbed the remote, changing the channel.

"Why don't you watch in your own house?" she snapped.

"I don't want to. I want to watch beside you," he said, winking and casually putting his arm around her.

She pretended to be annoyed, even smirked, but didn't move. She loved the feeling of being so close to him. She closed her eyes and savored the moment.

Soon, she felt her hair by her ear—it was Finn playing with it, tickling her ear. She opened her eyes and grabbed her hair, pulling it away from him.

He laughed loudly.

"You're so annoying!" she growled and pinched his hand.

He fought back and squished both her cheeks.

"You're really cute when you're mad!" he said, still laughing, not letting go of her cheeks.

"Ugh!" she pushed his hand away and scooted a bit from him.

She knew he was staring.

"What?!" she snapped and rolled her eyes.

He laughed before replying.

"Hey, Zephyre Skye, maybe you should stop soaking under the sun. I can barely see your face. It's being buried in the dark already," he joked, half-laughing, but called her by her full name.

She felt like crying at that.

She looked at him, too. They were like coffee and milk. She used to be fair-skinned before joining the softball team. Even her mom had been pointing out her sunburns and how often she peeled. She didn't care before. But now that the teasing came from Finn, it made her want to avoid the sun altogether.

"You'll see once my skin lightens up again, Finnley Bridgeworth!" she muttered, calling him by his full name too, grabbing the remote to change the channel.

He just let her, then laid down on the couch with his head on her lap. He'd always done that, but lately, it made her feel all warm and jumpy inside.

She shook her head in annoyance and tried to focus on the TV. He had his eyes closed when his phone rang. He didn't seem interested in answering it, so she picked it up from the table in front of them.

The number wasn't saved in his contacts, but she answered anyway.

"Hello?"

No one replied, so she repeated herself.

"Hello?"

Still silence, so she was about to hang up when a girl's voice finally spoke.

"May I know who's this?" the girl said in a sugary, fake-sweet tone.

Her eyebrow shot up.

"Uh, hello? You're the one who called. So, who are you?" she answered snarkily.

That's when Finn suddenly opened his eyes, sat up, and grabbed the phone.

"Hello," he said quickly.

Then he smiled and straightened his posture.

"Oh, hi, Tracy. Sorry about that. That was just my cousin. No, of course not—I don't have a girlfriend right now," she heard him say.

Tracy?

That name didn't ring a bell.

Who was she now?