That Monday when I had to return back to school could be compared to that moment after someone dumps a bucket of water over your head. Confusing, and a struggle at first to figure out how to breathe once more, but eventually I cleared the water from my eyes and blinked enough to capture my surroundings and get back to reality. 

How could I look my friends in the eyes knowing full well my father was once part of a rebellion group, the one that their parents almost died fighting against. Then I would remind myself that my father left the group as soon as the focused shifted to simply antagonizing the Black Swan. My father was a good man, and I knew that. I just wanted everyone else to feel the same. 

Should I tell them?

That's the main question that constantly circled through my mind. Was it important enough to share? Would anything change if I did? Would it have a negative effect if I didn't? 

I was standing at my locker, collecting my thoughts and my things, as Blythe made her way over me grinning. "You must have had an interesting weekend!" 

I snorted. "Yeah, that's one way to put it," I replied, making sure to give her a quick smile so she knew I wasn't ignoring her before I turned back to my locker to continue switching out the books I would need for my class. 

"Did your parents ever get around to telling you the big family secret they've been keeping from you?" she questioned curiously. 

"Yeah," I responded without explaining any further. I was done switching out my books and closed my locker so I could turn to her and give my full attention. 

"Are you going to share or...?" She looked at me expectantly. 

"I'm not sure." I looked off to the side and noticed Eamon standing with his cousins, looking to be in a deep conversation. Specifically with Serena. I let out a sigh and confessed, "It was a really big secret and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to tell. If I'm allowed, I have to be realistic. I can't just shout it out here in public where people's ears might be a bit too open." 

"Well, yeah, I get that," Blythe replied, rolling her eyes. "Just, I'm very interested to know. Was it really that big?"

"It was pretty big, and also pretty bad," I admitted. "I definitely don't want to talk about it, my parents didn't seem all to eager to share the moment either." I let out a small huff before moving into the direction for my first class. 

"Alright, well, we'll meet up at lunch like normal, right?" Blythe smiled gently at me. 

"Of course," I responded, returning her smile with my own. "I love you," I practically sang. 

"I love you too," she echoed before turning into the opposite direction to go to where she needed to be. 

My morning session, thankfully, went off without a hitch and I was able to get a control over my emotions and be able to focus entirely on my studies. I knew with all of the drama going on in the background of my life, it could be easy for me to drift away from school. But I also knew that due to the fact that I was coming from two parents who, according to the view of society, never manifested into any abilities, it was especially important that I proved my worth through my schooling. I was one of the top students in our level and I refused to let myself down. 

By the time lunch came around, I had almost completely pushed the weekend's events out of my mind and was able to walk around with a real grin on my face. That was, until I walked up to the lunch table and the only person sitting there was Serena, looking at me with narrowed eyes and her arms crossed. I wasn't sure what to do, and being me my reaction was stand awkwardly next to the table and look at her in confusion. 

"Please, sit," she gestured to the seat I'd normally take. "I don't bite." 

Looking at her warily, I gently placed my food tray onto the table before taking a few seconds longer than normal to sit down in my chair. "Is there something going on?" I asked, confused as to why she would not only be sitting at my friend's and my table, but also be sitting there so early that she would be the first one there. 

"Me and you need to talk, and I am here to inform you that I happen to have an open schedule after school today. I will be waiting outdoors and you can leap with me home," she informed me. Informed me. 

"Oh, well, actually-"

"I'll see you then. Eamon will be here to sit with you and for transparency sake, he and I are not currently on speaking terms and I don't want to have more fuel against me as he's obviously going to assume I'm here to ruin your life or whatever." She rolled her eyes and stood up before walking away to where Genesis and her school friends were, taking a seat beside Genesis and saying something to her. 

Just as she walked away Blythe took the seat next to me, a questioning gaze on her face. "I'm sorry, what just happened? Can you tell me this one?" 

I shrugged. "I honestly have no idea. She said she wants to talk with me, and I guess her and Eamon aren't talking right now?" I ended my explanation with my voice going into a higher pitch, as if I was asking instead of informing. "This day keeps getting weirder and weirder." 

"Speaking of weird," Eamon inserted himself, taking the seat on my left that Lyra would normally occupy. Lyra followed a step behind him, and didn't hesitate to take the seat on Blythe's right, "I'm not sure how to exactly word this, but, we've been summoned."

"We?" I asked, confused. 

"Well, my sister was asking about you and how everything is going and your parents came up, and I told her about they know about your abilities now. Now that your parents know about everything and are okay with it, she says that the council wants to revisit your decision about your privacy and wants your parents to come to the meeting being that they are your guardians and should have a say." 

"Okay," I said, drawing out the word slowly. 

"I'm sure someone will send out the scroll explaining everything to your house today, I just wanted to give you the warning so that you're prepared and everything." He gave me a gentle smile and I gave him a smile back. 

"Thank you," I said, almost grinning. My head snapped into my friend's direction after I heard Lyra's soft giggles. "What?" I asked her, confused as to why her and Blythe were laughing. 

"Oh, nothing." Blythe waved her hand and immediately switched the topic, "Okay, so to avoid awkwardness, I've been talking with Arrowe." She gave me a pointed look when I immediately sat up in interest. "He says he wants to go hang out. He referenced inviting you, and I don't want to make it seem like I don't want you there, but-"

"Tell him I'm busy," I immediately told her, interrupting the rest of her sentence. "Maybe if you treat it like a date he'll actually get the balls to ask you on one." 

A blush rose onto her cheeks as Eamon spoke up, "Honestly, Blythe, you deserve to have a guy who genuinely wants to be in your company and be with you." 

She stared at him in surprise, tilting her head to the side as she responded, "Thanks?" 

"What?" he asked, confused as I also turned to look at him in confusion. 

"Why are you being so... nice?" It was Lyra who asked, and I was surprised at the fact she felt comfortable enough to speak up. While we had been sitting with her at lunch for years, it warmed my heart that she was now feeling comfortable enough to let her guard down around us.

Oddly enough, this included Eamon. 

"Am I usually rude?" he asked, worry filling his features. "I don't try to be. I know my mom says that I lack a filter, and that I'm just like my father and instigate situations I probably shouldn't, and that-"

 I decided to cut off his rambling by gently placing my hand on his arm. After spending that afternoon together at his house, where he admitted his insecurities over his personality and how he felt that the only friends he had were friends with ulterior motives, not friends who genuinely liked him for him, I understood his rambles and I understood him. 

"We've been over this," I tried to keep my voice low to avoid my friends listening to what could possibly be a private moment. 

"No, I need to get this out. I talked with you, but I haven't talked with them," he responded, before switching his attention back to them. "Lyra, in level one Mika was the one to actually put the reekrod in your locker, but I'm going to admit that it was me who made the the coast was clear and it was me who picked which locker. I didn't know whose locker it was when we did this, I just noticed that your locker was left open by accident and it was easier to do yours than someone we actually knew. I didn't really think through the consequences, and when we recently became friends it's been weighing on my heart because I wasn't sure if you still held it against me. I just-"

"Eamon, we're good," Lyra cut him off, rolling her eyes. "I honestly have gotten treated worse by all of Genesis's friends, what you did was a small inconvenience." 

"Still, it's not right," he responded, frowning before giving his attention to Blythe. "I need to have an actual conversation with you about this." 

She gave him a tight smile. "Well, I'm free after school so long as Nova isn't planning for anything." 

"I have plans, actually," I told them. 

"With a guy?" Blythe asked, sitting up in interested. 

I rolled my eyes. "Why are you so obsessed with me finding a boyfriend?" I shook my head in annoyance. "And, no, I have plans with this one girl." 

"One girl?" They all stared at me until I relented. 

"Okay, fine, I have plans with Serena." 

"Okay, no, seriously, what's going on?" Lyra looked at me expectantly. 

"She's being serious, Serena was sitting at the table before I came over here," Blythe said, looking to me. "Are you going to go?" 

"Well, I was practically ordered. She didn't ask me, she informed me it was happening," I replied. "But, to be completely honest, I kinda of want to. I'm intrigued." 

"Well, if she so much as steps out of line call me," Eamon said, his voice serious. "She's seriously been getting on my nerves lately with how she's been acting ever since I told her I didn't want to date her and liked someone else." 

"You did what?" Blythe's eyes practically fell out of their sockets. 

"When did you do that?" I added on, immediately curious. 

He shifted uncomfortably. "Well, we already weren't speaking, but after you left my house the other day and my family went out for dinner with her family she came back to my house with us because she said she wanted to clear the air and then she admitted her feelings and I informed her I didn't feel the same and then she got angry and has been practically harassing me since. I felt bad at first because obviously no one wants to hear rejection, but now it's just getting a bit too far here."

"Well, that just makes me even more excited now," I stated, my voice void of any enthusiasm. "Maybe she wants me to try and get a good word in for her or something?" I was suddenly confused on why she wanted to talk to me of all the people. 

Blythe snorted. "Yeah, that's it," she replied sarcastically. Lunch was just about close to over, and I sighed as I thought of the fact I still had one more session to go. 

"Do you think this day is ever going to end?" I questioned, as it just kept getting more eventful. 

"I'm not sure, but I do know that I need to get going," Blythe stated. I looked at the food on my tray, which had been practically untouched throughout the time, and I felt my stomach rumble slightly. She noticed my stare and laughed slightly as she said, "Don't worry about it. Lyra can come with me. Eamon will stay here as you finish up your lunch." 

I narrowed my eyes slightly, wondering if she had an ulterior motive, but let my two friends go otherwise as I knew that Blythe's next session was on the far side of school and she still needed to stop at her locker, in the opposite direction. Once they were gone I started to pick at my food as we sat in silence. I was worried at first about how it would look to Eamon if I scarfed down everything quickly, but then I remembered we were just friends and it shouldn't matter to him how I look when I eat. 

I was able to eat a good amount in the short time span we were given, and Eamon smiled as it was time to get up and go. I had one thing at the back of my mind, something he had said that was circling through. "So, I hate to ask, but who is it?" 

"Who is what?" he responded, confused. 

"You told Serena you liked someone else," I reminded. "I don't want to nag, but I'm kind of curious about it."

"Oh." Color started to rise on his cheeks, and he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck nervously. "I- uh..."

"Sorry, I'm overstepping, aren't I?" I raised my hand and gently smacked my own forehead. "You need to work on your filter, I've got to work on my curiosity. We're both pieces of work, I guess," I joked, but then got slightly worried he might take offense to my words. 

Thankfully, he laughed. "The two of us are quite a pair, aren't we?" We came up to where my locker is, the usual spot for us to generally depart from each other after we'd eat. 

I'm not sure what took a hold of me, but I reached out and took his head, giving it a squeeze. "I just want you to know, that I'm really happy with how you've evolved as a person over these past few weeks. You're one of my best friends, and I know I just made that joke about that filter and everything but I want you to know that through all of this, I don't want you to lose yourself. You are a great person." 

He squeezed my hand, and opened his mouth as if he wanted to say more. Instead he closed it and gave me a tight smile, pulling his hand away. "I've got to go to class, tell me how things with Serena go tonight," he said, excusing himself before walking towards his own locker to switch out his things. 

I stared after him, and questioned when the shift in our friendship came where I genuinely felt like I could rely on him as a best friend. My eyes shifted through the crowd and locked with a pair of teal eyes, signature Vacker eyes--although belonging to a Dizznee. Hurt flashed through, and I felt a small amount of empathy for her. I looked away, and closed my locker before walking away, hoping we could have an eye-opening conversation after school. 

***

happy quarantine!! after working overtime (up to 46 hours) for the past three or so weeks, suddenly having no hours bc my restaurant shut down is weird. also my school is going online for the semester and that means i'll get to continue to work at my job for the rest of the year and continue making money where i originally wasn't going to so that's actually pretty sweet. how are y'all doing with your quarantine-ing? 

so obviously nova still hasn't told anyone about the situation with her parents, so last chapter's question still stands: who does nova confide in about her father first?

and a second question: will nova and serena be able to work out their differences?