Chapter 3: He Knows Everything
1103 Words
Lunch break.
Same as it ever was.
The cafeteria still smelled like ketchup, burnt oil, and wet napkins.
The trays clattered.
Plastic chairs creaked.
Someone’s phone blasted a song that no one liked, but everyone pretended to know.
Lucien sat across from Anthony and Christy at their usual spot by the far window.
The sun hit the side of his face like a spotlight — catching on the slight sharpness of his cheekbones, the way his eyes never blinked too much anymore.
His tray sat in front of him: a dry cafeteria burger, half-smashed in its wrapper, a carton of warm milk, and a small coffee pouch.
The kind reserved for teachers.
He sipped from it like he owned the place.
Christy raised an eyebrow. “They let you have teacher's coffee now?”
Lucien smiled faintly. “They won’t let me, just like any other student, but they don’t stop me either.”
Anthony was unwrapping his sandwich when he opened his mouth to speak—
But Lucien beat him to it.
“How’s your dad doing, by the way?”
Anthony blinked. “Huh?”
Lucien didn’t look up from stirring his coffee.
“Heard he injured his leg during a chase last week. Line of duty, right? Some thief ran across the tracks.”
The sandwich stopped halfway to Anthony’s mouth.
Christy looked from Lucien to Anthony, confused.
Anthony looked a bit flabbergasted. “I… didn’t mention that before...did I ?.”
Lucien finally met his eyes.
Steady. Calm.
Not a threat. Not a flex.
Just truth.
“I pay attention. That’s all.”
Anthony swallowed, not the sandwich — the tension.
“He’s fine. He’s… doing fine.”
Lucien nodded once.
“Send him my regards for his selflessness. Not everyone risks getting themselves injured for strangers.”
Silence.
Not awkward. Just... quiet.
Lucien bit into the burger. Chewed thoughtfully.
Christy was the first to break it.
“Okay, you’re scaring me again.”
Lucien glanced at her. His smile widened — slightly crooked now.
“Don’t worry. I only remember the important things.”
“Like people’s injured parents?” she said, half-laughing, half-worried.
“Like the kinds of things people forget they ever said or did.”
He finished his burger in two more bites, washed it down with the coffee, and stood.
Tray in hand.
“Be back in a bit. Want anything?”
Neither of them answered.
They just watched him walk away.
Christy leaned toward Anthony once he was out of earshot.
“Did you tell anyone about your dad?”
Anthony shook his head slowly. “No. Not even online. Not even texting about it.”
They sat in silence for a moment longer.
The noise of the cafeteria returned all at once.
Spoons scraping plastic trays.
A girl shrieking with laughter.
Some guy yelling about his science marks.
But it all felt distant.
Like Lucien had left a void in the seat after getting up —
Something cold and invisible.
Anthony finally exhaled.
“He knows everything.”
Christy didn’t reply.
Because she knew Anthony was right.
Lucien returned with three packs of chips tucked under one arm, still cradling the last sips of his coffee in his other hand.
He dropped into the seat like he never left it.
Without a word, he tossed one pack to Christy and the other to Anthony.
The timing was perfect.
The aim — dead on.
Neither of them had to reach for it.
He didn’t even sit down fully before speaking, eyes casually scanning the buzzing cafeteria.
“Let’s go to our usual joint today.”
His voice was light. Collected.
Then he added with that dry little tilt of a smirk:
“My treat. Heard Christy’s getting a sibling soon.”
Christy blinked. Mid-chew.
“Wait—how’d you—?”
“People talk,” Lucien said, sipping the last of his coffee. “Some don’t even realize it.”
Anthony raised an eyebrow. “You’re seriously stalking our families?”
Lucien shrugged.
“Not stalking. Just… listening. You’d be surprised how loud people are when they think they’re being quiet.”
Christy looked down at the unopened chip bag in her hand.
Her expression softened just slightly.
A twitch of a smile.
“Thanks. I guess.”
Lucien leaned back, arms stretched out behind his chair.
His posture wasn’t cocky — it was fluid.
Like someone who had nothing left to prove, but enjoyed watching others realize that.
“So? After school. Same place. I’ll be there.”
“Are you seriously paying?” Anthony asked, skeptical.
Lucien tilted his head thoughtfully.
“Yes.”
Christy squinted. “Why?”
He looked at her, unblinking.
“Because today, I feel generous. And maybe I like seeing you two happy.”
There was a pause.
Then Anthony let out a loud, confused laugh.
Christy smiled too — not sure whether it was charm or chaos under his words, but enjoying the moment either way.
Lucien sat there, watching their faces carefully.
Measuring. Memorizing.
The food joint wasn’t much.
Just a cracked plastic sign buzzing "Chili Grillz" with a dying tube light and a dozen tables squeezed into a space meant for half.
But to them — it had always felt like their place.
Lucien arrived first, of course.
He sat outside, sipping a chilled glass of soda, the rim clinking softly every time he set it down. The red plastic chair beneath him
creaked, but he didn’t move. Didn’t fidget.
He just watched.
The people. The sounds. The street dogs fighting over a bone behind the dumpster.
Then Christy arrived — ponytail bouncing slightly, helmet tucked under her arm. Her brow was already furrowed.
“Beat me to it again,” she said, sliding into the seat across from him.
Lucien offered a quiet smile. “Wouldn’t be tradition otherwise.”
A few minutes later, Anthony strolled in, brushing crumbs off his hoodie.
“You guys are actually early,” he muttered.
“No,” Christy said, “Lucien’s just always early.”
Lucien stood up slowly and pulled both of them into a hug.
Tight. Warm. Real.
For a moment — Christy stiffened. Anthony raised a brow. But neither of them pulled away.
He let go, then gestured to their seats.
“Alright, listen. You two want to pull tricks like me? Freak people out? Say things you shouldn’t be able to know?”
They exchanged glances.
Lucien’s smile sharpened — not in a cruel way. Just precise.
“Then sit. Close your eyes. Just for a minute.”
- Writer
