Chapter 42 - The Almost Confession
507 Words
The problem with Noah carter was that he kept saying things that sounded dangerously close to a confession.
And then acting like they were completely normal.
Which should have been illegal.
Lily spent most of first period staring at her notebook while pretending she wasn't replaying every conversation they'd had in the last week.
It was not going well.
Especially because now—
she knew.
Noah cared.
Actually cared.
There was no pretending otherwise anymore.
The text message had destroyed all plausible deniability.
Unfortunately—
that realization came with a new problem.
Because now Lily wanted to know something.
Something terrifying.
How much?
How much did Noah care?
Enough to worry about her?
Obviously.
Enough to text her?
Definitely.
Enough to remember everything she said?
Apparently.
But—
Was it enough to mean something more?
The thought alone nearly caused emotional damage.
"You've entered the dangerous stage," Emily announced during class.
Lily blinked.
"What stage?"
"The stage where you're thinking."
"I always think."
Emily looked unconvinced.
"Not like this."
Lily opened her mouth.
Then closed it.
Because unfortunately—
Emily was right.
Before either of them could continue—
someone knocked softly on the classroom door.
Lily looked up automatically.
And immediately regretted being alive.
Noah.
Standing outside the classroom.
Talking quietly to the teacher.
Emily physically grabbed Lily's sleeve.
"Oh my God."
"What now?"
"He came here."
Lily looked horrified.
"He is allowed to exist in hallways."
"No, Lily. He's looking in here."
And unfortunately—
he was.
Noah's eyes found hers almost instantly.
Like always.
Like it wasn't even difficult anymore.
Like he knew exactly where she'd be.
The realization hit harder than it should have.
Then—
something unexpected happened.
Noah smiled.
Not the tiny almost-smile he usually gave.
Not the hidden one.
A real one.
Small.
But obvious.
And directed entirely at her.
Lily forgot every thought she'd ever had.
Emily looked seconds away from fainting.
"He smiled first."
"I can see that."
"He smiled first."
"Emily."
"He smiled first."
The teacher handed Noah a paper.
Apparently that had been the reason he came.
But before Noah left—
his eyes flickered toward Lily one more time.
Then he was gone.
Just like that.
The classroom suddenly felt strangely quiet.
Emily stared at her.
Lily stared at her notebook.
Neither spoke.
Finally—
Emily whispered:
"You're smiling."
Lily froze.
Then immediately stopped.
Unfortunately—
it was too late.
Emily pointed dramatically.
"I SAW IT."
"It was an involuntary reaction."
"It was happiness."
Lily buried her face in her hands.
"This is awful."
"No," Emily corrected.
"It's adorable."
Lily groaned.
But deep down—
she couldn't stop thinking about the smile.
Because somehow—
it had felt different.
Like Noah wasn't trying to hide it anymore.
Like every day—
every conversation—
every text message—
was slowly bringing them closer to something neither of them had said out loud yet.
And honestly?
That possibility terrified her.
Because for the first time—
she wasn't sure she wanted to run from it anymore.
- Writer
